The Must-Get Prospects of 2022 - UPDATED By Position

High Priorities: 

Defensive Secondary: One of the most important position groups to focus on in this cycle. Michigan only signed two DB's last year, so there could be as many as six DB prospects taken in this round of recruiting. It's a good thing that there are a lot of quality prospects in play here and it's even better than some of them are already committed. 

• Will Johnson 5-Star (Gross Pointe, MI) Grade: 98 - COMMITTED The 2022 recruiting class is loaded with top-notch prospects at corner. Johnson is by all measures a top 15 overall recruit and being that he is an in-state legacy prospect, one couldn't find a bigger "must-get" player in any cycle. Wherever he goes he should immediately be competing for playing time and he has the raw skills to become a shutdown player at the next level. He is the number one player on Michigan's board, period. 
• Chace Biddle 4-Star (Garland, TX) Grade: 86 - Is a big name out of Texas that is high on the Michigan board. He is definitely the best safety prospect on Michigan's radar and he is showing mutual interest. Let's hope it lasts. 
• Jaedon Gould 4-Star (Oradell, NJ) Grade: 84 - About as solid of a corner prospect as one could ask for in any cycle. Looks like a future contributor and comes with a nice frame at 6'2"/190lbs. Might end up at safety if he keeps growing but could be a very powerful corner with the ability to manhandle smaller receivers. 
• Myles Pollard 3-Star (Brentwood, TN) Grade: 80 - Is mostly underappreciated and undervalued by a lot of recruiting services. Don't take my word for it though, just look at the 38 offers he has currently. Tennessee, Auburn, Oklahoma, and Kentucky all appear to be high on his list too. Establishing a bit of a pipeline in SEC territory would be a huge bonus.
• Sherrod Covil (Chesapeake, VA) Grade: 80 - If Michigan could sign all five of these kids listed here they would, but they probably won't. If they could get Covil and any one of the other safeties listed here it would be a strong boost to the position. Getting three out of the four top prospects at the position would be a huge win once again at the position. 

Defensive Line: Might be the second highest priority for the coaching staff in this cycle despite the fact that they signed a big handful of quality prospects this past year. Depth is a concern though, and there are some very good prospects in play here, so they might as well load up while they can. 

• Walter Nolan 5-Star (Corova, TN) Grade: 98 - Another elite recruit seriously considering the Wolverines as his college of choice, Nolan is only behind Johnson here because he's not an in-state prospect or a corner. Though tackle is not as big of a need it is still a big need and this kid would represent a huge win for the coaching staff. With Johnson already in the fold as a committed prospect nobody will get as much attention going forward. 
• Deone Walker 4-Star (Detroit, MI) Grade: 82 - It's fair to wager that no other prospect from the state of Michigan has seen their recruitment take off more since July of last year, when the Wolverines were the first team to offer him. Since then he has received 27 more offers, including some from SEC powerhouse like Florida, Georgia, and LSU. Penn State and Michigan State are firmly in the mix too, while Texas is the latest team to offer him as of this writing. 
• Davonte Miles 3-Star (River Rouge, MI) Grade: 77 - COMMITTED Another big-bodied in-state prospect at one of the biggest positions of need on the team. He is also already committed and Michigan might need to work hard for his services before this cycle is over. He has the framework to develop into a power five starter some day who might be able to add 40+ lbs to handle the nose tackle job on first and second downs in a 3-4 defense. As of now, he weighs in at about 6'5"/275lbs. His ceiling could be high and it would be great if Michigan could actually sustain a trend of getting all the best kids in Michigan to come to Ann Arbor. 

Wide Receivers: This position went from being a minor need to a moderate one after Xavier Worthy asked to be let out of his national letter of intent. Luckily for the staff, there are plenty of options here with one good one already committed. 

