Michigan Football: Wolverines shift priorities at safety in 2021

After not cracking the top five of defensive back target Donovan McMillon, Michigan football has shifted its attention elsewhere on the 2021 safety board.

Monday was a busy day of recruiting news for Michigan football and not all of it went the Wolverines way as one key target, defensive back Donovan McMillon, left the Wolverines off his top list.

It was a little surprising, but McMillon’s recruitment has really taken off in recent months and he had tons of big-time offers. Michigan didn’t end up making the cut and even though it stings, the reality is that U-M is still in a really good spot when it comes to the safety position.

For starters, the Wolverines already have a commitment from Rod Moore, a high-ranking three-star prospect out of Ohio, that many agree is underrated. Plus, the Wolverines have recruited the heck of the safety position over the past two cycles and last year alone, Michigan football landed Jordan Morant, Makari Paige, RJ Moten and William Mohan.

Certainly, the Wolverines would like to add two safeties in this class. One just doesn’t seem like enough, especially because those guys end up playing a lot on special teams too. But with the depth currently in the program, this would probably be the year to do it.

Michigan turns attention to a new target

Of course, it just all depends how things shake out. But one player to watch now at safety in the 2021 class is three-star prospect Daymon David who was recently offered. He’s out of Maryland and ranks outside the top 1,000 in the 247 sports composite rankings but while he is the No. 88 safety in the composite rankings, the 247 specific rankings have him as the No. 48 safety.

And if Michigan fans will think back to Moore, he was a pretty low three star before taking a big leap to being right on the cusp of the four stars. David may not take a jump like that in the rankings, but it should give you confidence in the Wolverines’ coaching staff to evaluate talent.

And now that McMillon is out of the picture, safeties coach Bob Shoop and Jim Harbaugh are pushing for David and according to The Michigan Insider ($), David will meet with both coaches virtually Tuesday, which kind of shows where the priority now lies at safety.

Obviously, Michigan is still interested in Ryan Barnes too, who just released a top list, but he’s a strong Notre Dame lean and that’s why David might be the most realistic target on the board right now.