Ranked No. 41, where is Michigan’s championship bump? Wolverines lead top football recruiting storylines

College football diehards have had the upcoming weekend of May 31-June 2 circled on their calendars for some time now. School is out, summer is here and that means extremely busy months of visiting are about to begin. And visits mean appointments.

To stay up to date with the top stories from the Class of 2025 – and to better visualize what a great weekend will be – 247Sports Director of Scouting Andrew Ivins and national analyst Tom Loy break down a five-story package that appeals to a national audience.

Let’s start with the champions.

When will Michigan make its leap into the championship?

Going into the weekend, Michigan is ranked 41st in the 247Sports Composite Team Rankings. This causes twelfth in new-look Big Ten and behind Northwestern, Rutgers and Indiana.

A slight dip was expected for the defending national champions after Jim Harbaugh left for the NFLbut one of the main reasons Sherrone Moore was considered as Harbaugh’s replacement was to maintain some continuity in Ann Arbor.

To be fair, the Wolverines have always been a player development program that constantly proves our rankings wrong as they turn three-star recruits into NFL Draft choices like few others, but shouldn’t more top-tier prospects jump on board in search of the corn and the blue?

*Five commits in the class of 2025 as of May 31, 2024

A quick look at this list of weekend visitors to Michigan suggests that some of the country’s best are at least open to the idea. Wolverines will welcome five-star wide receiver Derek Prados to campus along with a security battering ram on Kainoa Winston and a space-eating nose attack on DJ Sanders. Moore will also have a chance to entertain one of West Mississippi’s top offensive linemen in Douglas Utu. Michigan may not lead any of these four prospects right now, but the Wolverines will have a chance to change the narrative with each recruitment.

Tom’s opinion on the Wolverines: This could be a weekend that results in a huge recruiting payoff for Michigan in the future, but there is absolutely a possibility that they blow the five expected visitors went to campus. My information suggests the Wolverines don’t completely lead any of the five, but there is potential for change.

Alabama could solve looming QB problem

Kalen DeBoer has had to learn on the fly since taking over for Nick Saban in Tuscaloosa. There’s still a lot of work as he prepares for his inaugural season at Alabama, but one long-term roster question that hasn’t been discussed much on a national level is: what is the Crimson Tide’s plan next season at quarterback following Jalen’s departure? Milroe?

Remember, five-star quarterback Julian Sayin transferred to Ohio State just a few weeks after DeBoer was hired. DeBoer brought an emerging signal-caller with him to Alabama in Washington transfer Austin Mack, but the Crimson Tide and DeBoer’s new staff have yet to secure a commitment from a high school quarterback.

That’s where SMU member Keelon Russell comes into the mix. Some might laugh at the idea of ​​the almighty Alabama trying to steal a player from the Mustangs (who, by the way, are moving to the ACC this year), but Russell is an elite playmaker for the position who has proven to be extremely efficient. passer. Over the past two years, Russell has posted a 29-1 record and led Duncanville to back-to-back Texas 6A D-1 titles. Most notably, his career completion percentage of 69.6 ranks highest among Top247 quarterbacks.

Ole Miss, Florida and Oregon have all tried to get involved with Russell, but it’s Alabama that will get the first crack at him this weekend as he leads a loaded list of official visitors.

Tom’s opinion on the Crimson Tide: I’m very close to putting a 247Sports Crystal Ball on the Crimson Tide to land the 39th overall player in the country. Russell may be committed to SMU, but Alabama has more than caught his eye. The past success DeBoer and offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Nick Sheridan have had with quarterbacks and the incredible tradition of everything Alabama stands for is clearly hitting home with Russell.

A decisive weekend for Clemson

We all know Dabo Swinney doesn’t believe in the transfer portal. This is, in turn, what makes this coming weekend will be decisive for Clemsonwhich is also a bit ironic because it wasn’t long ago that Swinney opposed holding official visits in the summer.

O Tigers should entertain around 30 prospects in the coming days for what will certainly be the program’s only official visiting weekend before the July dead period. The group includes more than a dozen Top247-ranked prospects. Clemson is already off to an impressive start in the 2025 cycle with a class that ranks first in the ACC, but history shows that if the Tigers can’t secure some of their priority targets in the immediate future, it will be difficult to overcome a drop in the rankings as the team pivots to second-tier options.