• Kaleb Brown 4-Star (Chicago, IL) Grade: 86 - The highest rated receiver on Michigan's board is always a "must-get" recruit. There is definitely an argument for him being more of a need than Trent, but the roster in Ann Arbor is currently loaded with freshman and sophomore receivers that can flat-out fly. I just feel the team "needs" a 200lb+ outside pass-catcher just a little more than another sub 180-lb speedster. Barely. 
• Tyler Morris 4-Star (La Grange Park, IL) Grade: 85 - Is right up there with Brown on the team's board. Getting the two to commit would bring some more speed and play-making ability to the offense. Morris played with J.J. McCarthy two years ago so there is some familiarity there already. The team would then need to add more size to compliment. 
• Tay'shawn Trent 4-Star (Detroit, MI) Grade: 81 - COMMITTED By all means this kid is still a developing player that could end up playing tight end or even linebacker some day. Either way, he has a high ceiling to go along with his 6'4/205lb frame. Sparty will be pushing hard for his services, as will a host of other schools. Beating them all out would be a huge pleasure for the coaching staff. He might not be rated as high as some other kids on this list, but he fills a need for a bigger-bodied receiving prospect with some versatility AND he's another in-state prospect. Michigan just has to do better recruiting its own state.
• Darrius Clemons 4-Star (Portland, OR) Grade: 82 - A big (6'2"/200lbs), fast (4.3 forty!) kid that could help move the chains down the road. He also has almost three dozen offers so getting him on board would help make up for the loss of Xavier Worthy from last year's class. Penn State, USC, and Notre Dame are all heavily in the mix for his services. 

Tight End: Harbuagh and company have done a good job recruiting here over the last few years by nabbing at least one solid prospect in each of the last five cycles. There will be four scholarship players on the roster for this season. One of them is a senior while another could become a hot draft prospect with a breakout season. Either way, getting a decent boost in talent here would help balance the offense more as they have done a lot to get more speed on the field in recent recruiting cycles.

• Oscar Delp 4-Star (Cumming, GA) Grade: 86 - Among the top two or three tight ends in the country. Signing both him and Klein, who is already committed, would be a boost to the receiving skills at the position for the Wolverines. Delp is the more complete package in terms of being a pure tight end prospect. His learning curve should not be too steep once he gets to the college game. In fact, he would be the highest rated tight end prospect that Harbaugh has signed to Michigan if it were to happen. 
• Marlin Klein 4-Star (Rabun Gap, GA) Grade: 80 - COMMITTED A Jake Butt or Zach Gentry-esque type of prospect with a tall frame to high-point balls downfield or provide the quarterback with a safe bail-out option. Probably needs a year or two but has a very high ceiling. The team needs at least one high-quality tight end in this cycle, and they will probably go after two. Klein is already committed though, so losing him between now and NSD would hurt a little bit. 

Athlete: The team needs more athletes - guys that have all the measurables to play at the next level with the versatility to fill a couple of different roles. These are guys you probably need to develop for a year or two but they could pay huge dividends for the team in terms of trying to keep up with the more elite programs out there.

• Kody Jones 4-Star (Germantown, TN) Grade: 80 - COMMITTED The fact that there are so many higher-rated kids from Tennessee in play for Michigan here somewhat overshadows the commitment of Jones. He himself is a highly-coveted prospect that could play receiver, running back, or defensive back. I believe the coaches want him on defense. He represents a great start to 2021 for the team. 
• Dillon Tatum 4-Star (West Bloomfield, MI) Grade: 82 - A big, strong, and fast kid that could play running back or safety (or linebacker?) at the next level. I believe Michigan wants him as a defensive player. He proved himself to be a real leader in his senior year, and definitely boosted his stock. This battle will probably come down to Ohio State, Michigan, and Michigan State. He gets the nod here over some higher rated kids due to the fact that he is an in-state player with the versatility to fill a couple of needs for the team, especially when you consider the fact that the team only signed two DB's in last year's cycle. 
• Jaden Mangham 4-Star (Franklin, MI) Grade: 80 - With the loss of Xavier Worthy from last year's cycle, the need for receivers becomes a little greater in this cycle. As a result, athletes like Mangham will get a bump up on the ol' recruiting board. Michigan needs defensive backs too, so the fact that he might be able to play either side of the ball is a plus too, IMO. And again, the fact that he is from Michigan is important as well.  

