Five upcoming official visits Michigan football must capitalize on

As the summer months near, recruits are shaping up their lists of what schools they will be taking official visits to as they contemplate their college decisions.

Here are five prospects who will be taking official visits to Ann Arbor in the month of June the Michigan Wolverines could stand to impress to help their chances on the recruiting trail.

Collins Acheampong

Four-star DE, Fairmount Prep Academy (Visiting June 10)

Acheampong is a rising defensive end from the West Coast (Anaheim, CA) who Mike Elston, Jesse Minter and the Michigan coaching staff have gained a lot of momentum on within the last couple months. In late April, Acheampong listed Michigan among his top six schools after taking an unofficial visit to Ann Arbor in March.

The 6-foot-7, 230-pounder spoke highly of Michigan when he talked to 247Sports recently, but said he is looking forward to being able to spend more time with the coaching staff this time around.

When Acheampong announced his top schools, he also set a commitment date of July 1. With June 10 being his official visit to Michigan, this will give the Wolverines a chance to make a strong pitch to convince him to leave the West Coast.

UCLA and Washington are also expected to get official visits from Acheampong. Washington tight ends coach Nick Sheridan, an ex-Michigan quarterback, is the lead recruiter for the Huskies in this one, which makes for a unique battle.

Acheampong is a multi-sport athlete in high school and plays both sides of the ball on his high school football team, but Michigan is recruiting him as a defensive end. He is ranked as the No. 309 prospect in the class and is the No. 22 ranked player in the state of California.

Phil Picciotti

Three-star LB, Pennridge (Visiting June 14)

Picciotti surprised a lot of people when the 6-foot-3, 225-pound linebacker from Perkasie, PA left Penn State out of his recent top four schools. Michigan, however, did make the cut, along with Oklahoma, Nebraska and Auburn. While Picciotti will take his official visit to Ann Arbor on June 14 and will officially visit all of the schools who made his final cut.

In March, Picciotti took an unofficial visit to Michigan for the first time and told 247Sports’ Brian Dohn the trip left a positive mark on him.

“They’re a very solid team and they are very intense practice wise,” Picciotti said. “Coach Harbaugh is a really good guy, really easy to talk to. When I was there, we talked for a while, me and my parents. Their linebackers are really good.”

Between the four schools, Michigan will be Picciotti’s third official visit, coming after Oklahoma and Nebraska, and is scheduled to come 10 days before he visits Auburn.

Dohn recently put in a Crystal Ball for Picciotti to end up at Oklahoma, while two other writers have him ending up a Sooner as well. But perhaps the Wolverines can make a strong impression when Picciotti visits Ann Arbor in June and make one final push to convince him to join the fold.

Picciotti is the No. 383 ranked player in the class of 2023, the No. 34 linebacker in the class and the eighth ranked player in the state of Pennsylvania.

Deakon Tonielli and Jaxon Howard

Three-star TE, Oswego (Visiting June 15)
Four-star TE, Robbinsdale Cooper (Visiting June 17)

After losing former tight end commit Andrew Rappleyea to Penn State, the Wolverines are looking to fill that spot by trying to land a couple in the 2023 class. While the depth on the current roster is good and Michigan has other targets as well, it seems like the Wolverines would be likely to emerge as a frontrunner if mutual interest continues to be shown.

Tonielli has taken multiple visits to Ann Arbor — one during the Ohio State game last November and the other in mid-March and has raved about his experience. He is the No. 462 prospect in the class, the No. 25 tight end and No. 8 player in the state of Illinois.

Howard is a higher end prospect and will visit two days after Tonielli, although he may be more difficult to land in the long run. He has had an offer from Michigan since May 2020, and the good news is Michigan has been coming on strong with the 6-foot-4, 245-pounder as of late.

Howard just recently narrowed his list to four schools, which include Michigan, Minnesota, Miami (FL) and LSU and will officially visit all four in June.

According to the composite, Howard is the No. 87 prospect in the class of 2023 and the No. 1 ranked recruit in the state of Minnesota.

Cayden Green

Four-star OL, Lee’s Summit North (visiting June 17)

Offensive line coach Sherrone Moore has long been able to make a good impression on Green, and since tight ends coach Grant Newsome was hired onto the staff, he has been able to do the same. That combination has led to Michigan being squarely in the mix to end up landing Green, despite him having three Crystal Ball projections to Oklahoma.

When Green took his first unofficial visit to Ann Arbor in January, he told On3’s Tim Verghese he loved the trip ($).

“It has probably been my favorite place so far,” Green said. “Atmosphere was pretty cool. I enjoy coach Moore a lot. He seems like a very genuine guy. He seems like he coaches hard from what I heard, but you could tell it’s out of love. And then coach Harbaugh, I enjoyed him.”

Green’s other official visits he has scheduled include a May 20 trip to Nebraska and a June 3 visit to Oklahoma. So as it stands right now, the Wolverines will get the last chance to make a good impression.

The 6-foot-5, 310-pounder (Lees Summit, Mo.) is the 63rd ranked prospect in the 2023 class and the No. 6 ranked offensive tackle overall.

Joseph Mupoyi

Three-star EDGE, Archbishop Carroll (Visiting June 17)

Mupoyi is an edge rusher who has been on Michigan’s radar for a long time, as the 6-foot-5, 210-pounder has a lot of room for growth and a high ceiling.

Michigan coaches visited him at his high school in Washington, DC during the first two weeks of the spring evaluation period and Mupoyi most recently visited Ann Arbor during the spring game.

The weekend of June 17 is a busy one for official visits for Michigan football, but Mupoyi’s visit could be one that seals the deal for Mike Elson and company in terms of bringing him to Ann Arbor. If Michigan does get a commitment from Mupoyi in the near future, it would be interesting to see if they sparked any further interest from top edge prospect Nyckoles Harbor, who is teammates with Mupoyi.

Mupoyi currently ranks as the No. 885 overall prospect in the class of 2023 and the sixth ranked recruit in DC.