commitment posts

The final 2025 Hello yet to be written is in-state DT Bobby Kanka. A Howell, Michigan, native, Kanka was the third player in the 2025 class but is now the longest tenured, as Chris Ewald recently decommitted, following Mantrez Walker (who your author forgot about on first draft). The tackle is among the best players in Michigan, so let's get to know the only current commit on the defensive side of the ball: 

GURU RATINGS 

Kanka was unranked when he committed in August but has since been placed on the boards of three of the four services. He lacks a ranking at ESPN (surprise, surprise) but is a 3* to On3 and 247, while a 4* to Rivals. Both the 247 Composite and the On3 consensus rankings place Kanka in the zone we typically refer to as 3.5* territory. According to Seth's database on all defensive tackles recruited since 1990, Kanka ranks 28th out of 71. The four sites variously list his weight from 255 to 270, which is an important note when we talk about what position he may play in college. 

[AFTER THE JUMP: made to play at MIchigan]

Moving on to the second of the three 2025 Hellos we need to cover, today is TE Eli Owens. The Tennessee native trended hard to Michigan after attending The Game in Ann Arbor and then gave the Wolverines his commitment in early January. Today we will get to know this TE/Fullback prospect: 

GURU RATINGS 

Owens is a 3* to three of the four sites, getting a relatively high ranking only to Rivals. From the height/weight listings you can see one of the primary issues holding back Owens from being ranked among the elite TE prospects, which is his very modest height. He's listed at only 6'1.5" to 247, while ESPN/Rivals are more optimistic by listing him at 6'3", but Owens is obviously an undersized TE recruit, which begs some questions about his position, which we will discuss below. Among all TEs Michigan has recruited since 1990, Owens is towards the middle, 31st out of 53 in Seth's database. A pretty routine 3.5* sort of prospect. 

[AFTER THE JUMP: Max Bredeson, but a rated recruit]

Michigan's got a few 2025 commits that have yet to receive Hellos and today we start with the most star-studded one, 4* QB Carter Smith. Lost in all the fanfare surrounding Michigan's failed pursuit of mega QB prospect Bryce Underwood is the fact that the Wolverines already picked up a commitment from a pretty highly regarded QB in Smith, who joined the '25 class in November. Today we will get to know a potential QB Of The Future. 

GURU RATINGS 

Smith is a legitimate 4* to three of the four services and is either top 100 or borderline top 100 to Rivals and On3. The Rivals ranking is rather remarkable, Smith being bumped up from unranked to top 60 nationally in one national rankings update. The negative site on Smith is 247, pegging Smith as a 3* presently, but even that ranking is damn close to being a 4*. Based on Seth's 5 star scale, it is exactly one, 4.00. The consensus rankings thus have Smith a good bit higher, with the 247 Composite bordering on 4.5* status. Based on Seth's database, Smith is 17th out of 43 QBs that Michigan has recruited since 1990 in terms of rankings. Not too bad! 

[AFTER THE JUMP: do you remember JJ McCarthy?]