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Get excited Michigan fans: the Wolverines got a good one in 2020.
With sports currently on hiatus due to COVID-19, which canceled spring football and our first chance at seeing some of the young up-and-comers, ESPN polled 66 college football coaches to see who they thought could be the best incoming freshmen this upcoming season.
It’s an interesting way to go, given that some of these recruits were courted by a significant amount of top tier programs before they selected their school of choice.
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ESPN did the same thing a year ago, with Michigan five-star safety Daxton Hill getting four votes from those polled. This year, another Wolverine made the list, with two coaches saying incoming wide receiver A.J. Henning will be among the nation’s best.
WR A.J. Henning
5-foot-10, 175 pounds
Frankfort, Illinois/Lincoln-Way East High School
ESPN 300 rank: 112
Signed: Michigan WolverinesHenning is an explosive receiver who fits exactly with what Michigan wants in its speed-in-space offense. He will provide more options for the offense at receiver and will give Michigan a true playmaker to go along with Ronnie Bell, Nico Collins, Mike Sainristil and Giles Jackson.
Big Ten assistant coach: “As versatile a player in the country. One of the most electric players with the ball in his hands in the country.”
The quote from the Big Ten assistant is exactly what the Wolverines are looking for on offense, under offensive coordinator Josh Gattis, who took Michigan Twitter by storm referencing his plan for ‘speed in space.’
Henning has the opportunity to be an immediate difference-maker, given his speed and skill-set. As he told WolverinesWire after committing last summer, while he’s somewhat smaller in stature, he can play any wide receiver spot.
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However, the maize and blue will certainly face stiff competition, particularly from Ohio State — which had three players make the list, including two wide receivers in Julian Fleming (ESPN’s overall top recruit in 2020 — but he received just one vote) and Jaxon Smith-Njiba.