Hello everyone! Remember recruiting? In the midst of an entertaining and consequential football season, coverage of recruiting on this website has ran a bit dry with Seth and I tied down by our weekly pieces. Seth still has 1.5 games to UFR, but with no FFFFing to do for a few weeks, I now am going to try and sweep through and pick up the recruiting coverage that has fallen a bit by the wayside. Today is our update on the 2022 class as we hit the final stretch before Early Signing Day, which is in just eight days time, on Dec. 15, as well a bit of a blurb about which prospects from 2023 might commit here in this window. Then over the next couple weeks, I'll handle some of the Hello posts we haven't gotten to yet for players who committed in the last couple of months. As for today's update: 

Where the 2022 Class Stands

It's been a bit since Seth last updated the recruiting board and in that time Michigan has picked up some new commitments. I'm not going to totally rehash everything, so you can go check out the recruiting board here if you want more detail, but let's run through each positional group to get a grip on where things sit: 

OFFENSE 

• Quarterback: Michigan has 3.5* Jayden Denegal, a Speight-type prospect. The staff have typically been taking one QB a year, so this is probably set, although it wouldn't surprise me if they tried to fit one more in given the attrition of McCaffrey, Milton, and JD Johnson. 
• Running Back: 3* CJ Stokes is the only name in the class right now. Stokes is not a highly ranked guy by the scouting services, but he was very high up on Michigan's board and given Jay Harbaugh's track record of scouting RBs, as well as Mike Hart's at Indiana, I'm pretty comfortable taking a guy like Stokes and seeing what happens. Michigan took 2 RBs last year, but with the loss of Charbonnet and possible departure of Haskins, another RB in the class wouldn't hurt. 
• Wide Receiver: 4* Tyler Morris is one of the highest rated recruits in this class, yet is the only WR currently committed following the de-commit of Tay'shawn Trent. Michigan has a glut of receivers on the roster right now but you need to take more than one, especially after only taking two last year. 
• Tight End: Michigan has their guys here, two players ranked right around #500 in the composite, Marlin Klein and Colston Loveland. This position is set. 
• Offensive Line: Right now the Wolverines have two in the class, 3* OT Connor Jones, who has been in the class nearly a year now, and 3* OT Alessandro Lorenzetti, who is one of the big time sleepers of this year as a Quebecois prospect who only recently came to the US and has been somewhat outside the scouting mainstream. Michigan is looking to add another name to this group, even though they're still planning a smaller 2022 OL class before going all-in on 2023. 

DEFENSE

• Defensive tackle: Michigan has two names here, 3* Mason Graham, a late riser who Michigan flipped from Boise State a few months back, and then mammoth 3* Kenneth Grant from Indiana, who fits the size that Macdonald looks for on the DL. Michigan is looking to add another name to this list, especially because Graham recently took an unofficial visit to USC ($), one of several west coast Michigan targets who the Wolverines are going to have to work harder to keep secure/win over now that Lincoln Riley has shaken up everything. 
• Defensive End/EDGE: This position has definitely seen some shakeup over the course of the cycle. Still in the class are 3* Micah Pollard, nephew of Braylon Edwards and Marcus' son, 3.5* Kevonte Henry, who has a lot of Uche in him, and then recent add/late rising 3* Ethan Burke. Michigan likes all three of their commits a lot, especially Burke, who they moved quickly to snap up a few weeks back. If they can keep all three in the class, this is done. That's less certain than other positions, but we'll come back to that later. 
• Linebacker: The Wolverines picked up a big commitment recently in 4* Jimmy Rolder, who brings more of a known quantity to two flier-ish players they already had in the class in raw 3* Aaron Alexander and 3* Deuce Spurlock, who Michigan hopes to grow into a B1G caliber player. This group is probably done. 
• Defensive back: I'm merging CB and S into one DB category because it's often tough to tell which guys will play which positions. This is going to be a very big class and if it finishes strong, it should be the centerpiece of the 2022 class (feels nice to say that about DBs!). 5* CB Will Johnson has long been the headliner of the entire '22 class, and after Michigan got their NIL stuff in order to ward off 'Bama ($), Johnson is locked in. Michigan also picked up the commitment of 4* S Zeke Berry recently, while also still having 3.5* CB Myles Pollard, 4* CB Kody Jones, and 3* S Damani Dent in the class. Keeping Jones in the class could come down to the wire, as Tennessee continues to make a strong push and every additional good DB recruit added to the class makes it more likely that someone like Jones drops out and goes to a school where he can be the focal point of that year's DB class. Despite having five commits here, Michigan is still moving hard to add another piece. 

