Tag: Michigan Football

Once thought a lock for Michigan’s 2025 class, future murky for Jahmari DeLoatch

The latest on the four-star’s recruitment here. #GoBlue

There was a time in the recent past when it appeared that 2025 Chesapeake (Va.) Oscar Smith four-star cornerback Jahmari DeLoatch was a lock to end up in Michigan football’s class. But now, that potential is a little murky.

As official visits heat up for the 2025 class, DeLoatch was idle this past weekend but doesn’t have Ann Arbor among his future destinations at the moment. He intends to visit Virginia Tech next week, Cincinnati the following week, and then Vanderbilt after. Those schools, and Wake Forest, comprise those who are currently recruiting him the hardest.

But with the coaching changes on the defense, DeLoatch isn’t as clear about where he stands with Michigan and vice versa at the moment — though he is hearing a lot from the recruiting department in the interim.

WolverinesWire caught up with DeLoatch on Friday evening and he divulged where he stands at the moment as it pertains to the maize and blue.

“Michigan, they’re still one of my top schools, but as of staying high, being completely honest, they’re not as high as they used to be,” DeLoatch told WolverinesWire. “Since the coaching staff switched, the new coaches haven’t been as in contact with me as the old ones were.”

Check out our 2025 Michigan football best-guess list here.

At the moment, Michigan still has the edge for DeLoatch in terms of the 247Sports Crystal Ball, where all three predictions have him becoming a Wolverine.

Though communication has slowed down between the maize and blue and the nation’s No. 28 cornerback (per 247Sports), he does hope that Michigan intensifies its pursuit of him in the near future — especially considering that he’s planning on making a commitment on July 2.

“Yeah, I definitely do wish it will but I’m not stressing,” DeLoatch said. “Everything happens for a reason and it’s getting pretty close to my commitment. I’m not – even after I commit I’m not closing my recruitment, of course. But it is getting about that time.”

DeLoatch likes what Michigan has to offer in terms of study programs. Looking to major in either psychology, business (and-or) finance, he also was impressed the times he’s gotten to tour the university, as well as the perennial excellence of the football program.

“Everything about the school is nice. It’s a beautiful campus,” DeLoatch said. “Obviously a great football team with a great school program. I’m looking at degrees and what I want to go to college for and seeing how high they are with certain degrees, it kind of helps me out a lot. Michigan overall is a great school.”

Beyond that, DeLoatch finds the defensive scheme Michigan runs to be appealing. He paid special attention to Mike Sainristil last year and noted how he was deployed. More comfortable playing nickel than boundary, DeLoatch could see himself thriving in Wink Martindale’s defensive scheme.

And when it comes to factors he’s looking for, scheme is at or near the top.

He broke down what factors he’s looking for at his school of choice once he makes that decision.

“The defense scheme they like to run. The coaching, of course. A lot of people will say don’t commit to a school because of the coaching, but I do feel coaching plays an important role in the school. And if I’m comfortable where I’m at. Just outside of football – if my football career ended, would I be comfortable living where I’m at.”

Michigan appears to check all of the boxes for DeLoatch, but it has to be a mutual fit. We’ll see if the Wolverines pick up the pursuit or if he ends up heading elsewhere come July 2.

Semaj Morgan hears pundits saying Michigan will take a step back, using it as fuel

The media expects Ohio State and Oregon to be ahead of Michigan football in 2024. Wolverines WR Semaj Morgan doesn’t believe they will.

DETROIT — Usually when a team wins big, the expectations go through the roof. It doesn’t take a team winning a national championship for pundits and plaudits across college football to suddenly crown a new media darling.

Take Penn State in 2016. After winning the Big Ten — despite losing 49-10 to Michigan earlier in the year — the Nittany Lions became perennially ‘on the verge’ according to many in the media. Yet, they haven’t won the Big Ten again since and have yet to make it to the College Football Playoff.

So, when Michigan football won the national championship this past year, the media jumped on board and started to expect the Wolverines to repeat, right?

Wrong.

The excuse is that Michigan has to replace a lot, but Georgia lost the bulk of its team after winning back-to-back championships, and the Bulldogs were the favorites last year and will likely be the favorite again this year. Ohio State hasn’t won the conference since 2020, but it’s the favorite to win this year — much like it’s been the past three years.

