New 2021 Top 247 rankings are full of Michigan targets

For the first time in more than eight months, 247Sports ranked the members of the 2021 class, resulting in major shakeups and introducing plenty of new players into their Top 247. From these early indications, Michigan is off to a hot start on the trail for these rising juniors, with several top targets represented well.

It looks to be a talented year for the state of Michigan as well, with five players in the top 100 overall, including the Wolverines’ lone commit so far. Offensive tackle Giovanni El-Hadi finds himself at No. 76 overall after being unranked before.

Let’s take a look and see where others on Michigan’s board rank after this update. The composite score only reflects 247’s ranking so far, so those numbers will be the same.

All Saints Episcopal (TX) OT Tommy Brockermeyer - #3 overall (NEW)

One of only three prospects to receive a 5-star grade this early on, Brockermeyer and his brother just visited campus last month, which will be a theme of this list. He’s from Texas and his dad was a Longhorn himself, so this will be a really tough pull, but Michigan already securing a visit was a good first step.

Saguaro (AZ) SDE Quintin Somerville - #18 overall (Down 15)

Somerville RAVED about his Michigan offer when he received it during the staff’s spree in Arizona back in January. Usually those remarks are nice to hear and don’t always mean anything, but Somerville has already set a trip to Ann Arbor for the spring game this Saturday. This is big since he’s coming all the way across the country on his own dime. This will be a long and national race, but Michigan is planting its flag early.

Nazareth Academy (IL) QB JJ McCarthy - # 19 overall (NEW)

McCarthy jumps to the No. 2 quarterback in the country from being unranked, which is pretty rare for a Midwest prospect. He was just on campus last weekend and is one of the top overall targets for the staff. Ohio State and Northwestern are other schools to watch out for here.

Princess Anne (VA) CB Tony Grimes - #27 overall (Down 15)

Grimes is ranked as the No. 3 cornerback in the country, even after a bit of a drop. He already visited for a game last fall and his father recently said they plan to take at least two more visits to Ann Arbor. That alone should put Michigan as one of the top contenders, but this race will also be long and involve the top schools in the country.

Our Lady Good Counsel (MD) OT Landon Tengwall - #28 overall (Up 11)

Tengwall is taking a mid-week visit to Ann Arbor this week, after taking trips to Penn State and Notre Dame recently as well. Those two schools are the ones splitting his crystal balls right now, with the Nittany Lions holding 60 percent and the Fighting Irish holding 40 percent. The Michigan staff will look to change that while he’s on campus.

Clarkston (MI) OT Garrett Dellinger - #29 overall (Down 27)

While it’s not quite as good as the No. 2 overall he was previously ranked, Dellinger still falls in 5-star range. The in-state prospect will obviously be a major target for the staff and have a lot of attention from Michigan fans.

Warwick (PA) OT Nolan Rucci - #30 overall (NEW)

Continuing our run of elite offensive tackles is Rucci, who visited both for a game last fall and in January. Penn State understandable has the crystal ball lead given his father played there, but the pair of early visits definitely gives Michigan a chance.

Clarkston (MI) DT Rocco Spindler - #32 overall (Down 22)

Dellinger’s teammate Spindler also fell a bit, but is still ranked in elite territory. Pay no attention to the Notre Dame crystal ball picks for either at this point, they are at best unreliable. That doesn’t mean Michigan won’t have to fight for them, though, given their immense talent.

Spring Valley (WV) OT Wyatt Milum - #39 overall (NEW)

After a brief one-player detour, we’re back to the offensive tackles! You’ll never guess, but Milum recently visited campus as the end of March as Ed Warinner continues to put in the work on the recruiting trail. This will be another national race, but no schools really have a hold on West Virginia, so it could be anybody’s game.

Belleville (MI) OG Damon Payne - #58 overall (Down 32)

Finally, we’re switching it up...with an offensive guard. Payne hails from Belleville, where Michigan whiffed on Devontae Dobbs and Julian Barnett last year, so it’ll have to keep pushing hard for Payne, as it’s not a sure thing. Having Andre Seldon as his teammate should help.

