Jeffrey M’ba has had an unusual journey to recruiting stardom.

M’ba started playing football in his home country of France before making his way to the United States and enrolling at national powerhouse Baltimore (Md.) St. Frances. However, M’ba had some visa issues and eventually ended up at St. Thomas More in Connecticut.

M’ba became one of the most sought-after defensive tackles in the 2019 recruiting class and committed to Virginia. Unfortunately for M’ba, problems with his academic transcripts prevented him from ever joining the UVA program.

Fast forward to now, and M’ba has everything taken care of in the classroom. He’s also progressed rapidly on the football field at Independence C.C., one of the top junior college football programs in the country.

“It’s been great (at Indepence),” M’ba said. “They have a great coaching staff here. I feel like I’ve been getting better every day. I’m very proud and happy about it.”

M’ba is once again going through the recruiting process and has earned offers from the likes of Arizona State, Miami, Nebraska, Oregon and USC.

Michigan, which rarely offers JUCO prospects, jumped in the mix last week and caught M’ba a bit off guard.

“That offer meant a lot to me,” M’ba said. “They offered me three years ago, and we didn’t really stay in touch, so I was a bit surprised about the offer. But I was really happy about it when they told me.”

Michigan is quickly emerging as a favorite for M’ba and has his full attention with the early signing period less than two months away.

“I like Michigan,” M’ba said. “They are pretty good. My friend, Blake Corum, plays over there. I’m really interested in Michigan. They have the biggest stadium in the world. They have the best facilities in the world. Michigan is a big team.”

Michigan is set to host M’ba for an official visit next month when the Wolverines take on rival Ohio State and will look to seal the deal with hm.

“I’m ready for the visit,” M’ba said. “I want to see if it’s a good place for me and how the coaching staff treats me. It’s going to be a good way to see if they really want me or not. I want to go to a place where they need me and really want me. Man, they have the biggest stadium in the world. Why are you asking me about it? You know I’m excited (laughs).”

Of course, relationships matter the most in recruiting. And M’ba has a special one with Michigan staffer Biff Poggi.

After all, Poggi is the former head coach at St. Frances and was instrumental in getting M’ba to make his way overseas when his recruiting process initially began.

“He really helped me with this process,” M’ba said. “I’m in America because of him. I really like him. He told me that Michigan is the best place for me. I didn’t stay long time at St. Frances, but I felt like he was there for me. It helps Michigan that he’s there for sure.”

M’ba is also building a strong relationship with Michigan defensive line coach Shaun Nua, who was on the phone with him this morning.

“He just told me about Michigan and what he wants me to do,” M’ba said. “We’re going to keep in touch and try to talk about football 2-3 times a week. He told me what it is like to be a Michigan Wolverine every day. He wants me to play three but also sometimes nose, 4i, five and even nine. He likes me as a Swiss army knife.”

M’ba will enroll early at the school of his choice and have three years of eligibility remaining.

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