We start with relatively positive news about Michigan’s top 2020 target, MI DE Braiden McGregor. Sam Webb put it best when he discussed the “afterglowy” comments that were published post-Notre Dame visit, which was McGregor’s first official visit and one where he was close to committing; he told Irish Illustrated he also got that I-might-just-commit feeling at Alabama and Michigan as well. It’s been almost a month now and not only has he not pledged to Notre Dame, but there are once again positive rumblings on the Michigan side of things.

The Webb article linked above praises Jim Harbaugh for the length of time and connection that he’s made with McGregor and his family. There’s another coach mentioned near the end of that article who is the subject of much of the rest of the reporting after McGregor’s most recent unofficial to Michigan: Shaun Nua. Though Nua’s pretty much been recruiting McGregor from the minute he got the Michigan job, he’s found a way to recruit McGregor with persistence but without annoyance. McGregor mentioned in a video interview with The Wolverine’s Brandon Brown that Nua told him that he was trying not to text him so much that he overwhelmed McGregor, who then said it was big for him that Michigan recruits him hard but also gives him space to think.

McGregor’s involved his family heavily in his recruitment, and it seems they have the same appreciation for Nua’s personality and recruiting tactics as McGregor. McGregor’s father, from an interview with The Michigan Insider’s Brice Marich:

Adding on Coach Nua: “I can’t say a bad thing about the guy. He’s very personable and very easy to talk to. He’s very genuine and very caring. Obviously, he wants Braiden to come there, but he’s said it many times if Michigan isn’t the fit for you, then I respect that and you got to do what’s best for you. He does a good job recruiting him, but at the same time, he’s telling Braiden to do what’s best for you and if it’s not here, we understand.

It also says something about McGregor’s interest level that he made sure to get his recent visit in before the team left for South Africa so he could spend time with players, who will be off until June. That piece of the trip also went well, as did the scheme-fit portion of McGregor’s chat with the coaching staff. His father told Marich that they see him fitting into the Josh Uche mold and playing a little bit of linebacker and weak-side end and, if his frame dictates it, strong-side end.

Marich says he thinks this comes down to Michigan and Notre Dame, and at this point all Michigan can do is keep utilizing the tactics they have been and wait for a decision that could come…sometime. McGregor has only used one official visit and, though he said he doesn’t need to take an official to Michigan or Ohio State, might take another unofficial to Michigan before making his final choice.

[After THE JUMP: all the safeties, all the 2021s]

Michigan is also in a favorable spot with [*clicks through open tabs*] all the good safeties. The last edition of this venerable series linked to bits of information from NJ S Jordan Morant’s recent visit, all of which was positive. Morant later spoke with WolverinesWire’s Evan Petzold and said he thought Michigan could be a good fit because they like his cover skills and physicality, the blend of which could eventually steer him to safety, corner, or Viper.

Morant, currently the highest-ranked safety in the 247 composite (#139, #7 S) on Michigan’s top targets list, must also be feeling afterglowy, because he was one of four Michigan crystal balls submitted yesterday by 247’s Steve Lorenz. Bill Greene also submitted a Michigan crystal ball yesterday afternoon, which pushed Michigan into the lead with 44% of CBs (Penn State’s at 33%). And though his tape shows a speedy, press-proficient athlete deserving of his ranking, Lorenz reports that it’s another four-star who might be Michigan’s top overall target at safety.

That honor goes to VA S Malcolm Greene. He has held a Michigan offer since last May, and though he’s seemingly most interested in Clemson at this point (using two unofficial visits as a proxy for interest with no crystal balls cast) Lorenz reports that his Clemson offer might not be committable. That’s good news for Michigan, and it’s news that shouldn’t affect the rest of Michigan’s most coveted safety prospects, as Lorenz says all of the safeties on 247’s top targets list are takes right now. Michigan will likely have their pick of safeties.

Lorenz didn’t go so far as to put in a crystal ball for Greene, but he did for NJ S RJ Moten. Michigan offered Moten just last week, and he is included among the five safeties Lorenz says Michigan is targeting in 2020 and is now one of Michigan’s top targets. Moten spoke with Marich and flat-out said Michigan is his current leader, adding that he is “beyond interested” in the school and will be visiting early in June. His rapidly accelerating relationship with Michigan mirrors his recruiting profile, which exploded after a good performance at a regional The Opening event in early April; 247 had him ranked #839 overall at the end of March and now have him at #176. Lorenz thinks Michigan also leads for three-star VA S Elijah Gaines, which makes in-state prospect Makari Paige, despite a head coach who is a Michigan alum and a classmate committed to Michigan in Cornell Wheeler, the one for which they don’t lead. Thanks a lot, Ohio State, which you can’t really call That School Down South when discussing recruiting because there’s too great a chance the first thing that comes to mind when reading that is Georgia or Alabama or  school of that ilk.

