Michigan Football: Another in-state recruit is trending to Notre Dame

Michigan football lost Rocco Spindler, a top in-state recruit last week and in 2022, Nolan Ziegler, a three-star safety, could be following suit.

Losing an in-state recruit to a rival is never a positive thing, especially when it’s a highly-touted recruit such as Rocco Spindler, who spurned Michigan football for Notre Dame last week.

That continued this narrative that Michigan football doesn’t recruit its own state very well, although there is plenty of evidence to show otherwise.

Even without Spindler in the fold, Michigan has a good shot at getting three of the top six recruits in the state of Michigan in 2021 and the players they didn’t get, wasn’t for a lack of trying.

But looking ahead to the 2022 class and one of the better players in the state, three-star Nolan Ziegler, who was offered recently by U-M, is another that’s trending to the Irish.

Ziegler is a big kid at 6-foot-4, 205 pounds and the Wolverines view him as someone who could be a viper down the road. He’s ranked ninth in the state of Michigan according to the 247 sports rankings for 2022 and 21ist among safety prospects.

Obviously, Michigan is going to recruit him hard, but an offer this past week from Notre Dame could make it difficult. That was always viewed as the game-changer in Ziegler’s recruitment and once it came, he picked up five crystal ball projections to the Irish.

Tom Loy, Steve Wiltfong and Steve Lorenz, who is a Michigan recruiting insider for 247, all have crystal ball picks in for Ziegler at a confidence level of seven or higher. Things could certainly change and the Wolverines are in a strong spot with other 2022 recruits, but landing Ziegler from Notre Dame is going to be tough.

Could a canceled season impact recruiting?

Donovan Edwards, who is a must-land prospect for the Wolverines in 2021, as the No. 2 player in the state as well as 34th overall in the 247 composite rankings, wasn’t happy about the rumors of the Big Ten canceling its season or pushing it to spring.

You might wonder how it could impact him? Well, he wants to enroll early and take part in spring football, but if there was a spring season, that may not happen, which could shake things up.

“I think that’s some bull,” Edwards told the Detroit Free Press. “I can’t really speak on it because I’m here, but I think that’s kind of unfair. Everybody’s got their reasons to do so. I just hope that one day, just bring it back out sometime this year.”

Hopefully, a season being canceled doesn’t lead to a bigger challenge from SEC schools such as Georgia and Alabama for the top target on the board for Michigan.

The Free Press also noted that Maxwell Hairston, a teammate of Edwards and a 2021 cornerback recruit was expected to decide in the next week (Aug. 17).

Hairston is a low-ranking three-star corner that Michigan has kept an eye on. He’s fast and plays well in man-to-man coverage. Kansas, Minnesota, Rutgers and Purdue are some of the schools in the mix.

Michigan has yet to offer but he’s been a candidate for a late commitment after a senior evaluation. There has been communication there and like with Ziegler and Notre Dame, a Michigan offer would win over Hairston pretty easily.

Just something else to keep an eye on, but if no offer comes, that could be a sign U-M feels pretty good about Kamonte Grimes, one of its top corners on the board right now for 2021.