Yes, Michigan has a new head coach in Sherrone Moore, but the expectation is that he’ll run the team like Jim Harbaugh and make the same decisions. However, the Wolverines have not gotten that same respect entering 2024, as many put them on the same level as the aforementioned Penn State Nittany Lions.

And if you think that has gone unnoticed within Schembechler Hall, think again.

“We feel it, but I don’t care for it. I ain’t never care what nobody says,” sophomore wide receiver Semaj Morgan told WolverinesWire. “But I really feel that we use it as fuel because we know everything that’s happening on the outside really don’t matter. Everything we do, everything we do every day, everything we put in, is what we gonna get out of it. So whatever they saying, they can keep saying it because we’re the ones actually there, doing the work, putting it in. believing in ourselves. That’s all it really takes — us believing in ourselves.”

There are two knocks on these Wolverines entering 2024, besides Sherrone Moore taking over for Jim Harbaugh — the unknowns at quarterback and wide receiver.

Though there is a lot of optimism surrounding Alex Orji as the potential starter this upcoming season, with Jack Tuttle and Davis Warren also being in the mix, there are more unknowns at wide receiver with Roman Wilson and Cornelius Johnson gone. But Morgan is confident in what he, Tyler Morris, Fred Moore, Amorion Walker, and C.J. Charleston bring to the table.

Fans might not be able to see it, nor the media, because they don’t get to see practice. But Morgan is sure that once the season comes, the passing game will be sure to impress.

“I believe in us, man. Everybody in the room is hungry, we all want to get better, we all want to win,” Morgan said. “We all got one goal, we all on one track. There’s nowhere else for us to go but up. I feel like it’s going to be special seeing what we can do this year and I love our room because we all hungry.”

It does make sense to doubt in the face of uncertainty, as the national media has. But Michigan was doubted all three years that it won the Big Ten and made the College Football Playoff. And while there may be faces who weren’t starters previously, they were (mostly) a part of the team that did end up just winning a national championship. And that does count for something.

Alex Orji understands importance of accuracy at the QB position

He is absolutely right. #GoBlue

DETROIT — Last season, J.J. McCarthy had the best season from an accuracy perspective that a Michigan football starting quarterback has maybe had ever, completing 72.3% of his passes — numbers unseen in decades. So it will be a tall task to replace the Wolverines QB who has the best winning percentage ever as a starter, but Alex Orji is up for the challenge.

The problem? Not many have seen him throw the football.

Orji didn’t attempt a single pass last year, and though the starting job is still to be determined, Orji is aware that in order for him to win the role, he’ll have to be able to show what he can do with his arm.

The good news is he has an offensive coordinator who helped McCarthy (as the quarterbacks coach) who is aiding him in that regard.

“I mean, it’s pretty hard to play quarterback without throwing the football,” Orji said. “There’s a lot of focus placed on it. I think that Coach Campbell is just an awesome coach, just the way that he’s willing to help individually, whoever it is, from a seventh-year senior in the room to a freshman who has been there for seven days.

“Everyone talks about him like he’s always willing to help — he’s not only focused on one person or getting pissed at somebody whenever something doesn’t go exactly how even they think it should go. He’s just going to try to help us be the best that we can be.

“And so, kind of going back to that culture aspect, I think that’s the biggest thing is you see it coming from the top to the bottom — like it’s not just someone telling you to do it, you see our coaches doing it. You see our top players doing it, and it’s like I gotta be on the same thing. They finding success in this world, I kind of want to find the same thing.

The knock on Orji this offseason is that, behind closed doors, he may be somewhat erratic — though those are rumors at this point. But he’s well aware that if he’s going to win the Michigan starting quarterback job, it will be because he’s the most accurate.

Harkening back to his former head coach, he notes that it’s not being a dual-threat (as he is) that will win you a starting job. It’s not extending plays. It’s not having a rocket arm. No, the most important aspect is accuracy.

“Throwing aspect, Coach Harbaugh once told us, as a quarterback, accuracy was gonna get you paid, accuracy was gonna get you a job,” Orji said. “All the extracurricular — all the other stuff — it’s gonna keep your job. But at the end of the day, you’re not anything without accuracy.”