Linebacker/Edge: The Wolverines are currently projected to have a dozen scholarship players returning at both the inside linebacker and edge positions, possibly more, for the 2022 season. There really isn't a huge need to load up too much here but nabbing a couple solid prospects wouldn't hurt in any cycle. 

• Sebastian Cheeks 4-Star (Evanston, IL) Grade: 84 - Michigan might not need a lot of true linebackers in this class, but at least one highly-rated linebacker in this crop of prospects is a must. Cheeks looks like a kid who can run sideline to sideline to pursue ball-carriers from inside or out. The fact that he is a midwestern kid is a plus in my book, as I feel Michigan needs to do a better job of securing talent closer to home. It makes the local fanbase stronger and the kids might be less-likely to transfer out later due to any homesickness issues. 
• Joe Strickland 4-Star (Indianapolis, IN) Grade: 83 - Another top midwestern product that could fit in nicely as a strongside edge player in the new defense. He might be able to eventually help fill the void that will be left after Aiden Hutchinson's inevitable departure.
• Mario Eugenio 4-Star (Tampa, FL) Grade: 81 - Again, I feel Michigan actually has a good group of young 'backers and edge rushers already on the roster, so I don't expect the team to go hog-wild on signing a ton of prospects here. Eugenio looks like one of the top edge players on the Wolverines' board right now, so keep an eye on his recruitment going forward. Getting a kid from the Sunshine State to come up north is never easy but it has worked out for Michigan quite a bit in the past. 

Lower Priorities

Offensive Tackle: The offensive line doesn't need a ton of prospects added to it right now. A couple of decent tackle prospects is about all that is needed as the team did an excellent job addressing the line the last three years, particularly at the center and guard positions. 

• Josh Conerly 4-Star (Seattle, WA) Grade: 87 - Again, I don't believe Michigan is in the market for a huge haul along the offensive line in this cycle after scoring several high-end prospects over the last three years, particularly at guard and center. Getting one Top 150 line prospect to commit along with the already committed Connor Jones would probably all but wrap things up for the position. Conerly is the best tackle prospect currently on Michigan's radar. 
  
• Conor Jones 3-Star (Monument, CO) Grade: 77 - COMMITTED Is the only line prospect currently committed and I honestly couldn't care if he was the only one that eventually signed. He isn't very highly rated and isn't a top athlete, but he fits the mold of what the coaches are looking for at the position.
• Andre Roye 3-Star (Baltimore, MD) Grade: 77 - A 6'8" tackle prospect that looks like a young version of Raven great Jonothan Ogden, though it's kinda unfair to make that kind of comparison. This kid has a long way to go before being FBS ready, but he has all the makings of a future starter in the Big Ten. 

Quarterback: This is just not as big of a need as in most years with Cade McNamara, J.J. McCarthy, Dan Villeri, and Alan Bowman all on board for at least the next two or three years. That's good because there aren't many high-end prospects in this class nor are any of the top passers even interested. Most have already committed elsewhere. They could go without signing one and be just fine for now. 

• Nate Johnson 3-Star (Clovis, CA) Grade: 76 - Is a dual-threat in the backfield though he does not possess the type of arm the coaches covet. At any rate, he would be an extremely nice consolation prize in a year lacking any real good passing prospects. If Johnson doesn't pan out at QB he might make a decent receiver. 

Running Back: Michigan has signed four prospects here in the last two years so it's not on the high priority list. If they can sign just one top back that would be great.

• Nicholas Singleton 4-Star (Reading, PA) Grade: 84 - All the top Big Ten schools are in play for this kid's services. Getting him to commit over all of them would be a big win for Michigan. He has the size (5'11"/210lbs) to be a bruiser but he can can reach the edge and turn the corner, and he should be able to outrun a good deal of defenders in the FBS. He quite possibly could be the perfect back to sign in this class.

Interior Offensive Line: N/A

Kicking Specialist: N/A