Michigan Wolverines Basketball Recruiting: The Latest On Visitors, Offerees
Michigan hosted a pair of five-stars in big man Walker Kessler (7-0, 235, Rivals.com’s No. 20 senior nationally) of College Park (Ga.) Woodward Academy and shooting guard Jaden Springer (6-6, 200, No. 15) of Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy Aug. 31 weekend, and both visits went very well. Each raved about new head coach Juwan Howard and his down-to-earth approach.
One source close to Springer’s recruitment said the visit “went well,” noting the coaching staff, business school, campus and support Michigan has for Student-Athletes resonated with his mother. However, The Athletic reported Sept. 13 Springer’s recruitment would come down to Memphis and Tennessee.
Springer visited the Tigers Sept. 13 weekend for an official.
“Springer has trimmed his list to three — Memphis, Michigan and Tennessee — but his recruitment will come down to the two schools on opposite sides of the state,” The Athletic’sJohn Martin reported.
“With Springer figuring as a heavy lean to the Volunteers, there was thought as recently as early this week that Memphis would be wasting its time and a visit by hosting Springer this weekend. But sources close to Springer’s recruitment now believe there is momentum and a visit to Memphis, if all goes well, could sway the 6-foot-5 guard’s decision in the Tigers’ favor.”
As for Kessler, he told Rivals.com’s Dan McDonald he had a “great visit.”
"He really liked Juwan Howard and the staff he hired,” he reported. “He likes that he’s connected with NBA decision-makers.”It’s going to be tough to overcome distance from home and, to a much lesser extent, weather, but some believe it’s at least a small possibility. “Duke and UNC visits coming up will be big,” McDonald said.
Kessler reportedly had a great visit to Duke and was slated to see North Carolina and Gonzaga before deciding.
Four-star Lance Ware of Camden (N.J.) Big Picture Learning Academy, meanwhile, enjoyed his Sept. 7 weekend visit, but Kentucky coach John Calipari locked him up and got his commitment the following Monday (Sept. 9). He made it public Sept. 12.
Thoughts on the remaining 2020 offerees and upcoming visitors:
The Montverde (Fla.) standout, a teammate of U-M pledge Zeb Jackson (who visited officially Sept. 7), will visit U-M Sept. 27 weekend. The Arkansas native has a final seven of Arkansas, Florida, Kansas, Ohio State, Oregon, USC and U-M, and he visited Ohio State Aug. 31 weekend.
“After a bit of an up and down junior year where he never seemed fully healthy, Moody came on strong at the end of the summer and was particularly good at USA Basketball where he showed versatility on both sides of the ball,” Rivals.com’s Corey Evans reported.
Evans told us U-M has a shot here.
"I think he is still a little away from deciding," he said. "Arkansas is the in-state program, so you always have to monitor the Hogs with someone like Moody. Florida has been recruiting him for a while since he enrolled just down the road at Monteverde.
"Ohio State has already hosted him and Oregon is also in the hunt, but I do believe that Michigan has some traction."
The Raleigh (N.C.) Word of God Christian standout hosted Kentucky for an in-home and is thought to be a U-K lean if he doesn’t skip college altogether to play professionally but will take all five visits. He’ll start with U-M Sept. 27.
“I’m ready to get to the campuses and see the place that I’d be calling home and get a feel for everything that comes with it,” Todd told USA Today.
Huntington (W.V.) Prep’s Brakefield is tentatively slated to visit Oct. 5 weekend when the Wolverines’ football team hosts Iowa, and he’ll see Louisville Sept. 27 weekend. Auburn might be the team to beat, though, after his outstanding Sept. 8 visit.
“After this visit, I am real heavy on Auburn right now,” he said. “I’ll definitely be going back to school and thinking about it a lot. It’s a great fit for me. It’s a family atmosphere. I’m from down south, so it was great coming back and feeling the atmosphere, how great the fans are, how great the family is.”
Williams, a Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy standout, added U-M to his final five of Duke, Ohio State, Michigan, Stanford and UCLA. He’s already visited UCLA and will see U-M Oct. 25, Duke Nov. 10.
“While the Blue Devils will still likely end up with the talented big man, if there is a program out there that can pull him away, it is UCLA,” Evans reported at the end of August.
Dickinson visited Sept. 7 weekend, but the Wolverines appear to be playing from behind. Purdue, Notre Dame and North Carolina are also high on his list, and North Carolina will also get a visit. He has gone silent in recent weeks.
Coleman’s dad was a football captain at Virginia Tech in the early 1990s and he recently visited.
From Evans: “Ohio State is already out, so that leaves four. He may get to Michigan and N.C. State, but I could also see [Tech] being his last trip. I think this is a direct battle between the Hokies and [Duke] Blue Devils. He already visited Duke and after this (Sept. 13) weekend, I wouldn’t be surprised if he would be ready to make his college decision.”
From Rivals.com’s Dan McDonald: “[His recruitment] is tough to read. His brother plays at Arizona State, leading many to believe he ends up there, but it’s far from a done deal. Kentucky, Missouri and UCLA have also been mentioned as possibilities for his signature.”
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