Michigan recruiting visitors list for the spring football period

With Michigan kicking off their spring football practice just a few days ago, the staff is not wasting the opportunity to get their top targets on campus to see how they run the program. In the upcoming days and weeks, Michigan will play host to several elite talents and guys at the top of their board.

As such, I’m going to take you through upcoming visits through the end of March, which will have someone visiting almost every day, and beyond. All prospects listed are in the 2020 class unless otherwise noted.

The dates some prospects visit will be approximate, as some will be on campus for multiple days. As always, this list is subject to change.

March 20th

Maliq Carr - 3-star, #428 overall, #76 WR

As mentioned in Wednesday’s Recruiting Roundup and in Von Lozon’s piece this morning, Michigan is trending strongly with the Oak Park star, who is willing to play a hybrid H-back/tight end role in Josh Gattis’ offensive system. Carr was just on campus a couple weeks ago for the basketball game against Michigan State.

Noah Nelson - 3-star, #546 overall, #49 OT

One of the several Arizona prospects Michigan is pursuing this cycle, Nelson is a massive 6-foot-7, 295-pound tackle. Based on his offer list, which includes Auburn, Oklahoma, UCLA, USC and Washington, Nelson could be a contender for a massive bump like his fellow Arizonan Tosh Baker.

March 21st

Roger Rosengarten - 4-star, #219 overall, #21 OT

Speaking of offensive linemen who got major ranking bumps, Rosengarten will be on campus the day after Nelson. He also stands 6-foot-7 and attends Dylan McCaffrey’s former high school in Colorado. Oregon has been trending on the crystal ball recently, so it will be good for Michigan to step in soon and try to stem the tide.

March 22nd

Brian Branch - 4-star, #228 overall, #17 S

The staff nailed their evaluation of Branch, who was a big climber in the recent re-rankings. This will be the Georgia prospect’s first visit to campus. Other schools pursuing Branch hard are Ohio State, who he’ll be visiting the week after, and Tennessee.

Jaden Dottin - 4-star, #316 overall, #60 WR

A 4-star wide receiver from Connecticut, you say? Considering Michigan has landed the three highest-ranked receivers from the state in the last decade, you have to like its chances with Dottin. This is his second trip to campus after visiting in December. Like most Northeastern recruits, Penn State is the main competition.

Antwaun Powell - 3-star, #498 overall, #17 WDE

Powell is a prospect the staff really likes, and would fill a major need in the class. This will be his first trip to Ann Arbor. He doesn’t have any crystal ball picks or seemingly any favorites, so Michigan could make a big move during his visit.

March 23rd

Josh Priebe - 3-star, #606 overall, #51 OT (247 only)

Priebe didn’t hesitate to plan a trip to Ann Arbor after receiving his offer late last month. Coming from Karsen Barnhart’s territory in Michigan, he’s laid under the radar, but still holds offers from schools you like to see for an offensive lineman, including Iowa and Michigan State. The Spartans hold 100 percent of the crystal ball picks.

Tyler Martin - unranked ILB (2022)

Martin is still a freshman, but this will already be his third trip to campus. Besides Michigan, he holds Power 5 offers from Boston College, Syracuse, and Virginia. This much attention early on indicates that he’s going to be a highly-sought after prospect when his cycle steps into the spotlight.

March 24th

Cameron Martinez - 3-star, #408 overall, #28 ATH

This will be a make-up visit for Martinez, who caught the flu before he was planning to attend the basketball game against Michigan State. Making the effort to reschedule is a good sign for his interest in Michigan, who would love to have the electric play-maker on their offense. Watch out for Ohio State, who’s trying to steal him away from the state.

Terah Edwards - 3-star, #932 overall, #53 OG

Edwards is a two-way player in the trenches, but one Warinner likes on offense. He’s yet to be offered, but is definitely a candidate to get one when he steps on campus. Michigan State, who know Ohio offensive linemen well, hold the only two crystal ball picks, but Northwestern is also standing out.

Corey Kiner - unranked RB (2021)

Michigan will be hosting another talented Ohio prospect that day in Kiner, who does hold an offer from the Wolverines. Michigan State, Penn State and Wisconsin have also handed out scholarships to Kiner, who rushed for 28 touchdowns last season. This will be his first trip to Ann Arbor.