Lorenz did go so far as to put in a crystal ball for VA DE Antwaun Powell, who made a jump in the composite from around #650 in the middle of February to #129. He’s now a solid four-star with a rating of 0.9409 and one other crystal ball, that being a Michigan one submitted last week by Irish Illustrated’s Tom Loy.

Moving back to the secondary, MI CB Andre Seldon earned defensive back MVP honors at the recent Rivals camp in Cincinnati, also receiving an invitation to the Rivals Five-Star Challenge at the event. He spoke with The Wolverine’s Brandon Brown about who he’s recruiting and came away with a surprising name: FL CB Henry Gray. The #80 overall prospect decommitted from Miami in December but has since unofficially visited the school and attended their junior day. Even so, Seldon says Gray reached out to him about Michigan, and things seem to be trending upward in a hurry from the Wolverines’ perspective as Gray said they’re right up there with Ohio State in his top group. Gray spoke with Brown about his interest in Michigan and noted that they’ve been recruiting him hard the past couple of months, and he has set a visit date for early June.

Maybe the internet should come up with some other bizarro criticism of Ed Warinner because he has treated the criticism that he’s strangled the reputation that he’s a lackluster recruiter worse than Vader did Admiral Ozzel. He has gotten his top targets to visit campus or schedule visits; Brice Marich reported this week that #73 overall prospect (and #3 OG) Andrew Raym, currently thought to be leaning toward in-state Oklahoma, will be taking an unofficial in June.

Four-star Washington, D.C. OT Olu Fashanu is no exception. He visited a few weeks ago, and now 247’s Steve Lorenz reports that it looks like Michigan and Penn State are in the lead for his commitment at this point. Fashanu’s visit reaction was basically “I like the coaches because they talked about academics and not just football,” which seems like a very Michigan thing to say.

Another very Michigan thing is taking annual trips abroad in the name of education and football. Trips like these can benefit more than just the team, as they make a pretty good and obvious recruiting pitch. Three-star AZ OT Noah Nelson told 247 that he spoke with Ed Warinner about Michigan’s trip to South Africa earlier this week, and that taking a trip like that would be cool to be a part of. Squirm, Admiral Ozzel.

2021

247’s Steve Lorenz dropped a nice little bit of info about one of the nation’s top corners (specifically #2 according to 247). Someone from the coaching staff visited VA CB Tony Grimes’ school this week, and though the article doesn’t specify which coach it must have gone pretty well because Lorenz says the staff has some confidence in being able to get Grimes back on campus for an unofficial visit this summer. He last visited Michigan for last November’s Penn State game.

One big (literally and metaphorically, the guy is 6’8” and 266 pounds) recruit already making a return visit is PA OT Nolan Rucci. Penn State has the early crystal ball lead on three CBs, but Rucci made a point of coming back to Michigan to learn more about the program and spend time with Ed Warinner. Rucci, the #30 overall player in his class, told Brice Marich that he wanted to come back to learn more about Michigan’s engineering programs. It sounds like he was also impressed with the detailed grading that takes place in Ed Warinner’s room as well as the amount of data strength and conditioning coach Ben Herbert collects. Rucci also spoke with The Wolverine’s Austin Fox about his visit. That visit report contains the usual quotes that seemingly every prospect gives recently about how down to earth and personable Jim Harbaugh is, but what stood out to me is that Rucci mentioned the burger he had on the visit in both of the articles. A man after my own heart. He visited Ohio State after Michigan and I didn’t see any articles about that visit, but there are a few things out there about Notre Dame making a push to get him to visit again. Even so, Rucci plans to attend a Michigan game this fall, so the staff should have another opportunity to make their pitch to him in person.

Another massive (again, literally and metaphorically, sorry for the corniness) prospect just received a Michigan crystal ball from Steve Lorenz yesterday. MI OT Rocco Spindler visited a couple of weeks ago with teammate and fellow uber-prospect Garrett Dellinger, and apparently there’s enough information out now for Lorenz to feel comfortable following Allen Trieu and Brice Marich in submitting Michigan CBs. Spindler is ranked #32 overall and the #2 DT by 247, but there’s a real chance he ends up at guard instead.

IL QB JJ McCarthy, a five-star whom 247 has ranked #19 overall and the #2 pro-style passer, has set a return visit date. Steve Lorenz reports he’ll be back on campus May 11th, and the visit figures to be a huge one for a player trending Michigan’s way. As The Wolverine’s Brandon Brown notes, Ohio State receiving a commitment earlier this week from PA QB Kyle McCord (the #8 pro-style QB, per 247) “essentially seems to seal the deal for McCarthy to the Wolverines.”