Michigan standout CB Will Johnson could add WR duties in ’24

Johnson is already projected as one of the top prospects for the ’25 draft

Will Johnson is already a coveted 2025 NFL draft prospect. The Michigan standout is touted as one of the top cornerbacks eligible for next year’s draft as the 2024 college football season approaches.

Johnson could be adding some extra value and sizzle to his draft profile. According to Johnson, the Wolverines offense could tab him to play some wide receiver this fall.

“All the offensive guys love it, and they want me to (play WR),” Johnson said via Clayton Sayfie of On3. “They know what I can do, so hopefully I’m able to do it a little bit.

Johnson, a 6-2, 205-pounf junior, played both ways in hugh school. He caught over 40 passes and scored six TDs playing wideout at Grosse Pointe South High School in the Detroit area. The Wolverines lost many key offensive pieces, incluidng WRs Mike Sainristil and Cornelius Johnson to the NFL.

Alex Orji espouses culture, unselfishness when it comes to Michigan football QB battle

He truly embodies ‘the team, the team, the team!’ #GoBlue

DETROIT — For the first time in two years, Michigan football will have a new starting quarterback. And while the national punditry is sure that will make the Wolverines take a step back, it will be a true competition where a rising tide raises all ships.

The presumed starter is Alex Orji, who enters his third year in college football. With a skillset similar to Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe, the dual-threat can use his legs and has a big arm. But we haven’t really seen that arm in action as of yet outside of the spring game. But others — Jack Tuttle, Davis Warren, Jayden Denegal, and Jadyn Davis — will have their say this fall once the battle begins in earnest.

Still, Orji doesn’t look at it like many others across college football do. If he’s not the starter, he isn’t quitting on his team. He isn’t looking to transfer elsewhere right away. He’s determined to win the starting job, yes, but he’s more committed to the ‘process over the prize,’ as multiple players have said over the past few years.

“I want to know, whatever it takes to win our ball games. If I’m not the starter going into Week 1, I want to know whatever I can do to help the team and if helping the team is me being the starter that I want to work to be that,” Orji said. “It could be a starter Week 1 and someone else can start Week 2, whatever gives us the opportunity to win. I want to be the guy that helps us have the opportunity to give us the best opportunity. So obviously, I would love for that to be the new starter. What I’m gonna work to do is be the starter, because in my head, I have confidence that gotta give us a great opportunity. That’s everything I want to do is try to keep taking us to the next level.”

So why is he looking at this battle so unselfishly? It’s become the nouveau thing in college football that good players who don’t earn starting jobs tend to head elsewhere almost immediately.

Orji espouses the ethics of the university and the football program. Much like how Tom Brady often says that him having to work his way up the Michigan depth chart was a shining moment for his career, Orji reflects on the team slogans, the ethos of the program, and why he supports his team no matter what his role ends up being.

“I think that’s just what it means to wear the maize and blue — the different sayings we have —  ‘the team, the team, the team,’ ‘those who stay will be champions,'” Orji said. “At some point it feels like those are just words on a wall or on a plaque, but once you sit through it, you live through it, you play through it, you realize that they hold truth. And it goes from words on the wall to words engraved on a ring. And that’s when you really feel it and you’re like, ‘Oh, wow! It really means something.’

“And so I think that’s just how you see different things like — dudes like Amorion see how it is somewhere else and come back. He knows it’s a little different here. He knows there’s gonna be different things that we’re going to do, we’re going to try to find success every day, that’ll lead to success, you know, every week, every month, throughout the season.

“But that’s just kind of how Michigan is — it’s the culture, as well. We’re all a family. It’s the same as if I go home, and me and my brothers are working out, it’s like, I want to see them do the best that they could do. But it’s not like I’m gonna try to get more than them on bench, I’m gonna mess with them. Just like I want to see us do the best. I committed to the University of Michigan, I didn’t commit to being the starter. I committed here to support University of Michigan, try to give us the best chance to win and whatever I can do we try to add value to the team. It’s not a personal or selfish ideology when you come here at all.”

