Michigan Football: More positive momentum among 2022 DBs

The new defensive coaches for Michigan football are hitting the recruiting trail hard and so far, it’s paying off in the class of 2022.

In terms of determining how successful Jim Harbaugh’s new hires on the defensive staff for Michigan football will be, it’s hard to say, but we know the hires were focused on recruiting and so far in that regard, they feel like a success.

Obviously, much will be judged by what happens in the class of 2022 and with a number of elite prospects available, such as five-star cornerback Will Johnson, a player in the state of Michigan who is ranked eighth overall in the 247 sports composite rankings.

New cornerbacks coach and co-defensive coordinator Maurice Linguist has been crazy active on the trail, offering a bunch of 2022 recruits, while also connecting with Johnson and making a positive impression.

There is still a long way to go with Johnson, but he decided to push back his timeline in order to give Michigan’s new staff a chance to recruit him. The Gross Pointe product is 6-foot-3 and the kind of elite defensive back the Wolverines have desperately needed at corner.

While Linguist and new defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald have reached out to Johnson and seemed to have made some headway, the addition of Ronald Bellamy to the staff is also going to be a difference maker with in-state recruits and not just Johnson.

Bellamy played for the Wolverines and led West Bloomfield to a Michigan state championship. He has tons of respect with coaches and players in the state.

With Bellamy and Mike Hart on staff, Michigan football will recruit better in the state. There’s no doubt about it. Here’s what one coach said to Rivals about Hart: “We trust him well enough to send him our most prized possessions.”

Getting more of those “prized” in-state possessions will be a big help in Michigan closing the gap on Ohio State, as well as re-establishing itself against Michigan State, Penn State, Indiana and Wisconsin.

Wolverines among favorites for 2022 DB

Another 2022 defensive back who recently received an offer from Linguist is Myles Pollard, a 6-foot-1, 180-pound prospect out of Brentwood, Tennessee.

If that sounds familiar, that’s because Junior Colson is from Brentwood and is a former teammate of Pollard. He was on the Wolverines radar before and now that they have jumped in with an offer, they are a contender.

“There are a couple (schools standing out),” Pollard told Sam Webb of the Michigan Insider. “Washington. Oklahoma, Miami, Michigan now, Kentucky… there’s a good eight or nine. It is real hard to narrow down on with all these schools.”

Pollard is ranked as the No. 35 cornerback in the class of 2022 and is No. 375 overall.