The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1493247
2023 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE 36 THE WOLVERINE MARCH 2023 BY ZACH LIBBY Michigan will bring in a productive pass rusher with brute strength at the defen- sive tackle position this upcoming June in Chicago Brother Rice's Trey Pierce, who committed a week before National Signing Day in December. "I feel great," said Pierce of his decision. "I feel amazing. It's finally cemented, it's finally over, and I'm ready to start work- ing. "The combination of athletics and aca- demics at Michigan was hard to pass up. You won't find a better combination any- where else in the country. "I love the coaching staff, I love Ann Arbor, I love the people in Ann Arbor. It's a special feeling there." Pierce, a former Wisconsin verbal pledge, evaluated his options in the fall after the Badgers fired former head coach Paul Chryst. Michigan offered right before the Mich- igan State game over Halloween week- end and hosted Piece for the in-state ri- valry spectacle under the lights at the Big House. The 6-foot-2, 290-pounder returned for the Illinois game in mid-November on an official visit, choosing the Wolverines over the Fighting Illini, who also hosted Pierce officially. "The first game I saw at the Big House was against MSU. It was packed, and the fans were going crazy because it was a ri- valry game," Pierce said. "It was a great environment because of the great fans and great student section. It was definitely a good experience." Head coach Jim Harbaugh and defen- sive line coach Mike Elston, who has an array of recruiting ties in the Chicago area going back to his decade-long stint at Notre Dame, prioritized Pierce down the stretch and were able to beat the in- state Big Ten school and Wisconsin, which is also known for strong development of linemen. Pierce's high school head coach, Casey Quedenfeld, had a relationship with both coaches even before Pierce was a key tar- get. One of Quedenfeld's former players at Loyola High in Los Angeles, David Long, had a recruitment widely known to Michi- gan fans because of Harbaugh climbing trees in order to land the former U-M cor- nerback and Super Bowl LVI champion with the Los Angeles Rams. "It's really good with Coach Elston," Pierce said. "We have a really good rela- tionship. I've always liked talking to him, and he seems like a coach who knows what he's talking about. Coach Harbaugh is an amazing coach, but he's even better as a person. He's just an upstanding and good guy." Pierce found his stride as a senior at Brother Rice against fierce Catholic League competition throughout Chicago and is excited to build off that success under Elston with one of Michigan's best individual units. Some of the underclass- man standouts, such as Kenneth Grant and Mason Graham, have already become friends with Pierce. "I think I'll bring a huge impact to the defensive line position," he said. "I can come in and add some more explosiveness to an already explosive group. It's a pretty young defensive line, too, with Mason and KG, and I think I can add to what's going on right now." ❑ Chicago Defensive Lineman Trey Pierce Decommits From Wisconsin To Choose U-M 2023 Projection Pierce has the capability to line up anywhere on the defensive line from the five-technique, which sits on the outside shoulder of the offensive tackle, to head up on the center as a nose tackle. There's confidence that Pierce could complete fall camp with the potential to mirror Mason Graham's quick ascent to the defensive line rotation heading into last season. Pierce was a first-team The News-Gazette (Champaign-Urbana) All-State pick as a senior. PHOTO BY ZACH LIBBY STATISTICS Year Tackles TFL Sacks 2022 58 19 3.5 HONORS • Named first-team all-state as a senior by The News-Gazette (Champaign-Urbana). • Chicago Sun-Times All-Area team as a senior (2022). • Daily Southtown Football All-Area team as a senior. • CCL/ESCC Blue Conference Co-Lineman of the Year in 2022. • First-team all-conference honoree in 2022. • Reached the Class 7A quarterfinal with Brother Rice his senior year with a 7-5 overall record. • Helped lead the Crusaders to a 10-3 record and a playoff appearance in his junior season. RECRUITMENT • Committed to Michigan Dec. 14, 2022 after receiving offer on Oct. 22, 2022. • Picked U-M over offers from Illinois, Wisconsin, Texas and Kentucky. • Originally pledged to Wisconsin. • Recruited by U-M defensive line coach Mike Elston. DID YOU KNOW? • Son of Roderick and Kelly Pierce. • Born Dec. 14, 2004. THEY SAID IT Casey Quedenfeld, Brother Rice head coach: "It got a little hectic after he decommitted from Wisconsin with a lot of new schools jumping in late. He was, obvi- ously, very happy that those new schools were jumping in, which broadened his ho- rizon. After some visits here and there, he fell in love with Michigan, but still weighed his options on some of the other schools. He ultimately picked one that would fulfill his athletic and academic endeavors." RODERICK (TREY) PIERCE III DEFENSIVE LINE 6-2 • 290 BROTHER RICE HIGH EVERGREEN PARK, ILL. RANKINGS STARS NAT. POS. STATE ✪ ✪ ✪ 512 53 7 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 61 7 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 53 9 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 50 12 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ — 19 6 consensus