Michigan Football: What to make of Joshua Josephs top three

One of Michigan football’s top remaining targets on the defensive side of the ball in the 2022 recruiting class released a new top three and we break it down. 

Michigan football‘s 2022 recruiting class has seen some hits and misses on the defensive side of the ball. But one position where the Wolverines have done well is edge rusher.

Mario Eugenio and Kevtone Henry are two of the guys committed to rush the passer for the Wolverines. Eugenio is a four-star prospect according to the 247 sports composite rankings and while Henry is a three-star, On3.com has him as a top-200 recruit in its 2022 rankings.

Another three-star recruit committed in 2022, Micah Pollard is also an accomplished edge rusher. Yet, the Wolverines are looking to add another big-time player on the edge to their 2022 recruiting class and the top target left on the board is Joshua Josephs.

Josephs is out of Georgia and right now, he’s listed as a three-star recruit according to the 247 sports composite rankings (570 overall), as well as 29th best at his position.

During his 2020 high school season, Josephs racked up 98 tackles, four sacks, and four interceptions. The 6-foot-2, 215-pounder is also off a strong start in 2021 and it’s looking likely he will get a rankings boost at some point in the near future.

Josephs is also expected to announce his commitment on Oct. 1 and on Monday, he trimmed his list of schools down three: Michigan, Kentucky, and Tennessee.

Breaking down where Wolverines rank in Joseph’s top three

Josephs is ranked as the16th-best edge rusher according to 247 sports own rankings for 2022 and right now, Michigan football fans should be optimistic about U-M’s chances.

It doesn’t hurt that Josephs told Josh Newkirk of The Michigan Insider Monday that the Wolverines are showing him the “most love” right now in his recruitment.

The staff has been really high on Josephs and on a recent episode of The Michigan Insider podcast, the talk was about how he’s been the top guy on the board for a while now.

Remember, coaches, don’t evaluate and offer prospects based on their recruiting rankings. Michigan has a really high opinion of Josephs and it shows by how it has recruited him.

The EDGE prospect is expected on campus for the weekend of the Washington game and as long as the Wolverines don’t fall flat on their face this fall, they should win this recruiting battle.