With a culture like that, it makes sense why Michigan football has had so much success the past few years. Everyone is pulling in the same direction instead of individuals seeking to do the best for their own gain. This is truly a team and the fact that the presumed starting quarterback has that same mentality shows that the program continues to be in a good place in terms of culture.

Why Amorion Walker transferred back to Michigan football as a WR

Excited to have him back! #GoBlue

DETROIT — He was spoken of as ‘a unicorn’ when he switched over from wide receiver to defensive back, but Michigan football looked like they’d never really see the talent of Amorion Walker blossom.

After switching sides of the football for one year, Walker tried his hand in greener pastures, transferring to Ole Miss at the outset of the offseason. However, once spring ball was over, he transferred back to Ann Arbor. But now he’ll be playing the position he was recruited at.

So what brought him back? Ultimately, Walker missed everything about the program and recognized that he has his best shot at the next level in Ann Arbor.

“It’s pretty much the team camaraderie, the guys — I love being here,” Walker said. “The coaches — I felt like something was missing. I feel like I can get the most out of myself here.”

Walker feels like he did learn some new traits in Oxford but it couldn’t compare to the love he receives in Schembechler Hall. After all, Michigan has built a strong culture over the past few years, and that was something that Walker felt he couldn’t live without.

“It’s been a little (different) a couple of months, but ever since I’ve been back in the building, everyone’s been greeting me back,” Walker said. “Just giving me the love that I was talking about. It’s been good so far.”

We’ve seen wide receivers switch to cornerback in the recent past — like Mike Sainristil — and it paid huge dividends because he had a strong knowledge of what wide receivers want to do.

Though that position switch didn’t necessarily work for Walker, he does feel like getting a taste of what cornerbacks want to do to disrupt wide receivers will certainly help him now that he’s back with the pass catchers.

“I’m gonna say it’s gonna help me a helluva lot,” Walker said. “Playing defense, you look at it in a different lens. What you not feel so good about, things you feel good in areas, pushes you the wrong way when you’re back there. I just kinda know all those tips and how I’m gonna approach the game and attack guys. I think it’s gonna help me a lot.”

So where does he go from here?

There are aspects to Walker’s game that he feels like he was already good at but he knows there is a lot of room for improvement.

“I’d say I was a good route runner but I want to improve my route running,” Walker said. “Every last bit of my game, fundamentally, taking different things, different situations, being a smart football player.”

Walker joins a room with Tyler Morris, Semaj Morgan, Fredrick Moore, Kendrick Bell, and C.J. Charleston. There are a lot of unknowns at the position, but those who have spoken to the media over the course of the past few months have been insistent that fans (and media) will be surprised once the season commences this fall.

Michigan football makes top group for five-star offensive lineman

#Michigan is in good shape here. #GoBlue

Michigan football is kicking off a month of big weekend visits with officials starting for 2025 recruits. Among them is a five-star in 2025 Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman interior offensive lineman Douglas Utu.

Utu is officially visiting along with another five-star, his high school teammate, wide receiver Derek Meadows. Both ESPN and Rivals have designated the ultra-elite status upon Utu by placing him as the No. 11 and No. 8 player in the country, respectively.

And, on the day of his official visit, the Wolverines got some good news as Utu revealed that Michigan has made his top six, along with Washington, Nebraska, Alabama, Oregon, and Tennessee.

It’s thought to be a Michigan and Washington battle for Utu’s services at this juncture, but there’s a long way to go. He’s already visited Seattle but has an upcoming visit to Tuscaloosa to see the Crimson Tide next weekend.

As of current, the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine indicates that Michigan will be his eventual school of choice, with a 31.2% chance he ends up being a Wolverine. At the moment, we have included Utu in the 2025 class in our latest best guess list.

Michigan football makes top group for Ohio State decommit

Oh, this is fun! #GoBlue

Michigan football was late to the party for 2025 Atlanta (Ga.) Douglass four-star cornerback Jontae Gilbert, but the Wolverines are already quite intriguing to the elite defensive back from SEC country.

The twist? He was once committed to rival Ohio State.

It’s almost been a year since Gilbert decommitted from the Buckeyes and he’s still looking for his next school of choice. And there was no thought that Michigan would be in the mix, well, because Michigan had not offered Gilbert — until just days ago, on May 29. But the maize and blue are apparently appealing to the nation’s No. 124 player in the country.

