Does Michigan football have a shot with 5-star QB Julian Lewis?

Michigan football hasn't had much luck with five-star quarterbacks in the past few cycles. Of course, if you remember that Jadyn Davis was ranked as a five-star when he committed, that makes that statement not quite as accurate.

However, the Wolverines have missed on guys like Dante Moore, CJ Carr, and also Bryce Underwood, who chose LSU over the in-state Michigan football team earlier this month.

Despite his ranking drop, Davis, who enrolled early, is the quarterback of the future for Michigan football. The Wolverines have also landed the commitment of Carter Smith, who is ranked as a top-10 quarterback in the 2025 class according to the 247 Sports composite rankings.

Michigan's coaching staff is also high on some of the young quarterbacks on the roster such as Alex Orji, Jayden Denegal, and Davis Warren. But on Tuesday, it was revealed that five-star quarterback recruit Julian Lewis, a USC commitment, has an interest in the Wolverines.

Lewis is ranked ninth overall in the 2025 class and second among quarterbacks in the 2025 class. He is still committed to USC but told Steve Wiltfong of 247 Sports that he's also considering the offers from Alabama, Georgia, Auburn, Indiana, Texas and Michigan. Sherrone Moore was one of the positive things he mentioned as to why the Wolverines are in the mix.

Does Michigan football have a chance?

The answer is probably not. Unless the Wolverines have really ramped up their NIL game for high school recruits, I don't see Lewis choosing the Maize and Blue. That doesn't mean that Lewis is about the money or anything like that. But the going rate for a five-star quarterback is millions of (NIL) money and Michigan football just isn't willing to do that.

However, if that changes, then the Wolverines could be a very real contender for the commitment of quarterbacks like Lewis. They aren't going to sign for the promise of money in the future though. They want it now and it's hard to blame them.