Weekend Visitors List: Feb. 23-24, 2013

Michigan's first big recruiting visit weekend in the 2014 class takes place this weekend. Two of U-M's three commitments will hit campus, along with a number of top targets.

Michigan Commits

St. Clairsville (Ohio) linebacker 2014 commit Michael Ferns. Ferns will kick off his Project 135 campaign in earnest in his first return to campus since football season. He's bringing a few of his t-shirts just in case...

Richmond (Va.) Collegiate quarterback 2014 commit Wilton Speight. Speight has only visited Ann Arbor once, and that was for a game. This time, he'll get more opportunity to see everything that campus and school have to offer. Like Ferns, he'll be wearing his figurative recruiting cap (and literal recruiting t-shirt).

2014 Prospects

Cleveland St. Ignatius linebacker Kyle Berger. Though he's considered a slight Ohio State lean, Berger's emphasis on academics - and close relationship with Jake Ryan's family - give Michigan a real shot in this one. Some sources have indicated there's no chance he ends up anywhere other than Michigan, but I wouldn't go nearly that far yet.

Tarpon Springs (Fla.) East Lake offensive lineman Mason Cole. Cole spent much of the summer and fall openly admitting that Michigan was a favorite, and that he'd want to return to the Midwest (he's a Chicago native) for college. Notre Dame has also made a move with the 6-5, 285-pounder, but Ferns and Speight have been on him hard. Though he and his coach say he's not going to commit, he's the most likely of the visitors to pull the trigger.

Grand Rapids (Mich.) Christian wide receiver Drake Harris. Michigan started playing a bit from behind with Harris, since they opted to give him his space when he committed to Michigan State. Now that he's back on the market, U-M is in the picture once more. This will be the 6-5, 180-pounder's first trip to campus since his MSU pledge - he was in town for Michigan summer camp in June.

2014 Charlotte (N.C.) Christian running back Elijah Hood. Michigan is lingering around the back of the top six for Hood (Notre Dame, whose campus he visited over the past weekend, is in first), but a visit to campus is one way to change that in a hurry. The elite runner is an early five-star prospect. He is visiting Notre Dame Friday and Ohio State Sunday afternoon on the trip.

2014 Southfield (Mich.) defensive end Lawrence Marshall. Marshall plans to visit his childhood favorite after decommitting from Ohio State (and just a couple days as an OSU pledge). He has also visited Michigan State multiple times this winter, and it's clear his recruitment is far from over this time around.

2014 Detroit Loyola defensive end Malik McDowell. McDowell has been to Ann Arbor numerous times - it's just about 35 minutes from his home in Detroit, after all - and has pretty much seen everything. Still, getting him on campus helps develop a comfort at Michigan, and although he plans to take some out-of-region trips this summer, building an early lead doesn't hurt.

2015 Prospects

2015 Tarpon Springs (Fla.) East Lake wide receiver George Campbell. An elite receiver - one of just a handful of sophomores to hold Michigan offers this early - has tagged along with teammate Mason Cole on the visit. He has never been on campus, but has serious interest in the Wolverines.

2015 Saginaw (Mich.) Heritage athlete Brian Cole. Cole picked up an unofficial Michigan offer in January, and the 6-2, 190-pound prospect has the versatility to contribute in college at a variety of positions. A full Michigan offer is only a matter of time - and could come when he makes it to campus this weekend.

Possible - 2015 Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edward defensive back Shaun Crawford. Crawford had a death in his family this week, so he's not 100% on visiting, but he would like to (and if he doesn't, he'll reschedule). The 5-9, 165-pound Crawford is a speedster who excels at DB and WR in high school, but is likely to be a cornerback in college.

Stay tuned over the course of the weekend for updates to the visitors list - and news from those who make it to campus.