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One of the class of 2024’s elite quarterbacks made his verbal bid Thursday night when five-star CJ Carr bid the Notre Dame Fighting Irish over the Michigan Wolverines, Michigan State Spartans and several other programs.
With Carr, the grandson of former Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr, officially out of the mix for the Wolverines, where will they go in the junior league?
The good news for Michigan is that Carr was just one of a few five-star quarterbacks in the 2024 class that the Wolverines recruited heavily. Let’s start with Jadyn Davis, another five-star passer in the class who paid an unofficial visit to Ann Arbor last week. The visit went so well for the 6-foot-190-pounder from Charlotte, North Carolina, that Rivals recruiting analyst Adam Friedman made a prediction that the Wolverines would eventually get his signing.
Davis’ father spoke to 247Sports’ Steve Wiltfong ($) after her visit to Michigan and spoke about the facilities, academics and Harbaugh’s NFL pedigree.
“Harbaugh is an NFL guy,” said Mr. Davis. “Sitting there and talking about development, he’s what, 14 years as an NFL quarterback and he’s been on both sides of the house, whether it’s NFL, college, there’s a relationship between the two. The development piece and the experience and the knowledge – there’s no one like that when you think about playing that position and developing someone who plays that position at the highest level. Andreas Glück”.
All of Davis’ other elite programs are there, but Michigan has made a really positive first impression on him and his family. This is certainly one to monitor in the future.
Another five-star quarterback recruited by Harbaugh and company is Julian Sayin. The 6-foot-1, 185-pounder from California first visited Ann Arbor in April and was also impressed with what the Wolverines have to offer.
“It was great,” Sayin told The Michigan Insider’s Brice Marich ($) after his visit. “It was my first time in Ann Arbor and it definitely exceeded my expectations. The facilities, the energy of the coaching staff and being able to watch the team’s morning lift and loved seeing their culture (everything exceeded my expectations).
“I really enjoyed my time there and they are a big part of my recruitment.”
Since his visit to Michigan, Sayin has taken a trip to Florida, visiting Texas on June 11, LSU on June 12, and Alabama on June 13. These will be the last three visits he makes over the summer, he told 247Sports’ Greg Biggins. He’s looking to make a commitment this fall, so it’s important that the Wolverines get him back for a game day before his announcement.
A few other quarterback goals for Michigan in the 2024 class are a pair of four-stars – Michael Van Buren and in-stater Isaiah Marshall.
Van Buren plays for St. Frances Academy in Baltimore, a school Michigan has a very strong connection to thanks to Biff Poggi. They’ve landed Blake Corum and Nikhai Hill-Green from the same program in recent years, so the Wolverines could certainly dive into those waters again if both five-star lads go elsewhere. Van Buren has a rocket for one arm and has other offerings from Alabama, Penn State, Maryland, Wisconsin, Pitt and more. Michigan offered him last October, so it’s been up to him for a while now.
As for Marshall, Jim Harbaugh himself offered the scholarship him in 2019 when the Southfield native was just 13 years old and in seventh grade. Since then he has received other offers from Louisville, Purdue, Cincinnati, Kentucky, Ole Miss, Pitt and others. As a sophomore, he threw for 2,236 yards and 28 touchdowns, plus 534 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on the ground. He is a real double threat and would also be a welcome addition to the program.
All in all, losing an old recruit like Carr sucks, but it’s not as bad as it could be when you look at the bigger picture. If Carr was a Dante Moore situation — where Michigan only recruits him as quarterback — then yes, it would be a massive loss; perhaps the biggest recruitment loss since the Harbaugh takeover. But with five stars like Davis and Sayin and four stars like Van Buren and Marshall still out there, I’m hesitant to get too upset about this news.
Speaking of Moore, Carr’s commitment to the Irish definitely won’t hurt Michigan’s chances of landing Moore in the 2023 class. In fact, it only helped a ton, if at all.
