Friday Michigan Recruiting Roundup: Wolverines impress 2020 target’s mom

Welcome in to the final Michigan Recruiting Roundup of the week!

It’s pretty clear who are the final targets for Michigan in the 2020 class, and today we will talk about two of those players. We will also discuss a couple potential 2021 targets moving forward. Let’s get to it!

U-M impresses 2020 OT’s mother

The Wolverines are looking to add one more offensive tackle to the 2020 class, and one of those guys and his family watched the blowout over MSU last weekend — three-star James Pogorelc. The 6-foot-7, 270-pounder from Chantilly, Virginia is down to a handful of schools, including Michigan, Stanford, Virginia and North Carolina.

The Michigan Insider’s Brice Marich ($) caught up with Pogorelc’s mom to get the scoop on how she enjoyed her time in Ann Arbor.

“It was the first time we had been there and it was very impressive,” Mrs. Pogorelc said. “The actual game experience and the size and enthusiasm of the crowd was impressive. Also the effort that the coaches and staff went through to provide a great experience and as much information as possible during the short visit was much appreciated.”

The Pogorelc family will take an official visit back to Michigan the weekend of Dec. 7, but Marich also reports ($) Michigan may have a better standing with 2020 four-star offensive tackle Andrew Gentry. Pogorelc is reportedly very high on Stanford, and 100 percent of the crystal balls are in for Pogorelc to head to Palo Alto.

Regardless, Ed Warinner and Michigan are really pushing to land one more offensive tackle in this class. They landed six offensive linemen (four four-stars) in the 2019 class and have four committed (two four-stars) in 2020. Even if they don’t get one more guy, the offensive line room is looking as strong as it ever has.

U-M out in front for 2021 DE

All it took was a scholarship offer to be sent out to him, but according to TMI’s Marich ($) 2021 three-star defensive end Keeshawn Silver has named Michigan his leader as of now.

The offer was sent out this past week.

“Top school right now,” Silver said.

Defensive line coach Shaun Nua is the one who extended the scholarship to the 6-foot-5, 236-pounder from Rocky Mount, North Carolina. This was the first time Silver actually spoke to Nua at all.

“He’s a pretty cool guy,” Silver said. “Really can’t say much too much because it wasn’t that long of a call, but he’s very cool and I would like to meet him in person.”

Silver holds other offers from Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Boston College, Tennessee and more. He is the No. 336 overall player in the 2021 class, per 247Sports’ composite. He sits 16 spots outside four-star range.

Recruiting expert talks U-M’s chances with 2020 QB

Finally, let’s end on a quick note on 2020 four-star quarterback CJ Stroud. Michigan offered him a couple weeks ago when JD Johnson medically retired. Many experts peg Ohio State as the front-runner in this race, but 247Sports West Coast recruiting expert Greg Biggins told TMI’s Sam Webb it is a wide open recruitment ($).

“I don’t think he has a leader, to be honest with you,” Biggins said. “I know a lot of the rumbling came right after his unofficial visit (to OSU). But that was kind of before his recruiting kind of really took off with USC, UCLA, Michigan, Georgia, all had gotten a lot more involved.”

Biggins also pointed out the other top schools Stroud is looking into all have a quarterback committed in their 2020 classes. Michigan, meanwhile, is still looking for its one.

“I think the fact that Michigan kind of got involved late, you might say ‘oh that’s going to set them back,’ but the fact is they’re the one school in the group that can offer him ‘hey, we don’t have a quarterback committed.’ Every other school does have a guy committed — Georgia does, Oregon does, UCLA does and Ohio State does.”

Add in the fact that Stroud’s good buddy — 2020 four-star cornerback Darion Green-Warren — is also visiting Michigan with him on Dec. 7, and that gives Michigan another advantage.

If Stroud truly is wide open in his recruitment, Michigan offering him so late may not be a terrible thing. But a lot will be riding on his official visit in a couple weekends. We will have an update after that visit, so be sure to stay tuned.

That’s all for this week! Enjoy your weekend, and be sure to check back on Monday for another Recruiting Roundup!