The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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50 THE WOLVERINE ❱ JUNE/JULY 2026 ❱ COMMIT PROFILE BY ETHAN MCDOWELL M ichigan's new staff zeroed in on Jakari Lipsey as a top target im- mediately after the coaching change. The Rivals300 tackle met with offensive line coach Jim Harding shortly after the Wol- verine assistant joined the staff. Their relationship took off from there. Harding beat him in a game of Horse this spring, so they made plans for a video game rematch on NBA 2K. They built a close connection over the past few months, and Harding delivered a clear recruiting pitch to the nation's No. 104 recruit. "He's basically been saying he really wants me to be a Michigan man and stay here in Michigan," Lipsey said before his commitment. Lipsey committed to the Wolverines May 2. A few days earlier, he named Michigan his leader and said, at that point, he still wanted to take official visits before making a decision later this sum- mer. The Kalamazoo (Mich.) Loy Norrix tackle visited UCLA and LSU this spring. He set multiple trips to Tennessee after picking up a recent offer. Per a source close to his recruitment, even though those visits went well, no one really came close to Michigan. Hard- ing talked to him again late in April, and a commitment followed shortly after. Lipsey explained what separates the in- state program from his offer list. "It's Michigan, the most winningest school," Lipsey said. His recruitment started to heat up early on during his junior season. Lipsey fin- ished the year with 97 pancake blocks. He added a Michigan offer from the pre- vious staff Sept. 5 last year. The heavily recruited lineman has always rooted for the Wolverines. "I've just been attached to Michigan since I've been growing up," Lipsey said. Out-of-state schools jumped into his recruitment and, after taking a multi-day spring trip to Ann Arbor, he spent week- ends with the Tigers and Bruins. He took a close look at each coaching staff during those trips. "I really try to study the O-line coach," Lipsey said. "At every other school, I try to see how they work with players, and how the O-line coach treats other play- ers and stuff like that. The more schools I visit and see how the O-line coach is, that's how I could really decide what school fits me right." Lipsey really likes Harding. Overall, he's a huge fan of Michigan's new coach- ing staff across the board, and said the new offense really stood out to him. Coming out of that recent visit and a spring meeting with the coaches at his school, all of his questions were an- swered. "I know everything about them, and they know everything about me," Lipsey said. "We have a good relationship." The 6-5, 290-pound lineman is a le- gitimate three-sport star who also stands out on the basketball court and in track and field as a thrower. He thinks Michi- gan prioritized him because of his ath- leticism. "I'm not a slow, sloppy lineman," Lipsey said. "I'm actually built, and I'm pretty fast." Lipsey previously planned a full slate of official visits but will cancel those trips. He's scheduled to visit Michigan June 5-7. "I'm looking forward to having fun and discovering more things about Michi- gan," Lipsey said. ❑ Jakari Lipsey Commits To Childhood Favorite PLAYER EVALUATION STRENGTHS: As a prospect, Jakari has rare physical gifts. We say that a lot in recruiting, and we say a lot about upside and ceiling, but he really can do things other offensive line prospects can't. Show me another 6-foot-5, 290-pound kid in this class who can do backflips and basically a gymnastics floor routine. His throwing numbers in track and field are excel- lent (54 feet, 4.75 inches in the shot put and 162 feet, 11 inches in the discus) and those typically correlate well to offensive line success. He had his share of pancakes last season, too, so the athleticism does translate to the field. AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT: He has a long way to go to get to his ceiling. He is raw on his technique and is raw all around when it comes to his game. That is where he will be a really good match for Jim Harding, who is a great teacher. He can play either tackle or guard. It will be interesting to watch him as a senior to see how far he has come this offseason. They have a new staff at Norrix, and it sounds like they are going to challenge him to be a senior leader. PLAYER COMPARISON: Western Michigan and New York Jets offensive lineman Chuk- wuma Okorafor was similarly athletically gifted but raw out of high school. Okorafor's raw- ness was due to starting football late, but the scouting reports are very close — tremendous potential, but further from their ceiling than their peers. Okorafor chose a good school for him to develop at, and Lipsey will need to do the same. — Rivals national recruiting analyst Allen Trieu Lipsey, a 6-5, 290-pounder from Kalamazoo (Mich.) Loy Norrix, is rated as the No. 104 recruit and the No. 9 offensive tackle nationally per the Rivals Industry Ranking. PHOTO BY ALLEN TRIEU/RIVALS