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Michigan lost their first verbal commitment of the 2020 cycle, and it was a big one. Four-star OH WR Kalil Branham tweeted that he was decommiting, somehow managing to fit it within Twitter’s character limit and eschewing the Notes app. 247’s Steve Lorenz wrote a quick piece in the wake of Branham decommitting in which he notes that Branham committed to Pep Hamilton and his primary recruiter was Al Washington (who, according to 247’s player profile, had been pursuing him since he was at Cincinnati) and, uh, those guys no longer have offices in Schembechler Hall.

The staff may be close to adding a verbal from a skill-position player, though. Lorenz did some digging in the wake of MD RB Blake Corum tweeting that he’s close to a decision and came back with his crystal ball still solidly on Michigan. Corum has been one of Michigan’s top targets for some time, and should he pick Michigan he won’t be going there alone; fellow St. Frances Academy four-star OLB Osman Savage and three-star OT Micah Mazzccua are a current teammates. When exactly said decision will go public isn’t clear, but Lorenz closed his post by saying it could be in the very near future.

Lorenz also added a crystal ball for NY ATH William Mohan. He unofficially visited earlier this month, and Lorenz reports that he’s a take as a Viper. The three-star is currently ranked #415 in the composite and is the #4 player in New York. The Wolverine’s Brandon Brown spoke with Mohan, who said that the intensity with which Michigan is recruiting him is a 10/10. He said OSU, PSU, Pitt, and Rutgers are also recruiting him hard, but noted that his interest in Michigan is a 10/10. Mohan then told Brown that he’s going to be back for an official visit. Fun fact, per 247’s player page: his nickname is ‘Apache.’ If this makes you think of Traverse City and now you’re hungry then we’re on the exact same page.

A long-time top target made his first visit to Ann Arbor at the end of last week and liked it enough that he told 247's Steve Wiltfong he'll be back for an official. NJ S Jordan Morant spent Thursday on campus and told Wiltfong he was impressed by the facilities and academic opportunity (and support) Michigan offers, and he added that his favorite thing about Michigan is having coaches Partridge and Campanile on staff due to the level of comfort that provides with them both being from New Jersey. 247's Steve Lorenz wrote that he was waiting to see whether the staff would mention playing with Daxton Hill to Morant; on Thursday Morant tweeted at Hill "this the move?", so I think it's safe to assume we know who was discussed that day. One thing that's interesting is Morant's ranking. He's #112 overall and the #8 safety in the composite, but 247 has him significantly higher at #43 overall and the nation's top safety. I watched his junior highlight film and his speed, athleticism, explosion, and change of direction lead me to believe 247's ranking is about where he should be.

[More big visits and crystal balls after THE JUMP]

Michigan’s junior day saw a bevy of talent come through Ann Arbor from all over the country and at a number of positions of need. They’ve been in the mix for IL WR AJ Henning since last spring (he visited for the spring game that didn’t happen), and they remains high on his list. There’s one key difference between last year’s staff and this one, though, and Henning got time to sit down and take in a presentation from new offensive coordinator Josh Gattis when he visited for junior day last weekend. It sounds like Gattis gave him the #SpeedInSpace pitch, pulling up film that illustrated how the Wolverines would use the nation’s #51 overall prospect and #8 WR. From what he told 247’s Steve Wiltfong, it sounds like Henning would be a perfect fit for Gattis.

"He's seen players like me before, the type of player that can make plays outside and make plays in space. Primarily they'll have me in the slot and move me around, different stuff with jet motion and outside as well.

Henning told Wiltfong that he has a good relationship with most of Michigan’s staff and just needs to continue to build one with Gattis. Five of six crystal balls favor Notre Dame, but they’re months (or, in two instances, over a year) old. This is a recruitment to keep an eye considering the fit, Michigan’s need for 2020 receivers, and the length of time they’ve been after him. 247’s Steve Lorenz asked around and was told that Michigan did what they needed to during the visit to become a real factor in Henning’s decision. Henning also spoke with The Wolverine’s Brandon Brown, telling him that he doesn’t know whether he will commit before or after the season and that his commitment date will impact when he takes his officials, but he does plan to take another visit to Michigan.

