On today’s Michigan Recruiting Roundup, we will dive into the recruitments of a couple defensive prospects in the class of 2023 the Wolverines are going hard after early on. But first, we must begin with an update on a top target in the 2022 class who recently decommitted from another program.
Last OV likely to be used to U-M for 2022 three-star DB
Zeke Berry, a three-star defensive back from California in the 2022 class, decommitted from Arizona last weekend. Jon Simmons talked about this in Tuesday’s Recruiting Roundup, but since then, 247Sports’ Brandon Huffman ($) was able to catch up with Berry to get the latest information in his recently-opened recruitment.
The 6-foot, 185-pounder said he is “pretty sure” his final remaining official visit will be used to travel to the University of Michigan.
“It’s just a matter of what time we’ll do it,” he said. “At (my high school), we have to take our official visits when we have a bye so it depends on if we get a playoff bye, otherwise it will be after the season.”
Berry used his official visit during his regular season bye week to check out Oregon, another team rising quickly in his recruitment. Other schools still involved in Berry’s recruitment include a couple local programs — UCLA and Cal. Arizona isn’t completely out of it either, but it seems unlikely he recommits to Don Brown and company.
If Berry has to wait until after the season to visit Michigan, he said he will wait it out and visit in December. He isn’t ruling out waiting all the way until the February signing period to sign his letter of intent, so this one could be a while.
Son of NFL coach hopes to visit again soon
Much like with Berry, 2023 top 100 overall player and four-star linebacker Troy Bowles is trying to visit Michigan for a gameday experience this fall, he told The Michigan Insider’s Brice Marich ($).
“He’s planning to return to Ann Arbor and try and make a game this season. He’s still working on the date as of now, though,” Marich wrote.
This wouldn’t be the first visit to Michigan for the 6-foot-1, 205-pounder from Tampa, Florida, who happens to be the son of Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive coordinator Todd Bowles. He visited Ann Arbor back in June and had a good first trip.
“I think it’s a great place to go to school and it seems like everyone is bought into what coach Harbaugh has going on up there,” he told Marich over the summer.
Linebacker is going to be a position the Wolverines want to hit hard in the 2023 class, so it seems Bowles may be among the top targets at this juncture.
Four-star DL also hoping to visit AA this fall
Another position Michigan is looking to hit hard in 2023 as Mike Macdonald and company look to get their guys in the program is the defensive line, and among the top options at this point is four-star Sydir Mitchell, who stands 6-foot-5 and weighs 324 pounds as a junior.
Mitchell, who plays for Bergen Catholic in New Jersey, was offered by the Wolverines back in March and got him on campus in June. Now, he is looking to visit for a gameday, he told TMI’s Marich ($).
“Yeah, I’m trying to get out there,” Mitchell said. “The time I tried to come, the flights were so expensive my parents said we will try again in November.
“Yes, (maybe we will come for the Ohio State game, but) we are waiting for our playoff schedule to come out, so that way I’ll know exactly when I’m free.”
Brian Dohn of 247Sports had a report last month ($) about the schools recruiting Mitchell the hardest, and Michigan was not among those schools. This is an intriguing recruitment, so we will see how interested he really is in Michigan if he’s able to visit again this fall.