The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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APRIL 2026 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 47 ❱ FOOTBALL RECRUITING reinforced the Wolverines as a team to watch in his recruitment. Parks hasn't been on campus in almost a year. That will change April 2 when he travels to Ann Arbor for a spring visit. Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon and many others will also host him. Parks plans on locking in official visits while he's on each campus. Black was the first SEC coach to offer him a scholarship, he already thinks highly of the program and, for the first time from The Wolverine's vantage point, Michigan is building some momentum in Parks' recruitment. "Now, him being at Michigan, he's re- ally starting to pour into me and keep growing our relationship," Parks said of Black. Ohimai Ozolua out of Chicago St. Rita is another top defensive line target to watch. He visited Michigan twice last fall, but the program fell off for the rising three-star prospect during the coaching change. Ozolua is very close with Black, who instantly started pushing for him af- ter arriving at U-M. Now, he's going to give the program another shot. Black has extensive connections to the Chicagoland area and is well respected. Offensive line coach Jim Harding does not have the same history recruiting the area, but he does have a sterling reputa- tion as a developer of talent. Michigan is pursuing three-star offensive tackle Ma- son Halliman. He visited the rising line- man at Frankfort (Ill.) Lincoln-Way East in January. Michigan made his top-six list and will continue to battle Iowa and others here. "Coach Harding and I had a great con- versation, and I plan to get on campus in the spring," Halliman said. MICHIGAN SURGES FOR FUTURE FIVE-STAR Black offered Chicago St. Patrick de- fensive lineman David Folorunsho in Jan- uary, right before he rocketed up Rivals' rankings to the No. 13 spot nationally. He's one of the most coveted recruits in the class and the No. 2 defensive lineman overall. Folorunsho immediately reached out to Black to say congrats once he found out about the Michigan job. The No. 1 recruit in Illinois always wanted an offer from the Wolverines. Black extended the schol- arship a matter of days later, and U-M climbed into the lineman's top-eight list. Michigan has some work to do to catch up to Folorunsho's top group of Notre Dame, Penn State, Tennessee and Miami. He wants to take a spring visit to U-M before returning for an official visit in the summer. His recruitment with the Wol- verines really just started, and Black has them trending in a positive direction. "I know people say, 'Don't go to a school because of the coach,' but he's such a good guy, such a genuine guy," Folorunsho said. "With the opportunity he has right now, I don't see him leaving. "Michigan is definitely a huge one on my board, for sure." TRENDING FOR TWO TOP TARGETS Stockton is casting a wide net with his 2027 safeties board, but he clearly locked in on three-star defensive back Darrell Mattison as one of his priority targets. The U-M assistant sat down with the ball-hawking junior at his home and met with his family. Mattison talks to the Wolverines almost every day, and that's big for the No. 36 safety prospect in the class, per the Rivals Industry Ranking. "He doesn't seem like he's putting on a facade or this type of image just to get me there," Mattison said. "I think he's just very genuine. He's just a cool dude." Michigan met with him again later in the month, this time at Chicago Morgan Park High. Head coach Kyle Whitting- ham joined him on that trip and left a great impression. "Warm, that's a good word for it," Morgan Park assistant coach Vince Bland said. "The whole defensive staff came. The new head coach from Utah, he seemed like a real cool guy, laid back." Mattison will visit Michigan for the first time March 17. The Wolverines were the first school to set a spring visit, and they sit high in his recruitment. One week later, the Wolverines will host priority three-star TJ Lewis, the na- tion's No. 27 running back per Rivals. Michigan is the Bolingbrook (Ill.) High running back's dream school. He used to tell people he'd commit on the spot if the program offered. Lewis, who's also considering the likes of Penn State and Indiana, will hold off on any decisions until he sees the school in person March 24, but he holds a lot of interest in the Wolver- ines. His head coach, Titcus Pettigrew, coached Michigan freshman Nate Mar- shall, and he sees a clear fit for the run- ning back in Ann Arbor. "It'll be ideal because they run the football, and they don't make any bones about it," Pettigrew said. "It's a power game first, and then they spray it sec- ond." Mattison and Lewis do not appear to be in any rush to make a decision after they received a bunch of offers early this year, but Michigan looks like the team to beat for both as the new staff continues to strengthen its Chicagoland connec- tions. ❏ Michigan defensive tackles coach Larry Black have made a strong initial impression with David Folorunsho of Chicago St. Patrick, who's listed as Rivals' No. 2 defensive lineman and No. 13 player nationally. PHOTO BY ETHAN MCDOWELL