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Happy Thursday, and welcome to another Michigan Recruiting Roundup!
A lot (of garbage) has happened in the recruiting world since the last roundup — and they all seemed to happen in hoops. However, we aren’t going down that gloomy pathway today. We have some good football news to pass along, so let’s get to it.
Cass Tech OL coach praises latest U-M commit
Michigan football’s newest member of the 2021 class, four-star offensive lineman Raheem Anderson, committed last Sunday. The 6-foot-3, 298-pounder, who plays high school ball at Cass Tech in Detroit, chose Michigan over schools like Michigan State, LSU, Georgia, Ole Miss, Nebraska and more.
247Sports’ Allen Trieu ($) caught up with Anderson’s offensive line coach, William Sassie, after he committed. Sassie recalled the first day Anderson got to Cass Tech.
“The first day he walks into Cass, all my offensive linemen are on the gym floor and (Anderson) said ‘I’m going to take somebody’s job. He took the job and started four straight years at center,” Sassie said.
Of course, he hasn’t technically started four straight years just yet. This upcoming season would be his fourth straight, which is an incredible feat at a powerhouse high school like Cass Tech, especially along the offensive line.
Sassie continued, “(Raheem is) intelligent, smart, coachable, everything a coach would want. I’m going to try like a newborn baby when he leaves because he’s hard to replace. Really, he’s unreplaceable.
“There is not too much Raheem has to work on and I know those (Michigan) coaches will coach him up.”
Given Michigan’s roster situation, Anderson won’t be a four-year starter in college, unlike in high school. But he has a real chance to give Michigan a solid two or three years of playing time before heading off the the NFL.
2022 CB discusses FaceTime with Harbaugh
I don’t like looking too far ahead in recruiting, but this is an exception.
2022 cornerback Jaeden Gould figures to be an elite prospect in his class, with offers already from Michigan, Notre Dame, Penn State, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Florida and more. He hails from the state of New Jersey and used to be high school teammates with current Wolverine Jordan Morant.
Anthony Campanile and Chris Partridge were his go-to recruiters when they were around. Now that they are no longer in Ann Arbor, other coaches are stepping up to make sure Gould still gets recruited.
According to The Michigan Insider’s Brice Marich ($), Gould was recently on a FaceTime call with Jim Harbaugh and cornerbacks coach Michael Zordich.
“It’s definitely great to see that they are still very interested in me and I’m definitely interested in them not just as a football program, but as a school in general on and off the field,” Gould said.
He added his biggest takeaway from the call was “just talking with them again and knowing that they haven’t been in contact since coach Campanile and coach Partridge left and knowing they still see me as a top recruit.”
Gould is not ranked yet on 247Sports’ composite, but he is a top 100 player on 247’s personal rankings. Gould will likely be a tough pull given that Campanile and Partridge, a couple ace recruiters and Jersey boys, are no longer around. As long as Harbaugh and Zordich stay on him, Michigan can still be a factor here.
Re-rankings from 247Sports
Lastly, 247Sports updated its personal rankings on Wednesday, and our own Jon Simmons (FREE) broke down the significant changes for both Michigan commits and targets.
Some of the big risers the Wolverines are going after include four-star linebacker/edge rusher Dallas Turner (up 109 spots), four-star wide receiver Xavier Worthy (up 245 spots) and three-star safety Donovan McMillon (up 525 spots).
Some of the recruits who went down in the rankings include running back Corey Kiner, defensive end Quintin Somerville and Michigan commit offensive lineman Greg Crippen. Click the link above for Jon’s full report.
That’s all for now! Check back on Tuesday for another recruiting roundup.