All the recruits visiting Michigan football this weekend

While most Michigan Wolverines fans will be understandably focused on both basketball tournaments and the Big Ten hockey championship this weekend, the football team continues its work on the recruiting trail. The program is hosting a solid group of prospects for visits again.

Here are the scheduled visitors.

2023

IMG Academy (FL) Samuel M’Pemba - Five-star, No. 15 overall, No. 1 ATH

The headliner of the group is M’Pemba, who plays for IMG but is originally from St. Louis. M’Pemba is listed as an athlete but is being recruited by most schools as an edge. Mike Elston has familiarity recruiting M’Pemba from when he was at Notre Dame and had put the Irish in a good position with him before he left for Ann Arbor. Now, Michigan is battling Notre Dame along with the rest of the country for the elite athlete.

St. Frances Academy (MD) Dashawn Womack - Four-star, No. 237 overall, No. 37 DL

Another defensive line prospect high on the board is Womack, who attends St. Frances Academy in Baltimore. Former SFA head coach Biff Poggi is on Michigan’s staff, so there are plenty of connections here that will help the Wolverines in this recruitment. I wouldn’t be surprised to see a Crystal Ball or two for Michigan following the visit.

Springfield (OH) Anthony Brown - Four-star, No. 294 overall, No. 38 WR

Michigan offered Brown back in late August, but he committed to Minnesota just a few days later. He opened up his recruitment again in February and is visiting several other Big Ten schools this month. Brown took a visit to Wisconsin a couple weeks ago and will be visiting Michigan State the day after his trip to Ann Arbor. He doesn’t hold an offer from Ohio State, but getting a four-star out of that state would be a positive.

Pennridge (PA) Phil Picciotti - Four-star, No. 359 overall, No. 33 LB

The linebacker board is fairly compact at the moment and with Michigan’s current commit at the position, Raylen Wilson, visiting Florida and Georgia in back-to-back weekends, the staff needs to make some moves. Picciotti would be a good start as he is from the Midwest and being recruited hard by the likes of Penn State and Notre Dame. This will be Picciotti’s first trip to Michigan, so this is a chance for the Wolverines to make a move.

Desert Pines (NV) Elijha Payne - Three-star, No. 435 overall, No. 37 OT

Payne is part of a group of visitors from Nevada that includes a few more low-rated or unranked underclassmen. Payne doesn’t hold an offer from Michigan yet but has picked one up from Arizona, Arizona State, Arkansas, Florida State, Miami, Oregon, Oregon State and others so far. At 6-foot-7, 285 pounds, Payne has the length to stick at left tackle and could definitely receive an offer after the coaches see him in person.

Loomis Chaffee School (CT) Jackson Carver - Three-star, No. 568 overall, No. 29 TE

Carver attends Loomis Chaffee, where 2022 commit Alessandro Lorenzetti played. However, he is originally from Indiana and was committed to play lacrosse at Notre Dame before he decided to focus on football. He’s only played one season of football, but holds offers from several Power 5 schools. Michigan hasn’t offered yet but it seems likely it happens sooner rather than later.

Fairmont Prep Academy (CA) Collins Acheampong - Three-star, No. 27 TE

Though he is listed as a tight end, Michigan is recruiting the 6-foot-7 prospect as an edge. Acheampong moved to the United States from Ghana in 2019, when he first started playing football. Due to the pandemic, his high school folded their program, so he hasn’t played in the last two years. He’ll probably need to transfer for his senior season to continue to develop, but the ceiling is high here.

2024

Harper Woods (MI) Jacob Oden - unranked ATH

Oden was just on campus last weekend but will be returning again to see Michigan in action. Although it’s still early in his recruitment, it’s hard not to think Michigan is one of his top schools.

St. Frances Academy (MD) Michael Van Buren - unranked QB

Van Buren is the quarterback for St. Frances Academy as an underclassman. He’s unranked, but already holds offers from Boston College, Maryland, Penn State, Pitt, Virginia Tech and West Virginia. This could easily turn into a national recruitment over the next two years, in which Michigan will have plenty of advantages.