How Michigan can avoid a Nico Iamaleava situation with its own star QB

There have been several huge stories in college football so far this offseason. Bill Belichick is the new head coach of North Carolina, Matt Patricia is the defensive coordinator in Columbus, and Arch Manning is gearing up to be the guy at Texas.

But all those stories are trumped by what was reported on Saturday morning, as Tennessee is parting ways with Nico Iamaleava after the star quarterback held out from spring practice on Friday. His holdout — which was one day before the Vol’s spring game — was due to demanding a new NIL contract for the 2025 season.

It takes a lot of guts for Tennessee to do what it did. The Volunteers’ most experienced quarterback now is redshirt freshman Jake Merklinger, who only played in two games last season.

Imagine if Sherrone Moore and company were in this position current day with Bryce Underwood — the only healthy quarterback on the roster would be redshirt freshman Jadyn Davis, who played exactly one snap last season. That would arguably be a worse spot than what the Wolverines were in last year; even if they weren’t great, at least there were multiple healthy options at the position.

It’s no secret the main reason Underwood flipped from LSU to Michigan in November is because of financial reasons. It’s unclear how much exactly he was offered, but it’s definitely in the millions — plural — as On3’s NIL valuation for Underwood is nearly $3 million per year.

There are so many lessons to be learned from this mess for the Michigan Wolverines and other teams that have a highly regarded quarterback on the roster. If Underwood were to hypothetically hold out because he wanted more money, would the Wolverines give him whatever he wants? Would they tell him to kick rocks? Or would they negotiate and eventually reach a compromise?

It’s a tough position to be in. On one hand, you want your team to compete at the highest level every year, and the best way to guarantee that is to have a star quarterback. Expectations for top schools like Michigan are higher now than ever before in the NIL era considering the sheer amount of money being given by donors.

However, giving into a star quarterback’s demands could set a precedent that other players aren’t worthy of being paid more. Or, at the very least, there isn’t enough money to pay other players more because one of their teammates is hogging all the money.

Michigan’s mantra this spring is “Team over me,” so it’s difficult to imagine a world where general manager Sean Magee and the Wolverines would cave into any NIL demands, no matter how talented the player is.

The way Tennessee handled this is the blueprint for how other schools should deal with these situations — shake their hand, wish them the best, and move on.

However, Michigan should take this opportunity to nip any potential NIL issues with Underwood in the bud. Ensure Magee is in constant contact with Underwood’s NIL reps — now, during the season, and next offseason. Make it clear that Underwood can make a lot of money in Ann Arbor, flourish on the field, and then make a lot more in the NFL. Whether it’s through structured pay increases as time goes on, incentives for how he plays on the field — whatever way Magee thinks is the best way to handle it.

There is a world where Michigan doesn’t have to deal with a situation like this — it’s just a matter of being proactive and getting ahead of things before any potential problems arise.

How would you feel if Underwood did something similar and held out due to NIL demands? Would you want Michigan to part ways with him like how Tennessee did with Iamaleava? Let us know in the comments below.