Top five LB prospects for Michigan in the 2024 recruiting class

With Chris Partridge returning to Michigan for a second stint as the linebackers coach, the Wolverines can expect a bump in recruiting. This should be especially true for the linebacker position.

With Mason Curtis already committed, the Wolverines could once again be looking at two or even three blue-chip linebackers in its 2024 recruiting class.

Here are my early picks for the top-five remaining linebacker targets for Michigan in this cycle.

1. Aaron Chiles

Rated as the top recruit in Maryland and the sixth-best linebacker recruit in the nation, Aaron Chiles is about as elite as they come. 247Sports national recruiting analyst Brian Dohn lauds Chiles for his high football IQ and leadership abilities, concluding he has the potential to be an early-to-mid NFL draft pick.

On3’s EJ Holland is also high on Chiles, stating he should be rated as a five-star. All this is well and good, but what are Michigan’s chances of landing him? As it turns out, pretty good.

Chiles attended Michigan’s junior day in January and has scheduled two visits — an unofficial this month and an official visit in June. All signs indicate Michigan is the early leader in his recruitment but, as usual, Michigan must find a way to convert enthusiasm into commitment.

2. Jeremiah Beasley

Belleville High hasn’t been a true feeder school for the Michigan Wolverines in recent years, but that needs to change fast. Belleville’s Jeremiah Beasley — a four-star linebacker — is a big reason why.

With plenty of fleetness and panache for shooting gaps, Beasley could add the speed necessary to augment Michigan’s blitz packages. Let’s also not forget he’s a teammate of the nation’s best quarterback in the 2025 class, five-star Bryce Underwood. Getting Beasley would provide the Wolverines with an additional beachhead from which they could throw everything they have at bringing the local phenom to Ann Arbor.

Michigan State is another strong contender in Beasley’s recruitment, so the Spartans will be a formidable foe moving forward.

3. Kris Jones

Michigan’s attention must be heavily devoted to the above two linebacker recruits. With Curtis’ commitment and the real possibility of landing both the above recruits, convincing additional linebackers to don the Maize and Blue will be difficult. But as we have sorely been made to realize with quarterback recruiting, putting one’s proverbial eggs in one basket is a recipe for disaster.

Enter Kris Jones. Listed as the ninth-best linebacker in the class, he has both downhill explosiveness and vision needed for the position. He would be a great asset on the multiple defense Michigan has implemented these past few years.

While Penn State has the clear lead in his recruitment, Jones has expressed interest in Michigan so don’t count the Wolverines out just yet.

4. Braydan Platt

An elite run-stopper and sure tackler, Platt is listed as the 22nd-best linebacker in the class. He exhibits patience many college linebackers lack and has additional room to grow physically. If he can work on his closing abilities, that top-22 linebacker in the nation designation might be a major underestimation.

While Washington is hardly a pipeline state for Michigan, his recruitment is still in its early stages. Platt is definitely a recruit to keep an eye on.

5. Sammy Brown

For the Wolverines, early optimism abounded in the recruitment of the nation’s best linebacker, Sammy Brown. The Georgia five-star had nothing but positives to say about Michigan after a summer 2022 visit, and followed that up with even more praise for Michigan’s defensive performance in a December interview.

But things have gone cold. Jim Harbaugh paid him a visit earlier this winter, yet Brown has tipped his hand he’s inclined to play college ball closer to home; Clemson and Georgia look to be the two principal contenders.

However, the entrance of Partridge could provide a much-needed boost for the Wolverines. He made a name for himself by bringing in the likes of Rashan Gary and Chris Hinton — both five-stars from outside the midwest — to Ann Arbor. Could he do the same with Brown?