West Bloomfield (MI) RB Donovan Edwards - #60 overall (Up 9)

Michigan is in better shape with Edwards, who just visited last Sunday with a bunch of teammates. Like Payne, the staff has a commit on the team in Cornell Wheeler, which is nice. The crystal balls are 100 perccent in favor of Michigan, which is great news since the roster is so thin at running back.

West Lafayette (IN) OLB Yanni Karlaftis - #67 overall (NEW)

George’s little brother is continuing in his family’s successful football footsteps. Fortunately for Michigan, he’s also indicated he’s more willing to leave home than his older brother. Considering Michigan was George’s second choice after Purdue, they should be in a good spot for Yanni, who accompanied him on plenty of visits to campus.

IMG Academy (FL) SDE JC Latham - #74 overall (Down 66)

Previously ranked in the top 10, Latham fell quite a bit but is still solidly in the top 100. He just moved from Wisconsin to attend IMG Academy in Florida, which hurts Michigan’s chances since it will expose him more to national attention. Still, Michigan has done enough to have a crystal ball pick for Latham, along with two for the Badgers.

Adlai Stevenson (MI) OT Giovanni El-Hadi - #76 overall (NEW)

Warinner sure knows how to spot talent. After receiving an offer from Michigan, El-Hadi basically took it on the spot, starting off the 2021 class well with a top 100 player.

Avon (IN) OT Blake Fisher - #87 overall (Up 1)

The third player on this list who was on campus last weekend is Fisher, one of the top Midwest talents. Notre Dame looks to be leading for him so far, but he had plenty of nice things to say about his trip to Ann Arbor and will hopefully be up again.

Roger Bacon (OH) RB Corey Kiner - #102 overall (NEW)

Michigan could land an extremely talented running back class if it gets both Donovan Edwards and Kiner, and it’s looking more and more likely it will happen. After visiting at the end of March, three crystal balls came in for the Wolverines, putting them solidly in the lead for one of Ohio’s best prospects in his class.

Bishop Alemany (CA) QB Miller Moss - #128 overall (NEW)

Moss visited the same weekend as Kiner, and got the same amount of crystal balls for Michigan stemming from his visit. In what looks to be a good quarterback class, if Michigan misses on McCarthy, it should have Moss there for the taking.

Highlands Ranch (CO) QB Jake Rubley - #133 overall (Down 51)

Or the Wolverines could go after Rubley, who they really like as well. Whatever ends up happening, Michigan should end up with a highly-regarded prospect at the position in 2021. If I’m correct, Rubley is the only player on this list so far that hasn’t visited campus or is planning to soon.

Phillips Academy (IL) DT Dominic Bass - #182 overall (Down 158)

Bass has always been considered a top target for Michigan, and even though he’s not in the top 25 anymore, I doubt that changes. The only crystal ball pick is for the Wolverines so far, but he’s been pretty quiet on the recruiting trail lately.

Avon Old Farms (CT) OLB James Wilborn Jr. - #221 overall (NEW)

Given Michigan is Wilborn’s only offer so far, they’re basically his top school by default. Connecticut will always be fertile for Michigan as long as Don Brown’s here, and that will make the Wolverines hard to beat.

Martin Luther King (MI) S Jaylen Reed - #230 overall (NEW)

The last Michigan native on the list is Reed, who actually doesn’t have an offer from the Wolverines yet, but is likely a candidate in the near future. The staff hasn’t let some in-state safeties leave lately, so we’ll see if they actively pursue Reed or not.

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If anything, this exercise clearly shows Michigan is still a national recruiting presence, with prospects littered across the country. Offensive line, quarterback, running back and defensive line look promising so far, while wide receiver, tight end and the defensive backfield are mostly missing from the list.

It’ll be a long time before this class is settled, but the program is in a great spot to finish strong with yet another top class.