Wednesday Michigan Recruiting Roundup: Wolverines on top for four-star DL

We’re only a week away from the Early Signing Day, and the Michigan staff is working hard to put the finishing touches on the 2019 class. Let’s see what move they’re trying to make as they wrap up the majority of their class, as well as do a final checkup on how the current commits performed in their senior seasons in this week’s Wednesday Roundup.

Michigan leading for four-star DE

One of the handful of recruits who took an official visit last weekend was Florida 2020 four-star defensive end Jaylen Harrell, who was making his second trip in as many weeks. Following the visit, The Michigan Insider’s Brice Marich caught up with Harrell, who was pretty honest about what he thinks of Michigan ($).

When asked where Michigan was on his list, Harrell simply said “the top.”

He also revealed that the staff views him as playing a hybrid outside linebacker/defensive end role like Josh Uche, a pitch he “like(s) a lot because they do multiple things with him all around the field.”

This weekend, Harrell will be taking an official visit to Miami, but barring a big move by the Hurricanes, he could be the Wolverines’ to lose.

Staff goes in-home with another DL target

Recently, a former top target on the board opened his recruitment back up and the coaches have been working hard to rekindle the flame. 2020 four-star defensive lineman Van Fillinger decommitted from Texas after their defensive coordinator was fired. According to TMI’s Marich, defensive line coach Shaun Nua made a trip to Utah this week to see if they could get back in the race ($).

Right now, the staff is trying to get him to campus for an official, but he already has one scheduled for Utah — the new presumed favorites — this weekend. However, Fillinger may not sign until February, giving the staff time to get a visit scheduled.

Fillinger is 6-foot-3.5, 250 pounds and already plays on the interior for his high school, so he could be a candidate to slide inside for the Wolverines as well. There may not be space for both Harrell and Fillinger, though, so the staff has to prioritize which role they want filled.

Intriguing QB prospect set to visit

In Michigan’s late scramble to add a quarterback to their 2020 class after JD Johnson medically retired, they have shown interest in New York quarterback Dan Villari. Villari has reciprocated that interest, and is now set to take an official visit this weekend, per 247Sports’ Steve Wiltfong ($).

Villari was previously committed to Fordham before he started receiving interest from bigger schools like Michigan and Wisconsin, and getting offers from Kent State, Buffalo and UMass.

He has said Michigan’s plan for him is to walk on for a year and then receive a scholarship if he were to choose the Maize and Blue, but it will be interesting to see if that is still the case or he gets an offer on the trip.

Check out Villari’s senior season highlights below:

Final High School Recap

As promised in the last high school recap of Michigan commits’ high school seasons, here is how the last three players fared in their final games:

In a surprise to no one who followed the feature all season, running back Gaige Garcia and Southern Columbia won the Pennsylvania state championship 74-7 over Avonworth. Garcia had a ho-hum game, rushing nine times for 44 yards and a touchdown and catching two passes for 49 yards and another score. There weren’t too many scoring opportunities for the offense, though, as their defense had three pick-sixes and a fumble return touchdown.

Defensive lineman Aaron Lewis and Williamstown also captured a championship when they defeated Cherokee 30-14 to finish the season 12-1. This was a regional title since New Jersey doesn’t have a complete state tournament bracket. Lewis helped lead a defense that only allowed 112 total yards in the big win.

Wrapping up the trip of victors is athlete William Moham, whose Erasmus Hall squad beat Tottenville 27-0 and were crowned champs of New York City. This shutout was the team’s sixth straight and ninth on the season. They hadn’t allowed a point since Oct. 19, with plenty of help from Mohan, who led the league in sacks.

That’s it for this week’s recruiting roundup! Buckle down for a packed week of content at Maize n Brew next week as signing day draws near.