The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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THE WOLVERINE 2024 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 151 Three-star Chattanooga (Tenn.) Baylor School running back Shekai Mills-Knight, the No. 45 running back nationally, is also at the top of the board. Mills-Knight is one of the hottest recruits in the country and should see a massive rise in the rank- ings this summer. A native of Canada, Mills-Knight just recently started to blow up with major offers. At 6-2, 210 pounds, Mills-Knight is a bigger back with a tre- mendous ceiling. Michigan hosted Mills-Knight for an unofficial visit in June and jumped into his top group. However, Miami is considered the favorite here, and Mills- Knight also is making official visits to SEC schools like Alabama, Auburn, Ole Miss and Tennessee. The longer Mills- Knight waits, the better for Michigan, which looks to get him back on campus for an official visit. The most realistic back on the board may be On300 Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy prospect Donovan Johnson, who made an unofficial visit to Michigan in June. Johnson was once considered one of the best running back recruits in the country. However, an injury sidelined him last season, and a lot of teams on his short list have cooled or are waiting to see how Johnson, the No. 19 running back and No. 242 overall prospect in the country, performs as a senior. Wide Receiver Commits: 0 Need: 3 Michigan is still searching for its first wide receiver commit of the cycle but is in a good spot for a handful of top targets. Three-star Destrehan (La.) High wide receiver Phillip Wright, the No. 46 wide receiver nationally, is a top commitment candidate after a strong June official visit. Wright has blazing 10.46 speed in the 100 meters and could be a dynamic playmaker in Michigan's scheme. Ex-Notre Dame commit Shaun Terry, the No. 80 wide receiver nationally, is another shifty, ver- satile weapon high on Michigan's wish list. A three-star prospect from Ironton (Ohio) High, Terry is also a dangerous return man and has Michigan in his top group along with Kentucky and Mis- souri. Fellow three-star prospect Taz Williams, the No. 76 wide re- ceiver nationally, offers a similar skill set. The Red Oak (Texas) High prod- uct has Michigan in his final four along with Penn State, SMU and Texas A&M. Michigan is still working hard on On300 Katy (Texas) Jordan prospect An- drew Marsh, the No. 20 wide receiver and No. 144 overall prospect nationally. Marsh made an unofficial visit in June and is set to make an official visit on Nov. 2. Oklahoma, USC and Texas A&M are also involved in this race. Michigan desperately needs a true big- bodied wide receiver this cycle. In fact, the Wolverines haven't added a wide re- ceiver taller than 6-foot-2 since the 2022 recruiting class. Getting size in the room is a top priority for position coach Ron Bellamy. Four-star Las Vegas Bishop Gorman prospect Derek Meadows, the No. 13 wide receiver and No. 96 overall prospect, made an official visit in June. The 6-6, 205-pounder is originally from Chica- goland and has Michigan in his top group along with Alabama, Georgia, LSU and Notre Dame. Michigan is also working on flipping three-star Ole Miss commit Jerome Myles of Draper (Utah) Corner Canyon. Myles, the No. 62 wide receiver nation- ally, is listed at 6-3, 215 pounds and is ex- pected to make an unofficial visit in July. Three-star New Orleans Archbishop Shaw prospect Jacob Washington, the No. 53 wide receiver nationally, is another option. Washington, who stands 6-3, 180 pounds, made an official visit in June and is a high school teammate of Michigan commit Jasper Parker. Tight End Commits: 1 Need: 2 Michigan already has one commit at the tight end position in three-star Al- coa (Tenn.) High prospect Eli Owens. At 6-2, 230 pounds, Owens, the No. 56 tight end nationally, is more of an H-back in the same mold as Max Bredeson, which means Michigan still has a need for a more traditional tight end. New tight ends coach Steve Casula is fully focused on Top 100 Center Valley (Pa.) Southern Lehigh prospect Andrew Olesh, the No. 3 tight end and No. 78 overall prospect in the country. Olesh, who stands 6-5, 215, has drawn compari- sons to Michigan star Colston Loveland from Casula and would be a quality com- plement to Owens. Olesh made an official visit to Michi- gan in June and is expected to announce a decision this summer. Penn State is high on the list as well and is working hard to keep him at home. SEC programs Ala- bama and Florida are heavily involved as well. If Michigan misses out on Olesh, the next man on the board appears to be three-star Pocola (Okla.) High pros- pect Dakotah Terrell, the No. 29 tight end nationally. At 6-9, 210 pounds, Terrell is a converted basketball player with an ex- tremely high ceiling. Offensive Line Commits: 1 Need: 3-4 Michigan landed its first offen- sive line commitment from pri- ority three-star prospect Avery Gach, the No. 32 interior offen- ❱ 2025 MICHIGAN COMMITMENTS Player Rating* Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School Avery Gach ★★★ IOL 6-4 270 Franklin, Mich/Wylie E. Groves Bobby Kanka ★★★★ DL 6-4 263 Howell, Mich./Howell Nate Marshall ★★★★ DL 6-5 265 Oak Park, Ill./Fenwick Eli Owens ★★★ TE 6-2 215 Alcoa, Tenn./Alcoa Jasper Parker ★★★ RB 6-1 200 Marrero, La./Archbishop Shaw Carter Smith ★★★★ QB 6-3 175 Fort Myers, Fla./Bishop Verot Jaylen Williams ★★★★ DL 6-6 255 Palatine, Ill./Palatine Kainoa Winston ★★★★ S 5-10 184 Montgomery Village, Md./Gonzaga (D.C.) * On3 player rating as of June 19 Rk. School Commits* 1. Ohio State 16 2. LSU 11 3. Georgia 13 4. Alabama 17 5. Clemson 13 6. Notre Dame 21 7. USC 12 8. Auburn 15 Rk. School Commits* 9. Oregon 9 10. Texas A&M 14 11. Oklahoma 16 12. Penn State 15 13. Michigan 8 14. Texas 11 15. Tennessee 11 * As of June 19 2025 On3 Industry Ranking Football Team Recruiting Rankings