The early signing period for the 2023 high school football prospects begins tomorrow, when the vast majority of players sign their letter of intent. In the current state of affairs, the Michigan Wolverines are just in the top 20 of the national team rankings, but have recently gained momentum with huge pickups on the transfer portal.
There are still a few loose ends for Michigan with the class that will hopefully be resolved soon. Here’s what to watch out for.
Is Jyaire Hill real?
Kankakee (IL) four-star cornerback Hill of Jaire caused a stir yesterday when it released its list of the top five schools that does not include Michigan. Instead, Illinois, Purdue, Kentucky, Florida and Missouri were on the list.
This is obviously a huge change from Hill’s recruiting before that, with Michigan being involved for a very long time and even gaining momentum after the regular season ended. In fact, Steve Wiltfong and Brice Marich of 247 Sports picked Crystal Ball for Hill to land in Michigan on Sunday, giving the Wolverines all three predictions.
Michigan was clearly a contender for him and for Hill to not even include them on his top roster means something else is afoot. Does this end up being a troll job by Hill before he pulls a Michigan hat out from under the table during his announcement? We’ll have to wait until tomorrow at 4 p.m. EST when he makes his decision public.
How does Michigan finish its defensive line?
Michigan welcomed a three-star defensive lineman and a former Wisconsin draftee Jamel Howard for an official visit last weekend. That was after Howard visited for Michigan’s home final against Illinois last month.
Still, Illinois and Wisconsin under new head coach Luke Fickell, are making strong pushes for the 6-foot-3, 320-pound. It’s not done yet, but Michigan probably has the best position.
With Howard, Michigan would have a promising interior defensive line class with Roderick Pierce and Brooks Bahr. Enow Etta could also become an inside guy if he doesn’t stay on the edge.
Speaking of upside, Michigan reconnected with top 100 prospects Malachi Coleman visiting Colorado instead, Michigan staff still went home and recruited him.
It doesn’t seem like a recruiting where Michigan necessarily fits in, but Coleman could push things back until February and could give the Wolverines a chance to get him on campus. With Collins Acheampong returning to Miami, Michigan, could use another touted advantage in the class.
How high can Michigan’s class go?
It’s no secret that Michigan’s traditional recruiting hasn’t lived up to this cycle, even after clinching its first Big Ten title in more than 15 years and winning another one this season.
Including high schoolers, Michigan’s class currently ranks 19th in the nation with seven four-stars and 14 three-stars. Added four stars English Karmello and the aforementioned Hill, and three-star Jamel Howard — the most likely additions to the class — would move Michigan to 15th in the nation.
With the proliferation of the transfer portal, however, 247Sports now has a metric that includes both high school recruits and transfers. Michigan’s transfer portal class is currently the nation’s first and may not be complete.
Combining the two metrics, Michigan sits in 15th place overall going into signing day. Even adding the three rookies listed above and Indiana’s tight transfer AJ Barner, who surrendered last weekend, Michigan wouldn’t move up the overall standings.
There’s still February signing day, of course, so that won’t be the final standings for the Wolverines class. They still have a big fish in the five-star Nyckoles Harbor deciding in February, and maybe more surprises popping up.
But for now, it looks like Michigan’s class cap is around 15th, barring any signing day shocks.
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