Michigan Football: Buckeyes get Fleming, UM needs A.J. Henning

Ohio State landed the top wide receiver in the 2020 class this week in Julian Flemming. Now, Michigan football needs to respond by getting A.J. Henning.

At one time, Michigan football was hoping it could make a serious run at five-star wide receiver Julian Fleming, the top-rated wide receiver in the 2020 recruiting class.

However, the 6-foot-2, 199-pound pass catcher from Pennsylvania committed to Ohio State on Thursday and is the top-ranked wide receiver in the country and the best player in his state.

Certainly, seeing the Buckeyes land one of the best skill players in the country isn’t great and he’s surely someone the Michigan defense will have to contend with for years to come.

Fleming gives Ohio State two top-10 commits for 2020 as Paris Johnson, an offensive tackle from Cincinnati who is ranked as the seventh-best player in the nation according to the 247 composite rankings is also on board.

There is no getting around the fact that Ohio State is putting together a dynamic class. The Buckeyes have five top-100 commits, while Michigan football currently has just one, Braiden McGregor, who committed last week.

In the 247 rankings for 2020, McGregor is the 28th-ranked prospect, while in the composite rankings, he sits lower at No. 89. After that, the next highest-ranked commit is corner Andre Seldon as 249, which means Michigan football has work to do.

Recruiting doesn’t have to be all about flash and Michigan does have seven four-star commits. Many programs across the country would kill for that. However, if the Wolverines want to try and catch up to Ohio State more talent is needed.

And one name from the 2020 class that makes perfect sense is wide receiver, A.J. Henning.

Michigan’s pursuit of Henning is well documented. He visited recently with quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who committed to the Wolverines that weekend and since then, momentum with Henning seems to be moving in UM’s direction.

However, it’s going to be a tight battle. The top-ranked player in Illinois has 43 percent of his crystal balls going to Notre Dame; 29 percent are with Michigan football including one from Allen Trieu, a recruiting analyst for 247 sports, who projected Henning to Michigan earlier this week on May 30.

At 5-foot-10, 175 pounds, Henning is perfect for the Josh Gattis offense. He’s a guy that has the ability to play both inside and out, but at Michigan, he would torment people from the slot. And he may also get a chance to play with McCarthy, his friend who is UM’s crown jewel in 2021.

Henning’s recruitment has picked up steam since Gattis arrived. The fact that Gattis and Sherrone Moore are the lead recruiters is also promising. Right now, those two guys are as good as it gets.

Outside of Notre Dame, Michigan will also have to contend with Georgia and Ohio State. Yet, it has felt for a while now that the battle was between Notre Dame and Michigan just as it was with McGregor.

If Michigan is going to seize control of the Big Ten East in coming years, it needs elite talent and while 2020 is off to a good start, adding a difference maker like Henning is the next step.