[AFTER THE JUMP: The targets still out there]

Amorion Walker is a guy Michigan wants to flip in the next week [Barron]

Who are the remaining targets?

As is often the case, the names still on the board here at the end of the cycle are mostly all big time recruits. Perhaps the most likely for Michigan to land is 4.5* S Keon Sabb. Throughout the summer and early fall, Sabb was considered a long shot after picking mighty Clemson in June. To get to this point, nearly everything had to break Michigan's way and well, it has. On Michigan's end, the program went from an apparent sinking ship to 12-1 B1G champions who have entered the exclusive club of schools to have qualified for the CFP. On Clemson's end, the Tigers went from the gold standard of college football to a disappointing 9-3 participant in the Cheez-It Bowl (someone is telling me that this is not America's most prestigious bowl game). Oh, and the guy recruiting Sabb, lauded Clemson DC Brent Venables, just bolted to become Oklahoma's new head coach. Sabb's reaction to the news yesterday was .... intriguing: 

?

— Keon Sabb (@keon_sabb) December 6, 2021

And then not long after that....

BREAKING: Four-Star Safety Keon Sabb has Decommitted from Clemson, he tells @On3Recruits

The 6’3 205 S from Glassboro, NJ is the first to decommit after the departure of Brent Venables to Oklahoma.

More Here (FREE): https://t.co/1TP5FeKgHx pic.twitter.com/zktNtVMDp5

— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) December 6, 2021

Michigan picked up a pair of crystal balls on 24/7, as well as the equivalent from insiders on On3, after winning The Game, and that sentiment should only heighten now that Venables is officially gone and the decommitment has officially happened. Ron Bellamy continues to be hard on the trail after Sabb, as this thing is really down to the wire. Sabb is going to make a final commitment decision on or before ESD, which is now just 8 days away, as he plans to early enroll at the school of his choosing. All the momentum is trending to Ann Arbor, but now that the decommitment has happened, any number of schools could jump into the fray. If Michigan could nail down Sabb AND keep Kody Jones in the class, this would be a six-man DB class for the ages (and a stark departure from the rather poor DB recruiting of the late Zordich era). We shall see. 

Speaking of DBs, 5* CB Domani Jackson -> Michigan is not happening. The Wolverines were left off of his top two announcement (which was USC and Alabama) and there just isn't really any buzz here. Beating Alabama for a guy they seriously want is very difficult due to their advanced NIL operation and the fact that they're, you know, Alabama, and that's not to mention the Lincoln Riley factor, which has gotten serious juice back into the USC program. Beating a healthy USC program for any SoCal blue chip is very difficult. The ties to Jackson were there, yes, but the factors just didn't quite align for Michigan to have success and we as a fanbase need to collectively move on. 

Riley has also caused complications with 5* OT Josh Conerly Jr., who Michigan once felt very good about but now will have to fight tooth and nail for. Conerly visited Michigan back in September during the Washington game, but again the terrain has moved against the Wolverines. Conerly is a west coast kid and has been attracted to USC now that Riley is there, not to mention his home state school of Washington, who has their own new head coach, which brings with it recruiting momentum ($). Oregon was in the mix too, but it's reasonable to think they may fall away with Cristobal leaving. Most of the insiders indicate it's probably Michigan vs. USC for Conerly's services, and the big man isn't planning to commit until formal NSD in February, so buckle in. Michigan is by no means out of it, but it's going to be long and strenuous, as opposed to what had seemed like a relatively solid state previously. 

The recruitment of 4* DT Deone Walker has been rather odd. Michigan once seemed like an easy winner for Walker, being a Cass Tech product who they wanted, but Kentucky has since surged up the board, while Walker has cooled on the Wolverines for reasons that are not totally clear. Some insiders have indicated that the decommitment of Mario Eugenio played a role, while Kentucky's strong NIL game + the allure of playing in the $EC is probably a factor. Walker plans to commit on ESD and things seem shaky, but he is visiting this week, so we'll see if Harbaugh and his staff can make a significant dent. 

In better news, 3* WR Amorion Walker is the second name who Michigan wants to add to its WR class and he has seemed like a favorable flip from Notre Dame to the Wolverines for awhile now. If it is going to happen, it will happen before ESD, and Michigan still seems favored here according to sources ($). 

