Where Michigan targets fall in the new 247Sports class of 2021 rankings

As schools have wrapped up their 2020 classes, they have started to put full effort into 2021. The recruiting services have done the same thing, with Rivals and 247Sports recently updating their rankings for the 2021 class in the past couple of weeks. 247Sports’ shuffle saw a huge shift for several of Michigan’s prospects. Let’s see where some notable players fell.

Risers

Up 214 spots: Hopewell (VA) TreVeyon Henderson

Five-star, No. 11 overall, No. 1 RB (247)

Five-star, No. 27 overall, No. 2 RB (composite)

Originally ranked as an athlete, Henderson has been evaluated exclusively as a running back in these rankings after he was insistent to schools that he wanted to play on the offensive side of the ball. The 2019 Gatorade player of the year in Virginia, Henderson is now a five-star on the composite. He recently locked in his official visit date to Michigan on June 19th, which is starting to look like another big weekend for the Wolverines.

Up 38 spots: West Bloomfield (MI) Donovan Edwards

Four-star, No. 22 overall, No. 2 RB (247)

Four-star, No. 33 overall, No. 3 RB (composite)

Edwards was just nipped for the No. 1 running back spot in the country by Henderson, but still saw a sizable bump in the rankings. He’s now solidly a five-star to 247Sports and right on the edge of the territory on the composite.

Up 53 spots: IMG Academy (FL) JC Latham

Four-star, No. 23 overall, No. 4 OT (247)

Four-star, No. 35 overall, No. 5 OT (composite)

Michigan was out in front early for Latham when he still played high school football in Wisconsin. After Greg Mattison left and Latham transferred to IMG Academy, though, his recruitment opened up more. Now it looks like he’s Ohio State’s to lose if Michigan can’t get another visit to campus.

Up 275 spots: Lewis Central (IA) Thomas Fidone

Four-star, No. 40 overall, No. 1 TE (247)

Four-star, No. 34 overall, No. 1 TE (composite)

Fidone has been the top tight end target for several schools, including Michigan. The latest ranks from 247 and Rivals have reflected the attention that schools are giving him, launching him up to the edge of five-star territory. Expect him to be on campus sometime this spring, though Nebraska probably has the lead here.

Up 152 spots: Napa (CA) Brock Bowers

Four-star, No. 52 overall, No. 2 TE (247)

Four-star, No. 71 overall, No. 2 TE (composite)

Another tight end with a huge jump in the ratings is Bowers, who not-so-coincidentally is another big Michigan target. He’s scheduled to visit campus in early March as the Wolverines look to be one of the favorites in his recruitment.

Up 97 spots: Noble and Greenough School (MA) Drew Kendall

Four-star, No. 78 overall, No. 5 OG (247)

Four-star, No. 62 overall, No. 4 OG (composite)

Rarely do you see a player from Massachusetts up this high in the rankings, but clearly Kendall’s junior film was good enough for 247 to launch him almost 100 spots up. Given that he plays in the same league as 2020 commits Kalel Mullings and Zak Zinter, Michigan will always be considered a contender here. It remains to be seen if they can overcome Crystal Ball leader Boston College, where Kendall is a legacy.

Up 24 spots: New Trier (IL) David Davidkov

Four-star, No. 83 overall, No. 14 OT (247)

Four-star, No. 143 overall, No. 18 OT (composite)

247 thinks a little bit higher of Davidkov than others, boosting him into the top 100 overall. Michigan leads the Crystal Ball for Davidkov so far with no indications that the situation has changed. Look for him to be on campus during the spring.

Up 191 spots: Union (OK) AJ Green

Four-star, No. 111 overall, No. 11 CB (247)

Four-star, No. 225 overall, No. 16 CB (composite)

Although Green is listed as a cornerback to the rankings services, he is being recruited as a running back by Michigan. Green is super fast on the football field and track, holding a 10.38 100-yard dash time.

Seffner Christian Academy (FL) Michael Trigg

Four-star, No. 114 overall, No. 3 TE (247)

Four-star, No. 187 overall, No. 7 TE (composite)

Talking about good evaluations, I can’t even calculate how many spots Trigg jumped up since he was unranked before his inclusion at No. 114 in 247’s rankings. This ranking makes sense given how many top schools have offered Trigg, although Michigan was one of the first and has made multiple trips to his high school already.

Up 94 spots: Highland Springs (VA) Kelvin Gilliam

Four-star, No. 129 overall, No. 8 WDE (247)

Four-star, No. 142 overall, No. 8 WDE (composite)

Fresh off a visit to Michigan, Gilliam gets a nice bump of almost 100 spots in the rankings. While he’s listed as a defensive end, Gilliam has the potential to move inside to tackle at the next level.

Up 264 spots: St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes (MD) Malcolm Johnson Jr.

Four-star, No. 131 overall, No. 19 WR (247)

Four-star, No. 166 overall, No. 31 WR (composite)

Michigan fans have been asking where the top wide receiver targets have been for the 2021 class. Well, it turns out that Josh Gattis has been recruiting these guys the whole time, it’s just taken the rankings services a little bit to catch up. Johnson and his elite speed has long been a top target for the staff, and will make it up to campus sooner rather than later, though he plans on waiting until December to make a decision.

Up 140 spots: St. Thomas Aquinas (FL) Dallas Turner

Four-star, No. 142 overall, No. 11 OLB (247)

Four-star, No. 159 overall, No. 12 OLB (composite)

One of the first targets that linebackers coach Brian Jean-Mary has set his sights on is Turner, who was offered at the end of January. Clearly Jean-Mary is on to something, as Turner enjoyed a solid 140-spot jump in the rankings.

