The Michigan Wolverines' football program picked up a commitment from Brentwood (Tenn.) Ravenwood four-star linebacker Junior Colson over the weekend, marking their fourth pledge in the top 100 (Colson sits at No. 83 overall) in the 2021 class.
Colson's commitment also bumped Michigan's recruiting class up to No. 6 in the country, trailing only (in order) Ohio State, Tennessee, Clemson, USC and Florida.
What's even more notable, however, is that U-M's four top 100 pledges are now tied with Clemson and Notre Dame for the third most in all of college football, behind only the five that Tennessee possesses and the 10 that Ohio State currently has.
Other than Colson, the Wolverines' three other top 100 commits are Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy four-star quarterback J.J. McCarthy, Sterling Heights (Mich.) Stevenson four-star offensive tackle Giovanni El-Hadi and Needham (Mass.) St. Sebastian's Country Day four-star tight end Louis Hansen.
Georgia, Oregon, Texas and USC are the next programs in line with three pledges each in the Rivals100, while LSU checks in next with two. Eleven other teams, meanwhile, have one top 100 commit apiece.
After signing back-to-back No. 4 classes nationally in both 2016 and 2017, one knock on Michigan's recruiting efforts ever since then is that head coach Jim Harbaugh's hauls have lacked top 100 talent.
This was especially evident in both 2018 and 2020, when U-M only signed one Rivals100 prospect between the two classes — Milton (Mass.) Academy four-star linebacker Kalel Mullings in the 2020 crop.
If the Maize and Blue are able to reel in five or more top 100 recruits in the 2021 class (they will have an outstanding chance of doing so), it will mark the program's most since it signed seven in the aforementioned 2017 class that finished No. 4 nationally.
Rivals100 Prospects Michigan has Signed Over the Last 10 Years
*Note: The numbers in parenthesis below mark where the player was rated nationally
2020 — 1
• LB Kalel Mullings (No. 92)
2019 — 4
• DT Chris Hinton (No. 15)
• S Daxton Hill (No. 24)
• RB Zach Charbonnet (No. 60)
• OT Trente Jones (No. 90)
2018 — 0
2017 — 7
• WR Donovan Peoples-Jones (No. 12)
• LB Jordan Anthony (No. 26)
• DT Aubrey Solomon (No. 31)
• C Cesar Ruiz (No. 41)
• LB Drew Singleton (No. 52)
• DE Luiji Vilain (No. 74)
• WR Tarik Black (No. 76)
2016 — 4
• DT Rashan Gary (No. 1)
• TE Devin Asiasi (No. 46)
• OG Ben Bredeson (No. 60)
• CB David Long (No. 81)
2015 — 0
2014 — 2
• CB Jabrill Peppers (No. 3)
• OT Mason Cole (No. 92)
2013 — 4
• RB Derrick Green (No. 8)
• DT Henry Poggi (No. 70)
• QB Shane Morris (No. 81)
• OG Patrick Kugler (No. 82)
2012 — 3
• DT Ondre Pipkins (No. 14)
• OT Kyle Kalis (No. 22)
• OT Erik Magnuson (No. 78)
2011 — 1
• RB Justice Hayes (No. 85)
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