Posts by: Thunder

2025 Recruiting Update: June 22, 2023

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2025

Rowan Byrne – OT – New Rochelle (NY) Iona: Byrne is a 6’6″, 290 lb. prospect with offers from Florida, Notre Dame, and Penn State, among others. He has noted that Michigan, Notre Dame, and Wisconsin are the three schools sticking out to him early on.

Marquise Davis – RB – Cleveland (OH) Cleveland Heights: Davis is a 6’0″, 190-pounder with offers from Miami, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Penn State, among others. He’s a 4-star, the #11 running back, and #137 overall.

Bo Jackson – RB – Cleveland (OH) Villa Angela-St. Joseph: Jackson is a 6’1″, 190 lb. prospect with offers from Kentucky, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Penn State, among others. He’s a 4-star, the #7 athlete, and #130 overall. He visited Ann Arbor a couple weeks ago but was unable to participate in Michigan’s camp due to injury. You can check out one of his more amazing highlights below:

2023 Season Countdown: #97 Jerome Nichols

Name: Jerome Nichols
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 216 lbs.
High school: Detroit (MI) Renaissance
Position: Linebacker
Class: Redshirt junior
Jersey number: #50
Last year: I ranked Nichols #100 and said he would be a backup linebacker (LINK). He played in two games.
TTB Rating: N/A

Michigan has a lot of backups but not a lot of proven players at inside linebacker. Last year there was an opportunity for a backup linebacker to work his way into the rotation, but that turned out to be true freshman Jimmy Rolder. Nichols did start to work his way onto the field on special teams in a couple of blowout games against Hawaii and UConn, but after mid-September, he was back to watching from the sideline on Saturdays.

I expect more of the same in 2023. While Nikhai Hill-Green’s departure for Charlotte opens up some room on the depth chart, Hill-Green didn’t play at all last year due to injury. Meanwhile, Junior Colson and Michael Barrett both return, not to mention Rolder and Nebraska transfer Ernest Hausmann. I don’t see a path to defensive snaps for Nichols, but he could once again earn some special teams opportunities.

Prediction: Backup linebacker and special teamer

2023 Season Countdown: #98 Roderick Pierce

Name: Roderick Pierce
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 290 lbs.
High school: Oak Lawn (IL) Brother Rice
Position: Defensive tackle
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: Pierce was a senior in high school (LINK).
TTB Rating: 79

Pierce is a good prospect who happens to play a position that is very difficult to play as a true freshman. There are occasionally players like Mason Graham who fit in just fine as true freshmen, but more often, even upper tier prospects end up like Kenneth Grant. Grant was a 6’4″, 335 lb. monster coming out of high school and he played very little in 2022.

Pierce is starting off smaller – which should help with adjusting to the conditioning aspect of college football – but he will probably need to add weight and strength in order to get on the field. Michigan also has a solid group of returning players, including Graham, Grant, Kris Jenkins, and Rayshaun Benny, not to mention some unproven young guys Pierce will have to battle in order to even be third- or fourth-string.

Prediction: Redshirt

Visitors: June 23-25, 2023

2024

Gatlin Bair – WR – Burley (ID) Burley: Bair is a 6’2″, 180-pounder with offers from Michigan, Oregon, and TCU, among others. He’s a 4-star, the #10 wide receiver, and #44 overall. As a junior in 2022, he caught 73 passes for 1,073 yards and 18 touchdowns. Because he plans to go on a mission after high school, he will not plan to enroll until 2026, so this is a recruitment for the long-term. In other words, by the time he would enroll at Michigan, Jadyn Davis would be a junior. This is an official visit for Bair, whose coach was Colston Loveland’s high school coach.

Michai Boireau – DT – Hampton (GA) Creekside: Boireau is a 6’5″, 390 lb. prospect with offers from Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Tennessee, and Texas, among others. He’s a 3-star, the #97 defensive lineman, and #998 overall. This is an official visit. UPDATE: Boireau canceled his official visit plans and committed to Florida.

Blake Frazier – OT – Austin (TX) Vandegrift: Frazier is committed to Michigan (LINK).

Jameer Grimsley – WR – Tampa (FL) Catholic: Grimsley is a 6’3″, 185-pounder with offers from Alabama, Florida State, Michigan, North Carolina, Penn State, and others. He’s a 4-star, the #18 cornerback, and #231 overall. This is an official visit, and he has officials scheduled to all the aforementioned schools.

Hit the jump for more.

Devon Baxter, Wolverine

Brandywine (MD) Gwynn Park defensive end Devon Baxter committed to Michigan on Monday evening. He picked the Wolverines over offers from Maryland, Penn State, Tennessee, and Virginia Tech, among others.

Baxter is a 6’6″, 235 lb. prospect. As a junior in 2022, he made 48 tackles, 21 tackles for loss, and 2 sacks. He also caught 12 passes for 181 yards and 4 touchdowns.

RANKINGS
ESPN: Unranked
On3: 4-star, 90 grade, #27 EDGE
Rivals: 3-star, 5.7 grade, #38 SDE
247 Sports: 3-star, 88 grade, #41 EDGE

Hit the jump for more.