Monterey Trail (CA) Prophet Brown

Four-star, No. 175 overall, No. 15 RB (247)

Four-star, No. 337 overall, No. 23 RB (composite)

Similar to Trigg, Prophet Brown went from completely unranked to in the top 100 in this rankings update. This is yet another ahead-of-the-curve evaluation by Jay Harbaugh, who was one of the first from a big school to offer Brown. That’s going to hold weight as Brown continues to blow up on the trail.

Up 28 spots: Ravenwood (TN) Junior Colson

Four-star, No. 177 overall, No. 14 OLB (247)

Four-star, No. 183 overall, No. 16 OLB (composite)

Colson is another target that Jean-Mary is making a priority on the recruiting trail. The four-star has visited Ann Arbor multiple times and has Michigan in his top group, if not at the top.

Up 126 spots: Oak Park (MI) Rayshaun Benny

Four-star, No. 187 overall, No. 20 OT (247)

Four-star, No. 124 overall, No. 16 OT (composite)

Benny is listed as an offensive tackle, although he is being recruited along the defensive line by Michigan. Regardless, 247’s Allen Trieu has said that Benny would be rated similarly no matter where he played, so this lofty ranking is still relevant for Michigan fans.

Fallers

Down 19 spots: Lakeview Centennial (TX) Camar Wheaton

Four-star, No. 42 overall, No. 4 RB (247)

Five-star, No. 10 overall, No. 1 RB (composite)

This drop is mostly due to people passing Wheaton on the way up, but is probably large enough to warrant a spot in the fallers category. Wheaton dropped to the No. 4 rank at his position for 247, but stays buoyed in the top ten overall and No. 1 running back on the composite.

Down 32 spots: Clarkston (MI) Rocco Spindler

Four-star, No. 63 overall, No. 2 OG (247)

Four-star, No. 47 overall, No. 2 OG (composite)

Spindler slid a bit to the lower end of the top-100, but is still considered a major talent. More interesting is the fact that Spindler is now being evaluated as a guard instead of a tackle. He could even play along the defensive line in college, but Michigan is recruiting him as a swing offensive lineman that could play anywhere along the line.

Down 39 spots: Clarkston (MI) Garrett Dellinger

Four-star, No. 75 overall, No. 10 OT (247)

Four-star, No. 81 overall, No. 12 OT (composite)

The other Clarkston lineman also took a dip in the rankings. After both were considered top-10 prospects in the initial 2021 rankings, Dellinger and Spindler are now in the 50 to 80 range. Notably, Dellinger is still considered a tackle prospect by 247.

Down 49 spots: Good Counsel (MD) Landon Tengwall

Four-star, No. 77 overall, No. 10 OT (247)

Four-star, No. 43 overall, No. 6 OT (composite)

Yet another lineman that took a fall is Tengwall, who lost his five-star status on the composite as a result. Expect Tengwall to take an official visit to Michigan in the spring, although it looks like Penn State will be the ultimate destination.

Down 22 spots: Adlai Stevenson (MI) Giovanni El-Hadi

Four-star, No. 87 overall, No. 14 OT (247)

Four-star, No. 74 overall, No. 10 OT (composite)

After getting a big bump in the Rivals rerank a couple of weeks ago, El-Hadi fell a bit in 247’s rankings, but moved up overall in the composite. El-Hadi’s rating didn’t change on 247, so mostly this was other guys passing him.

Down 22 spots: Bergen Catholic (NJ) Tywone Malone

Four-star, No. 118 overall, No. 7 DT (247)

Four-star, No. 50 overall, No. 7 DT (composite)

This is another minor fall for one of Michigan’s targets. Malone’s rating didn’t change, but others moved ahead of him in the overall rankings. 247 is relatively down on Malone, holding him outside the top 100 while the other sites are keeping him in the top 50.

Down 66 spots: Liberty (NV) Moliki Matavao

Four-star, No. 153 overall, No. 7 TE (247)

Four-star, No. 144 overall, No. 4 TE (composite)

Once considered the top tight end prospect in the country, Matavao fell a bit to seventh on 247 and fourth on the composite. Still, he is being pursued hard by Sherrone Moore and will be making a visit to campus this spring.

Status Quo

Down 5 spots: Nazareth Academy (IL) JJ McCarthy

Four-star, No. 21 overall, No. 2 PRO (247)

Five-star, No. 16 overall, No. 2 PRO (composite)

No ratings change for McCarthy, who only dropped a few spots as others jumped ahead of him. Kyle McCord and Tyler Buchner, commits to Ohio State and Notre Dame respectively, are making slow gains up to his level.

Down 10 spots: Saguaro (AZ) Quintin Somverville

Four-star, No. 49 overall, No. 4 SDE (247)

Four-star, No. 87 overall, No. 4 SDE (composite)

Despite the almost 40-spot difference in the overall rankings, Somerville is considered the No. 4 SDE whether you look at 247 or the composite. He’s dropped from the early rankings when he was considered an elite five-star guy, but he’s still a top-100 talent.

Down 2 spots: Westlake (CA) Victory Vaka

Four-star, No. 202 overall, No. 12 DT (247)

Four-star, No. 200 overall, No. 13 DT (composite)

Very little change for Vaka, whose ranking by 247 and the composite is almost indistinguishable. He’ll be on campus for an official visit during the same June weekend as TreVeyon Henderson.