Evaluating Michigan’s Recruiting Strategy Post-National Title Win: A Look at the Future

Recruiting never stops. Neither do your questions.

And if we didn’t get to your question, don’t be discouraged! We will address some on “Stars Matter,” our recruiting podcast.

Note: Submitted questions have been lightly edited for clarity and length.

Do you think Michigan’s recruiting strategy changes after winning the national title? Usually, they’re at the good-not-great level, but does Sherrone Moore get to an Ohio State-Georgia level or do they continue to go after “culture guys” who mesh with what the program is looking for? — Nathan L.

Michigan won the national title by doing something I previously thought impossible. In fact, I was dismissive of even considering the “good-not-great” recruiting programs when discussing which teams were capable of competing for the national championship in past seasons. Then Michigan proved me wrong.

So I’ll ask Michigan fans a question back: Do you even want to start recruiting like Ohio State and Georgia?

The answer should be yes. Even though Michigan did prove me wrong, I’ll never — never — stop believing in the importance of acquiring as many high-level high school players as possible. Michigan won the national title, sure, but I’m back to questioning whether the Wolverines can sustain that level of success after losing just about every difference-maker from last year’s team. When you recruit like Georgia and Ohio State, you have national title hopes every year regardless of roster turnover.

It’s one thing to make it to the top of the mountain. It’s another to stay there.

Obviously, losing Jim Harbaugh is a tough situation. Harbaugh, though a bit weird, is a tremendous coach who unapologetically did things his way. He took his lumps as Michigan’s coach but ultimately built a national title roster by landing a handful of five-star high school prospects at key positions and meshing them with great evaluations — with both recruits and in the portal. It worked.

Michigan found the perfect balance a year ago. Was that Harbaugh’s brilliance? Is it something Moore can sustain consistently? We’ll find out.

I’ve been critical of Michigan over the years, maintaining (many times) that the Wolverines didn’t recruit at a high enough level — especially considering all of the resources available to the program. Michigan is an elite academic institution. Ann Arbor is one of the nicest college towns in America. The stadium is huge. The uniforms are beautiful and the fans are steadfast in their devotion to the team.

What will Moore do?

Will he start trying to engage Michigan in big-time battles for five-star prospects with offers from Alabama, Ohio State and Georgia? Or will he pick his spots with the five-star prospects who happen to be in Michigan while searching for undervalued talents in all corners of the country?

From what I understand of Moore, he’s a personable guy and his players love him. That’s already an improvement over Harbaugh, who has made me — and many others — feel like it’s impossible to have a functional conversation with him. If Moore wants to recruit a five-star cornerback from Atlanta, he certainly has every sales pitch imaginable to do that. But it’s about whether he wants to try to build a talent factory like Georgia and his rival in Columbus or continue building the roster the way Harbaugh proved it can work.

You also have to consider that half of Michigan’s staff is now in the NFL with Harbaugh, and evaluating three-star prospects and turning them into NFL Draft picks isn’t an easy skill. The same goes for having a high conversion rate with portal players. Just because Michigan did it before doesn’t mean it has the staff to do it again. And again. And again.

If I were Moore, I’d try to use the momentum of this national championship to build an elite class loaded with top-100 players. Though there are always name, image and likeness concerns with Michigan, I don’t see why the Wolverines can’t compete in that space. Frankly, I’ve thought they should be competing in that space long before they beat Ohio State on the field three times in a row and won the national championship.

Right now, Michigan’s 2025 class has only three commitments. None of those players are ranked in the top 100, though it’s only April and there’s a long way to go before December.

Watching how Moore approaches the job as the head man will be one of the more exciting storylines in recruiting in 2024.

My country, Wales, has gone American football mad with Louis Rees-Zammit moving to the NFL and signing with the Kansas City Chiefs. This leads to my question: The NFL has started looking at other sports for talents. Will college football do that, as well? Side note: I have been a listener and follower for a full year now. I have really dove into the world of college football, but I need a team. I have a criteria:

Thanks from Wales. I live in Qatar and writing this from the Amalfi Coast in Italy on holiday! — Jonathan M.

The Rees-Zammit story is certainly interesting. The two-time defending Super Bowl champions signed a former rugby player through the NFL’s International Player Pathway program, which could give Patrick Mahomes yet another weapon in one of the most exciting offenses in the sport. I love how a storyline like this captivates international audiences and provides further exposure to the best sport in the world. And I’m glad to have you here, Jonathan, even if I wish we were sipping on a drink together on the Amalfi Coast and having this discussion in person.

College football coaches routinely watch athletes play different sports to assess their athleticism and how that may translate to football. Though I’m sure there are plenty of stories like this, the one that stands out from my past covering Ohio State was when Urban Meyer fell in love with former defensive end Sam Hubbard by watching him play dodgeball. If you’re an athletic kid with a ton of talent, there is no question that college football coaches would love to add that potential to the roster. Heck, Australia has become the No. 1 breeding ground for punters, right?

When I was reading through your question, I thought Michigan would be the perfect spot. I just finished writing 600 words about how they’ve mastered their evaluations and won a national title. Also, they have a hell of a history filled with great stories, though you don’t need to go back far to get to the juicy stuff. Ever heard of Connor Stalions? I’d love to be a fly on the wall while you tell people in Wales about dressing up as a Central Michigan assistant and wearing Ray-Ban spy glasses. But alas, you don’t want blue, and Michigan doesn’t have a mascot.

How about Wisconsin?

Who doesn’t love Bucky Badger? Also, Wisconsin has been one of the most consistent teams in the country for the past 15 years despite never recruiting elite-level classes. The Badgers play in an iconic stadium, have an illustrious history and are trying to build the program back up under second-year head coach Luke Fickell. Wisconsin also wears red and has won a lot of games pounding the ball on the ground, which should bring back some nice memories for any rugby lover.

Please let me know if I just created a new Badgers fan.

I used to follow recruiting fervently. I stopped after last year, not because of moral qualms (players should be paid!), but because there was so much last-minute movement driven solely by bidding wars. It seemed pointless to follow over the course of the year. What’s the case for tracking it closely, as a fan, in the NIL era if half of my team’s class will commit or decommit in the last month of the process, solely based on the best financial deal? — Kevin H.

There is a lot of merit to what you said.

I’m 100 percent on the same page as you, as I know players deserve compensation but I’m also having a hard time coming to grips that recruiting coverage will never be the same. You can’t write heartwarming profiles about a kid who loves a program without acknowledging that NIL might have been a significant factor in his decision. When a program wins a big-time recruiting battle, it’s hard to figure out who to assign the credit and/or blame to when the decision might have been influenced more by money than any other factor.

You could just check in at the end of the year and see how things shook out.

That’s boring. Who wants to do that?

Recruiting coverage during the offseason is how you stay connected to your favorite team. College football is a truly absurd sport. The things that happen on and off the field are so strange and happen at a frequency no other sport in the world can match. Yes, the games are the main event, but checking out on recruiting coverage, to me, would be like checking out on your team for eight months a year.

That doesn’t mean there won’t be frustrating aspects to it. When a kid leaves the program or money decides a recruitment, you may want to put your fist through the drywall. But that emotion — the highs and the lows — is the very essence of what it means to be a college football fan. The sport has changed, sure, but we’ll adapt. Why? Because we love college football and our teams.

If recruiting is purely transactional for you, you can treat it like the NFL Draft and simply look at the list of signees after signing day. That’s your prerogative.

But if I were you, I’d stick with it all year long. This is, after all, a 12-month sport, even if some aspects of it are currently broken.

(Photo: Mark J. Rebilas / USA Today)

2024-04-11 21:03:15
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