The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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10 THE WOLVERINE ❱ AUGUST 2025 ❱ INSIDE MICHIGAN ATHLETICS Michigan sophomore Morez Johnson Jr. comes to Ann Arbor from Illinois after an impressive freshman year in the Big Ten, ready to make his mark with the Wolver- ines. He adds toughness, physicality and an underrated offensive game to a program ready to take another step in coach Dusty May's second year. Johnson talks about his move, expectations and more in this Q&A. The Wolverine: What's been your experi- ence so far in Ann Arbor this summer? Morez Johnson Jr.: "It's been great. Learn- ing the team, learning the staff … I'm adjust- ing, trying to break habits that I have from my previous school [Illinois] and gain new habits. "It's just little things. Every coach is dif- ferent. Some things [Illini coach] Brad [Un- derwood] was stern on, Dusty isn't as stern on." The Wolverine: What was it about Dusty May that brought you here? Johnson: "He's a player's coach. He really cares about the players, he's big on player development, and that's key for me to add to my game and become a better player. That's going to be crucial to my career. "He really cares about the players. He re- ally cares about the development and is really hands on with the players. He'll be on the court with us sometimes. That's very key for us … it's different. You don't really see that too much. Me and Dusty were even on the floor together a bunch of times before I left with Team USA [for the sum- mer FIBA U19 World Cup tournament in Switzerland]. He helped work on my game, add more to it." The Wolverine: What are your initial im- pressions of the talent on this team? Johnson: "We're going to be pretty good. Of course, we're new with each other, so we've got to continue to learn each other's strengths, where we want the ball, stuff like that. That's going to happen over time, but I'm excited about the year. We've got a great group of guys around us." The Wolverine: You've got a lot of tal- ented big men on this team. What do you foresee for this group? Johnson: "First off, we're going to take pride on the defensive end. We're going to protect our paint. We don't want anyone coming to our hole and scoring — we'll protect our rim. And I think we're very ver- satile. Everybody can shoot, pass, handle the ball, start actions. I think we've got the best frontcourt." The Wolverine: You're known for your rebounding and physicality. What do you plan to bring in that respect? Johnson: "Brad, he forced a lot of offen- sive rebounds, so I'm used to running in there, taking the hits, giving hits, too, and getting the ball back. We did something called 'first blood' last year. I'm going to bring that to the team, teach the guys about that. That's going to help us with physicality and offensive rebounding. "And our shell drill, pushing up on de- fense, teaching the guys about being physi- cal for the Big Ten. I embrace [being an enforcer]." — Chris Balas ❱ Sitting Down With Michigan Basketball Sophomore Forward Morez Johnson Jr. Johnson, a transfer from Illinois who was a standout for Team USA in the FIBA U19 World Cup this summer, said this year's Michigan team will "take pride on the defensive end. We're going to protect our paint." PHOTO COURTESY USA BASKETBALL In back-to-back classes, Michigan defensive line coach Lou Esposito has reeled in top-40, edge-rushing talents. Late in the 2025 cycle, the Wolverines flipped Oak Park (Ill.) Fenwick four-star Nate Marshall back from Auburn (he was previously a U-M pledge), and it was a coup when elite 2026 Washington (D.C.) Gonzaga prospect Carter Meadows picked the Maize and Blue over Ohio State and others on June 29, 2025. Meadows is ranked as the No. 5 overall prospect by Rivals, but for the sake of conducting a historical comparison, we'll more closely examine his No. 30 standing according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, an aggregation of major recruiting outlets. The 6-foot-6½ , 225-pound Meadows stands as Michigan's highest- rated edge commit or signee since Rashan Gary — the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2016 class. Despite the Wolverines having immense success with edge rushers — including having 12 drafted to the NFL since 2017 — they've only landed four top-100 prospects at the position since 2015: Gary (No. 1 in 2016), Meadows (No. 30 in 2026), senior Derrick Moore (No. 37 in 2022) and freshman Marshall (No. 40 in 2025). The Wolverines have developed lower-rated edges incredibly well, and it's exciting for fans to imagine what they'll do with a higher cali- ber of recruit. Gary and Moore have been full-time starters at Michigan, while Marshall and Meadows may have that label sometime in the future. The Wolverines' other full-time starters that they brought in from the high school ranks since 2015 are all recruits ranked outside the top 100 — Aidan Hutchinson (No. 109 in 2018), Braiden McGregor (No. 122 in 2020), David Ojabo (No. 248 in 2019), Jaylen Harrell (No. 319 in 2020), Kwity Paye (No. 379 in 2017), Mike Morris (No. 383 in 2019) and Joshua Uche (No. 611 in 2016). All but one of those players was an NFL Draft pick, while the only one who went undrafted — McGregor — made the New York Jets as an undrafted free agent last season. Here's a look at Michigan's starting edge rushers that signed with the Wolverines out of high school since 2015 and where they ranked as recruits: Class Player Industry Ranking Stars 2016 Rashan Gary 1 ★★★★★ 2022 Derrick Moore 37 ★★★★ 2018 Aidan Hutchinson 109 ★★★★ 2020 Braiden McGregor 122 ★★★★ 2019 David Ojabo 248 ★★★★ 2020 Jaylen Harrell 319 ★★★★ 2017 Kwity Paye 379 ★★★★ 2019 Mike Morris 383 ★★★★ 2016 Joshua Uche 611 ★★★ — Clayton Sayfie Michigan Edge Recruiting Is In Overdrive