Gilbert revealed his top seven on Friday and Michigan made the cut, despite getting into the mix so late, along with South Carolina, Memphis, NC State, Louisville, UCF, and Georgia State.

The scouting report from 247Sports’ Andrew Ivins:

A longer-framed defensive back prospect with traits worth molding for the long haul. Measured just over 6-foot-1 multiple times summer before junior season and has some verified additional length in the arms. Has repped at both safety and cornerback early on in prep career and made plays at both spots while facing respectable Atlanta-based competition. Viewed by some coaches as more of a safety on Saturdays, but might be best suited for an outside role in a physical snap-to-whistle cover scheme given what he has put on tape thus far as he’s not afraid to use his hands and squeeze vertical routes. Offers upside as a run defender as he works to get off blocks and get ball carries on the ground. Light on ball production, but frame is impressive. Top-end speed, however, a bit of a question mark given lack of data points. Should be viewed as a potential multi-year impact player for a Power Five program if he can keep progressing.

A track runner in high school, at 6-foot-1, Gilbert matches the ethos of the Michigan coaching staff at looking for taller defensive backs. Though he’s listed at 247Sports as a cornerback, Rivals has him listed as an athlete.

Watch Sherrone Moore talk Michigan football for 30 minutes at SMSB

This was really good stuff. #GoBlue

DETROIT — For the first time, Sherrone Moore made an appearance at the annual recruiting camp, SoundMind SoundBody, as the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines. And after speaking to campers, he did what Michigan football head coaches usually do: speak to us in the media.

Moore was more than generous with his time, speaking with the media, answering questions, for 30 minutes. He was asked about numerous things including the transfer portal, NIL, the changes coming with revenue sharing, position battles, his first few months as the head coach, and more.

You can watch all 30 minutes right here at WolverinesWire below.

Moore has now been on the job for four months and he has a solid handle on the direction of the team.

You can read some of what he had to say in the video above via the following stories.

Sherrone Moore consults with former Alabama coach Nick Saban

Amorion Walker confirmed to be working at wide receiver

MSU rivalry still alive despite mutual transfers

What Wesley Walker brings to the table via Tennessee

Jaishawn Barham impressing Sherrone Moore

Sherrone Moore gives speech to SMSB campers

Sherrone Moore says ‘rivalries are still alive’ despite player swap with MSU

This is kind of surprising. #GoBlue

DETROIT — You’d think that Sherrone Moore and Jonathan Smith are buddies the way they appeared to be palling around with each other at the outset of the SoundMind SoundBody football camp at Wayne State.

After each gave a brief speech, the Michigan football and Michigan State coaches walked off the floor together, with Moore patting Smith on the back. But, for now, that’s off the field. Things are certain to change come October.

Both rivals had something almost unheard of just a few short weeks ago — players switching sides. It happens — Michigan got Ed Warinner’s son to switch before the 2020 season. The year after, linebacker Ben VanSumeren switched from maize and blue to green and white.

But this offseason, two players switched sides just hours apart.

First it was starting safety Jaden Maugham who transferred from MSU to Michigan — drawing the ire of Spartan fans. Hours later, Michigan linebacker Semaj Bridgeman transferred from Ann Arbor to East Lansing.

At SMSB, Moore says that he hasn’t heard all of the backlash on social media, but he’s happy that it worked out for both players. And regardless, once the teams take the field on the last Saturday in October, the mutual hate will certainly be apparent.\

“We’re happy we got Jaden,” Moore said. “He was really good player, an All-Big Ten player, so super stoked for him. And, excited for Semaj — he got an opportunity like he wanted, so good for him and all the blessings for him. But, I think the rivalries are still alive and just respected all of them but they’re still alive.”

Moore has been around the rivalry for some time having coached at Michigan since 2018. But this will be new to Smith — though he’s not unfamiliar with being the ‘little brother’ in rivalries, given he was the head coach of an overlooked Oregon State (which had occasionally taken down ‘big brother’ Oregon). It will be interesting to see how the two coaches handle working against each other in-state.

But for now, it makes sense they’d be docile. Because that October matchup in The Big House seems very far away.