The main attraction of the visitor squad is five-star offensive tackle David Sanders. Former Ole Miss coach Matt Luke, who now coaches Clemson’s offensive line, did an excellent job of getting the Tigers a seat at the table with the nation’s No. 1 tackle, but any traction Clemson gained a few months ago seems have disappeared as off-field negotiations increase. Can Swinney and the Tigers flip the script and get Sanders to go all in on Clemson?

Other notable names set to meet up with the Tigers include cornerback Graceson Littleton (June 3)offensive lineman Mario Nash Jr.., and wide receiver Cortez Mills. Littleton is a height/weight/speed cornerback who has seen his stock explode in recent months, while Nash is an athletic bully who can play three or four positions up front. Mills is a technical running back from Miami-Dade and the type of talent that Clemson has had a lot of success with over the years.

Tom’s opinion on the Tigers: Clemson has nearly 30 prospects on campus this weekend, and the team is more than ready to add to the roster of 2025 commitments. All eyes are on Sanders. Clemson prefers to make commitments upfront and have them end the process then and there. They don’t like the “make a silent commitment and then visit” mantra that other prospects like to follow. My 247Sports Crystal Ball has been on the Tigers for a while now, but Ohio State, Tennessee and others have made this a lot more interesting than it was months ago. Anna Adams of 247Sports, who covers the Carolinas, really likes Tennessee for Sanders.

Georgia in position to exercise her muscles

To little surprise, will be a star-studded event in Georgia this weekend, and there is great emphasis on the point of attack. A trio of five-star pass-rushers will be present at Zayden Walker, Justus Terryand Isaiah Gibson along with a pair of gargantuan offensive tackles in Juan Gaston It is NickBrookswhich is coming from Iowa.

The rumor coming out of Athens is that Kirby Smart wants Walker and wants Walker badly, which isn’t surprising given he’s a defender who can do a little bit of everything while playing a violent brand of football. Walker will obviously get the red carpet treatment, but the recruitments of Terry and Gibson could shed a little more light on the current stage of the college football. Both reside in the Peach State and were seen behind the scenes as UGA leaned in before making surprise commitments to USC in March.

As for Gaston and Brooks, they would somehow make Georgia’s offline room even bigger. Last year, the Bulldogs signed six offensive linemen. All six stood over 6 feet tall, and the group weighed an average of 345 pounds a pop. Both Gaston and Brooks are listed at 6-foot-3 and 345 pounds, and personal evaluations suggest those numbers aren’t too far off. Good luck to the chefs at UGA football facilities if Gaston or Brooks end up at Georgia.

Tom’s opinion on the Bulldogs: O list of visitors in Athens this weekend is absolutely loaded and it’s only a matter of time, obviously, before Georgia rises from its current position of 14th place overall in the ranking. Of the total 15 Athens-bound prospects, several are five-star. My eyes are on whether Georgia can flip USC’s two five-star defensive line commitments in Justus Terry (Manchester, Georgia) and Isaiah Gibson (Warner Robins, Georgia). The team expects them to question their initial commitments to the Trojans. And the ‘Dawgs are very good at getting what they want on the recruiting trail.

UCF wants to seize the moment – ​​and get a QB

UCF signed its highest-rated recruiting class ever last cycle, and followed that up with some flashy additions during the winter and spring transfer portal windows. Year 1 in the Big 12 may have been tough when it came to wins and losses for the Knights, who went 6-7, but This weekend’s visitor list suggests Gus Malzahn is trying to build a winnerand he’s taking advantage of what Orlando has to offer by showing off attractions like I-Drive and Universal Studios.

Two of the expected 24 official visitors to UCF Instantly jump like four-star quarterbacks Malik Washington It is Kamario Taylor, who is committed to Mississippi State. Both are dynamic athletes who have secured their tickets for next month Elite 11 Finals after showing enough talent on the off-season camp circuit. Top-notch quarterbacks often come at a high price in the NIL era, but it should be noted that UCF has a powerful collective and more than 350,000 alumni in the surrounding area. Both Washington and Taylor also fit into what Malzahn wants to do on offense with their dual-threat capabilities.

Tom’s opinion on the Knights: Calling this a big weekend for the UCF team might be an understatement. The visitor list is excellent and the team is working hard to ensure that some of these potential customers call Orlando home. UCF will do everything it can to move Kamario Taylor, but it won’t be easy. He is committed to Mississippi State, and the Bulldogs will be tough to beat. However, there is another quarterback on campus at Severn (Md.), Archbishop Spalding’s Malik Washington. The Top 247 talent has seen his stock skyrocket this offseason, and UCF would love to pry him out of the DMV.

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