The longer shots are a list of the following, including 5* OT Kiyuanta Goodwin, 4* WR Darrius Clemmons, 3.5* WR Kaleb Webb, and 4* RB Justin Williams. Michigan is poking around and making an effort on those players but none seem to be noteworthy chances currently. Perhaps more likely are less high profile options who could be thrown into the class later, including 3* QB Bryce Archie, 3* ATH (WR/DB) Koen Entringer, and 3* DT Lemar Law. 

[Barron]

The upshot and thoughts about the class 

I think the realistic best case right now is to add Sabb and Amorion Walker, and then perhaps Bryce Archie as a second QB. Keeping Kody Jones and Kevonte Henry is also a best case hope, the former being in doubt because of the "too many DBs" thing and the latter due to the loss of Courtney Morgan, who was central in his recruitment ($). It won't be easy, but there's a shot the staff could do it all. Mason Graham, who I mentioned earlier is waffling, seems to be more secure after Michigan did an in-home visit yesterday and was responded to with this tweet from Graham. If you managed to keep all three, it would be a pretty good class, but not a home run. Probably in the 10-15 range, where it currently sits. The class will be a little light at OL, but the staff is planning a big OL class for 2023 and they seem to be very high on a number of the players they already have at that position.  

The fact of the matter is that the time frame where Michigan will see this spectacular season really pay off is in 2023 and 2024. It's important to remember that most of the recruiting for the 2022 class took place from late 2020 to the present, a point when a lot of things that are antithetical to good recruiting were true at Michigan. Those things were 1.) a seemingly lame duck head coach, 2.) a coaching staff that was entirely new and had no relationships with recruits, and 3.) a program that seemed like a sinking ship with little discernible on-field success in recent years that couldn't credibly sell itself as a CFP contender anymore. The fact they recruited as well as they did up until a month ago is a testament to the strength of this staff. Those three issues have now all been rectified by this dream season, but it's really late in the cycle to have that rub off onto recruits. 2023 and 2024 are two classes where the meat of recruiting are just getting started and this coaching staff can really get rolling. I believe pretty firmly that those two classes will be excellent. 

Still just looking at 2022, if it finishes the way we think it might, it's nothing to be ashamed about. If you can nail down Sabb, that's a fabulous group of DBs, no matter what happens with Kody Jones. Considering Michigan struggled mightily in the late Zordich years to get quality, athletic DB recruits, bringing in five or six, including a 5* and a few 4* types, is huge. Michigan's arch-rival for conference titles is running a modern NFL spread passing attack with elite athletes at WR, probably a good thing to do your best to match them at the defense's equivalent position! That's what this class would offer at bare minimum. Plus, I've gotten to the point where I trust this staff's scouting abilities when they take 3*/3.5* developmental types after watching David Ojabo, Luke Schoonmaker, DJ Turner II, Hassan Haskins, Ronnie Bell, etc. Their "lotsa fliers" 2018 class was arguably a more productive class at Michigan than their top five 2017 class. The Harbaugh staff can scout guys and we ought to trust the dudes who just went 12-1 and won the conference. 

2023?

Before I sign off I do want to mention 2023, because we'll probably see more recruits trickle in there in the coming weeks. Two big names to watch are 4* LB Raylen Wilson and 3.5* IOL Dylan Senda. Wilson in particular is big because he is committing tomorrow(!) and Michigan seems to have the inside edge on Georgia, who is the main competitor. Defeating a recruiting powerhouse like the Dawgs for a composite top 100 athletic LB from the south would be a pretty huge recruiting win and would show that Michigan means business for this 2023 class. Senda is an in-stater who Michigan is also favored for and will be committing on December 20, and could be the beginning of a very strong OL class that Sherrone Moore will look to piece together. 

Beyond those two, a few names to throw out there before we construct a full 2023 recruiting board are 5* QB Dante Moore, who is from Detroit, as well as in-state 4* IOL Amir Herring, 3.5* TE Khamari Anderson (Raheem's brother), in-state 4* DL Cole Dellinger, and 3.5* ATH Jyaire Hill. All of these players are believed to either lean towards Michigan or be very interested in the Wolverines, even at this early stage. The list of targets for Michigan will be very wide and deep with the recruiting clout they have garnered this season, but these are some early names to keep an eye on.