The month of August began with an unexpected verbal commitment from 2023 Washington (D.C.) Gonzaga three-star offensive tackle Evan Link, who visited the weekend prior for the annual BBQ at the Big House. Link's announcement was a direct result of the summer blowout which won't be considered the only success story considering what happened Saturday.

On a recent Face or Fiction piece published by Rivals.com following the barbecue, both National Recruiting Analyst Clint Cosgrove and myself believed that the Wolverines were going to land at three commitments because of how they were able to impress the attendees. This was right after Link made his decision.

Almost two weeks later, that belief is holding more-and-more truth.

2023 Carlsbad (Calif.) High three-star Zack Marshall became the second commit of the month and second tight end alongside Chicagoland three-star Deakon Tonitelli to join Michigan's recruiting class after the former received an offer from Grant Newsome during the barbecue. Marshall had worked out in front of Newsome that morning and walked away with what he set out to accomplish.

"The visit was awesome," Marshall said. "Michigan showed so much hospitality and they have great people all around the program. It was fun to be with those people. Obviously, it's an amazing place and Michigan is a beautiful university. The only thing I could say (after getting the offer) was 'thank you lord. God is good. A lot of people put that in their bios, but for me, it means everything. I was praying (for an offer) for a while."

Marshall had been in communication with Newsome for a couple of months before he was invited to Ann Arbor for the first time unofficially. The No. 53 overall senior in the state of California finally caught on Michigan's radar once his national exposure finally came to fruition this offseason.

"Obviously, (Newsome is) young but he's been around some awesome, awesome coaches like coach (Matt) Weiss, coach (Sherrone) Moore, and coach (Jim) Harbaugh," Marshall said. "These guys have all molded themselves into amazing coaches. I really like where Newsome has his priorities at. I got to meet his wife too and it was fun. I'd imagine he's a great husband and I appreciate his values and love for the game of football."

Marshall was able to link up with Michigan because of his longtime friendship with 2024 five-star quarterback Julian Sayin, who visited Ann Arbor earlier in the offseason. Sayin, who's the signal caller at Carlsbad, was once the top target for the Wolverines before the recent summer surge of fellow five-star Jadyn Davis.

Marshall and Sayin have known each other for years but 2022 will be the first time they play high school football together.

Since late-April, the 6-foot-4 and 210-pounder received offers from Boise State, Cal, Utah, Arizona, and Washington State with the Wolverines still being the latest to come onboard. The thought was for Marshall to prolong the process to at least September in order to take official visits, as he'll have to sit out the first four games at Carlsbad due to transfer rules, but he needed just days to believe that Michigan was home.

Marshall released a top three that also included the Golden Bears and Utes. There was heightened optimism from the Cal contingent in its likelihood to land Marshall around the time that he visited leading up to the July dead period. Utah, of course, is predicted by most to win the PAC-12 this season so its west coast pedigree is high.

But distance never swayed Michigan's recent chances.

The opportunity to take over an off-the-field role as both a leader and pillar in the Ann Arbor community really gravitated Marshall to Michigan as his goal once retired is to mature and be a better man than once he first arrived. Also, the attitudes and philosophies of the offensive coaching staff like Newsome, Weiss, Moore, and certainly Harbaugh were easy for Marshall to devote to and believe in.

"(Harbaugh) is such an awesome dude," Marshall said. "He couldn't have read a player better than when he did it with me. When I walked in, he asked 'you're a dreamer aren't you?' I thought about it and realized that I am. It's true with what he said because you have people saying 'you can't do this and can't do that.' You have to be sometimes delusional to say that you're going to do it anyways. So the whole meeting with coach Harbaugh was awesome."

Along with being the second tight end commit for 2023, Marshall is also the second player from California to make the move to go to Michigan after Santa Margarita Catholic four-star EDGE Collins Acheampong. The pair were able to meet at the barbecue and quickly connected being that their respective high schools are about an hour away from each other.

With Marshall having that open availability for traveling because of not allowed to play early in the season, look up for him to be at the Big House for one of the September home games.

"I can't even imagine but I know it's going to be crazy at the stadium," Marshall said. "Michigan fans are crazy and it's going to be nothing like I've experienced before. 110,000 people. I can only picture what it's going to be like."

Marshall marks the 14th addition to the 2023 recruiting class for Michigan, who has garnered eight total dating back to mid-June. The list includes five four-stars, according to Rivals.com.

The Wolverines were ranked No. 38 on the Rivals Team Recruiting Rankings for 2023 before jumping eight spots once Marshall took to social media. Comparing the class to the entire Big Ten, Michigan is No. 6 overall.

Up next to possibly join as well is Baton Rouge (L.A.) Woodlawn Rivals250 cornerback Jordan Matthews, who's set to choose between Michigan, Texas, and Tennessee, on Monday.

Another Greater Los Angeles three-star to keep an eye on next month is Mission Viejo wide receiver Mikey Matthews, who'll be officially visiting Michigan on September 24 for the game against Maryland.

Last season, Marshall notched 44 catches for 1,012 yards and nine touchdowns at Solona Beach (Calif.) Santa Fe Christian.

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