That said, there are certainly outside influences at play. 247’s Allen Trieu posted an excellent Midwest update in which he noted that he could see Henning and four-star IL WR Jadon Thompson going to the same school, and Thompson currently has one CB in: for Purdue, from Trieu. Thompson was on campus with Henning last weekend, though. Thompson told WolverinesWire’s Evan Petzold that Michigan is high on his list after visiting; he has a top-six of Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Missouri, Illinois, and Purdue.

[This post gets decidedly supernatural after THE JUMP]

Michigan’s 2019 class is more or less wrapped up with the exception of one position: running back. The Michigan staff has entertained the idea of bringing in one more running back after TN RB Eric Gray decommitted from the class, and the player they’ve set their sights on is similar to Gray in that he’s adept at catching the ball out of the backfield, shifty in the open field, and seems to have good acceleration and balance (though balance through contact, as important a trait for RBs as there is, wasn’t on film); he seems like a good fit for new OC Josh Gattis’ #SpeedInSpace philosophy. Washington DC RB Keilan Robinson should have been somewhat familiar with Michigan if for no other reason because his teammate, S Quinten Johnson, is a 2019 signee. He’ll be even more familiar with the program this week, as 247’s Steve Lorenz reports that Michigan’s staff was expected to stop in and see him this week after staying in communication with him the past few months. Robinson, a four-star ranked #362 overall and the #20 RB per the 247 composite, is currently committed to Alabama but has yet to sign.

With 2019 recruiting dwindling, attention from recruiting sites has turned to postseason all-star games and the re-ranks they birth. 247’s analysts sat down and re-watched the Under Armour All-America Game, then offered their take on Michigan’s signees. 247’s John Garcia has seen FL LB Anthony Solomon often in camps and wrote that his coverage skills were never in question. He was more interested in seeing what Solomon could do in a game setting. Garcia:

Looking back he actually closed downhill and finished much better than maybe his height and weight would suggest.

Allen Trieu believes that OH OL Nolan Rumler could play either center or guard in college. Trieu on Rumler going from good in practice to great in the game:

I know that on two of the touchdowns they ran right behind him, and on one he flat pancaked the guy. There was one play where he just drove Mazi (Smith) and nobody had done that all week. I though Nolan lived up to his billing, that whenever the lights are on, he is going to be a mauler.

Garcia noted that Rumler played high at times but was able to sustain blocks once he got his hands on a guy even if his pads were up. Rumler’s future linemate Trente Jones drew rave reviews during the week, and Garcia compared the two:

If Rumler is going to flash, it’ll be with power or maybe a pancake. But Trente will flash with running the defensive end way around a pocket and allowing his quarterback to step up. It will be his ability to get to the second level, to reach block, and get over TWO gaps, to lead the way on stretch plays, and things like that. His movement and skill will allow for so many different types of looks.

Garcia’s takes are some of the most interesting in this piece because he hasn’t seen much of the midwest guys until the week of UA practices and the game. For example, on MI DT Mazi Smith:

You know, the few times I was introduced to him came when we were cutting up top ten plays. Allen would send the film and I would ask “who is this guy?” It was always this ridiculous leverage guy. A leverage monster. If he got under you, he was going to be a problem even for the most physically gifted offensive linemen.

I start these posts with “[Insert day here] Recruitin’” and add the rest of the title as I read articles and start pulling things together and I don’t think I’ve ever scrolled up faster to insert the rest of the title. Garcia and Trieu closed their piece with a discussion of DC S Quinten Johnson’s daily improvement, but I wrote about that in the last recruiting roundup and didn’t find a great ARRRG TECHNIQUE GODZILLA RARR-type (sound effects mine) quote.

[After THE JUMP: Rivals' re-rank, reactions to staff additions and departures, and a number of new offers]