March 29th

Andrew Gentry - 4-star, #57 overall, #7 OT

Gentry has always listed Michigan as one of his top schools, despite never visiting campus. Well, that will change at the end of the month, in a huge opportunity for the staff to strike. BYU actually has two of the three crystal ball picks, with the other being foggy. However, schools like Notre Dame, Alabama and UCLA are all going hard after the Colorado prospect.

Jordan Morant - 4-star, #113 overall, #8 S

Morant may be the top target at the safety position, and the attention the staff is showing him is paying off. This will reportedly be a three-day day unofficial visit, which is obviously huge. Penn State and Ohio State are the other main contenders, but I like the Wolverines chances here. Expect to see some crystal balls roll in for Michigan after his visit.

Zak Zinter - 4-star, #226 overall, #23 OT

Rounding out a star-studded day will be Zinter, who Michigan will have to keep recruiting hard if they want to maintain the edge they’ve built for the Massachusetts prospect. Zinter’s visited a couple times before, but is also getting interest from several other schools after he was re-evaluated as a solid 4-star type. Notre Dame is certainly a contender, but I’d watch out for Florida, who his family were fans of when they lived in the state.

March 30th

Daniyel Ngata - 4-star, #70 overall, #2 APB

Like Gentry, Ngata has always included Michigan as one of his top schools, despite never visiting. I expect Ngata to be very receptive to whatever Josh Gattis schemes up for him on offense. He has one crystal ball for Washington, but the writer who submitted it recently admitted the pick is outdated now.

Golden Achumba - 3-star, #493 overall, #24 OG

Michigan offered Achumba over a year ago, and he’ll finally be making a visit to campus while he swings through the state. The Maryland native’s only crystal ball pick is to the hometown Terrapins, who look to have a good lead.

Elijah Gaines - 3-star, #571 overall, #44 ATH

Gaines is first part of a duo from Episcopal in Virginia, former home of Luiji Vilain, visiting that weekend. It looks like most schools are recruiting Gaines on the defensive side of the ball as a safety. Notre Dame also just signed one of their teammates and is the primary competition.

Bryce Steele - unranked safety (2021)

Steele is the second part of the Episcopal safety duo visiting campus, part of Michigan’s renewed vigor in the state of Virginia. Again, watch out for the Fighting Irish, but Steele has plenty of time to go in his recruitment.

March 31st

Tosh Baker - 4-star, #39 overall, #4 OT

Wrapping up the month of March is the highest ranked guy so far in Baker, who absolutely rocketed up the rankings last month. Baker is a national recruit and is heavily considering schools spread out from his home state of Arizona like Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma and UCLA. Michigan did a great job of identifying Baker early though, which should pay off as his recruitment plays out.

April 6th

This is the day of the first open practice, so I expect there to be more names who pop up as the date approaches.

Blake Fisher - 4-star, #88 overall, #9 OT (2021, 247 only)

Fisher looks to be one of the top players in the Midwest, if not the entire country of the 2021 class. The Indiana prospect plays for Avon, Brandon Peters’ former school. Fisher already has two crystal ball picks for Notre Dame, a school you’re tired of hearing at this point.

JJ McCarthy - unranked QB (2021)

McCarthy also has the profile to end up as an elite prospect when it’s all said and done. Notre Dame was previously the main competition for the Illinois prospect, but they just signed another elite prospect at the position in Tyler Buchner. That opens the door for Michigan, who now seem to be battling Northwestern for his top spot.

April 13th

The spring game will provide ample opportunity to host recruits, and I’ll probably have a more comprehensive visitors list when that day nears, but here’s who has already scheduled visits for the game.

Keontae Jenkins - 4-star, #245 overall, #18 CB

Yet another Virginia prospect who will be on campus soon is Jenkins, who received his offer from Michigan at the end of January. He holds no crystal ball picks, but Virginia Tech and Florida State are standing out right now.

Quintin Somerville - 4-star, #5 overall, #2 SDE (2021, 247 only)

Ever since he was offered by Michigan, Somerville has been strong in his interest in the Wolverines. He’s going to be an elite player in the 2021 class, and getting him across the country from Arizona for an unofficial is huge for Michigan’s chances here. Watch out for him moving forward.

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As you can see, the next few weeks are going to be busy around Schembechler Hall. From Arizona to Virginia, the staff is attracting top talent across the country to make visits to campus, mostly before the official visit period starts, which is significant since the school can then pay for return trips later on.

We’ll see how these visits pay off in the future and who else will join this ever-growing list moving forward.