When Michigan football secured a commitment from 2024 Nappanee (Indiana) Northwood cornerback Jo’Ziah Edmond, it came with little fanfare.
The Wolverines were working hard to persuade eventual Ohio State signees Bryce West and Aaron Scott to defect from the Buckeye State to that team up north, but to no avail. Enter Edmond, who at the time was a three-star Purdue commit rated No. 723 overall in the country.
Fast forward to today. As Edmond continued to get more eyes on him, he has risen in the rankings.
On Monday, 247Sports updated its proprietary rankings, and Edmond is the No. 108 player in the country, the 10th-best cornerback, and the second-rated player in the state of Indiana.
#Michigan found a rising star in 2024 CB Jo'Ziah Edmond (@joziahedmond4), who once again moved up in the latest @247Sports rankings:
– No. 108 overall prospect in the country
– No. 10 cornerback
– No. 2 player in the state of Indiana
– @AABonNBC participant pic.twitter.com/8nZd99CrAE— Brice Marich (@BriceMarich) January 23, 2024
Ironically, Michigan football fans lamented losing Scott and West, but Edmond is only 57 spots behind the former and 43 spots ahead of the latter.
It’s not where you start, it’s where you finish, and Michigan has also done a terrific job when it’s come to development. If Edmond takes to the coaching, and lives up to his potential, he could end up being really good.
247Sports’ Allen Trieu:
Has verified height, size and length. Has also timed well in the forty and shuttle. Multi-purpose high school player who has played running back, caught the ball well on offense and also playing cornerback and safety. Will likely get a shot first at cornerback in college. Has played man to man in camp settings and shown the physicality, ball skills and competitive nature for the position. Has adequate recovery speed. Will need to continue to work on his hips and change of direction at his size to stick there at a high Power Five level. If he outgrows it, he can easily transition to safety. He runs plays down and has explosive qualities. Solid tackler but not a violent hitter. Versatility and physical upside make him a likely Power Five starter and potential middle round type draft choice.
The good news for Edmond is he’ll have at least a year to develop. While he has some lofty shoes to fill with Will Johnson on the roster, he’ll at least have an opportunity to learn from and shadow him, while likely seeing some time in the 2024 season.