On3’s J.D. PicKell shares why Michigan football could be scary in the future

The future is bright in Ann Arbor, despite what haters say. #GoBlue

Not many outside of Ann Arbor gave Michigan football a chance in 2023 to win the national championship, but those in the know knew what the Wolverines had. And now that that national championship lives in Ann Arbor, not many are giving Michigan football a chance, yet again.

Though this year may be a big question mark with a new head coach in Sherrone Moore, a new, as-of-yet-decided starting quarterback, and some new coaches on the staff, the future looks bright for the maize and blue in the eyes of On3 analyst J.D. PicKell.

With the torrid pace of recruiting in the past month for Sherrone Moore and staff, PicKell has taken notice at some of the differences in talent that the Wolverines are bringing in. And thinks that could go a long way to remaining at or near the top of the mountain in the future.

“Michigan, they’ve always been a great developmental school. They’ve always been that school that grabs the three-star or the low four-star and then you bring them in and then they end up having a ton of success because they waited their turn,” PicKell said. “They bought in, they had the right strength and conditioning program, and they got the right coaches around them.

“Y’all, they’re now adding, in my opinion, as Andy Staples would say, a higher degree of raw ingredients being the No. 11 class. What if they do both well under Sherrone Moore in terms of recruiting and developing? What if they take a top 10 class, develop it even further, get the most out of those top 10 class caliber kind of recruits?

“I don’t think Michigan’s going anywhere. And from what I believe, I think Sherrone Moore is going to dial into his process that he was a part of with Jim Harbaugh, going to refine it in some ways. They’re going to prioritize recruiting. It will not be, I don’t think going forward now under Sherrone Moore, a ‘oh, we did more with less’ kind of operation. Not saying you have a top-five class in America though you’ll probably take that. They will be a school that has very good raw ingredients and develops them even further.”

Jim Harbaugh also brought in elite talent at the same pace as some of the other top programs in his early years with the Wolverines, but now there’s a big difference. The culture has changed in Ann Arbor, there’s a lot more accountability, everyone is pulling in the same direction rather than following their own goals.

Should Moore be able to get top 10 classes while keeping everyone focused on the program culture, then there’s a better-than-average that the Wolverines will be able to repeat in the coming years.