We spoke with three of the top recruiting experts in the business — Tom Lemming, Mike Farrell and Josh Helmholdt — to get their thoughts on the Michigan Wolverines football's 2021 signing class, and what their biggest takeaways from it were.
Farrell is Rivals.com's National Director of Recruiting, while Lemming is the co-host of CBS Sports' The Lemming Report and the editor of the Prep Football Report magazine. Helmholdt, meanwhile, is the Midwest recruiting analyst for Rivals.com.
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What are your thoughts on the class as a whole?
Tom Lemming: “I thought [U-M head coach] Jim Harbaugh did an excellent job. I have the class No. 11 nationally, even though they lost those two kids at the end [Jacksonville Sandalwood four-star linebacker Branden Jennings and Scottsdale (Ariz.) Saguaro four-star defensive end Quintin Somerville]. It’s an outstanding class and Coach Harbaugh deserves a lot of credit, because it was a difficult year to hang on to players, and he hung on to almost all the good ones. It’s a class that will help Michigan get back to where they want to be.
"Getting [West Bloomfield (Mich.) High four-star running back] Donovan Edwards on Signing Day was a big, big catch, with everyone else coming after him and so many schools needing a running back. Signing [Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy four-star quarterback] J.J. McCarthy and [Brentwood (Tenn.) Ravenwood four-star linebacker] Junior Colson was also big, and [Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei four-star receiver] Cristian Dixon was another big-time guy. I saw almost every single one of their players in person, though [Clayton (Ohio) Northmont three-star safety] Rod Moore and [Mansfield (Mass.) High three-star defensive end] T.J. Guy were the only two I didn’t see. I liked every single kid I saw; when I go to see someone, it means they’re a really good player because I only try to watch the top 1,000 or so at a few hundred schools.”
Mike Farrell: “It was up and down, but they finished as well as could have been expected. It could have been a lot worse. The class finished 12th, though it was in the top 10 most of the year. Some important things occurred late, like Edwards choosing Michigan and not going to the SEC, and [Fresno (Calif.) Central four-star wideout] Xavier Worthy doing the same. [Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas four-star athlete] Jaydon Hood signing was also big. There were also downers, with Jennings and Somerville leaving. Grade-wise, I’d give it a B.”
Josh Helmholdt: “Michigan certainly faced some challenges with this recruiting class, most notably the uncertainty around Jim Harbaugh’s future. The athletic department didn’t do anything to alleviate that leading up to Signing Day, which could have certainly hurt Michigan substantially. It ultimately didn’t have a huge impact on the class, so that’s a positive.”
Who do you think is the best player in the class?
Tom Lemming: “J.J. McCarthy. I’ve been seeing him since his freshman year at Nazareth [High School in LaGrange Park, Ill.]. He’s a quarterback who has all the tools, and Harbaugh knows how to train quarterbacks. The combination of Harbaugh and McCarthy will bring the Wolverines back to where they want to go. Michigan fans should relax a bit, because everyone has these horrible years every now and then. They’ll bounce back. McCarthy will be young next year, but could be thrown into the mix right away due to his maturity and talent. When I was in Chicago, I saw all the other top players gravitate toward him. That has a lot do with his personality and leadership skills. He has what it takes to lead Michigan back to prominence.”
Mike Farrell: “I think Worthy is the best player. Unfortunately, he didn’t get to play his senior season or an all-star game. We didn’t get to see him in the spring either, so he missed crucial evaluation opportunities. He started off as a three-star and moved up into a Rivals100 kid. He’s a track star and is extremely fast and dynamic. I feel like he would’ve had a crazy senior year and blown people away at the all-star games, and could have wound up as the best player in the class from a rankings standpoint. I think Worthy is the most dangerous guy in the class. McCarthy could be great or he could be horrible … it’s so hard to tell with quarterbacks. He has the tools to be successful, especially on the ‘wow plays’ where he makes throws on the run with pinpoint accuracy.”
