Michigan Football Recruiting: Analyzing Movement in 2024 Class

Sep 30, 2023; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh looks on before the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 30, 2023; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Michigan Wolverines head coach Jim Harbaugh looks on before the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports /
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The 2024 Michigan football recruiting class has been stagnant for some time, but will that change?

Michigan football’s 2024 recruiting class hasn’t seen much movement since the beginning of the season. In fact, the most recent movement was a joint decommitment from the Smith twins. The Michigan class, which was at one point ranked #1 in the nation, is now down to #13 according to 247 Sports. That’s unacceptable for a team of this caliber.

After a month of little to no action, it appears that things are starting to warm up again in the 2024 class. Now that the Wolverines are down to 25 commitments, there is plenty of room to add. Let’s look at some of the recent recruiting highlights.

Battle for top 100 Miami commit Zaquan Patterson isn’t over

Michigan football
Chaminade-Madonna’s Zaquan Patterson (12) walks off the field to meet with his team during a timeout. Chaminade-Madonna shutout Berkeley Prep 21-0 to claim the 3A State Championship title at Gene Cox Stadium on Friday, Dec. 10, 2021. /

Zaquan Patterson is a guy who was talked about a ton all Summer long. And then he committed to Miami, and the talk stopped. Well, this battle isn’t over quite yet. In fact, it looks as though this one’s going the distance.

Patterson is still planning on officially visiting Michigan football for The Game (according to On3.com) at the end of November. While he’s locked in with the Hurricanes right now, the landscape can definitely change between now and then.

For one, Miami won’t be undefeated. While they’re 4-0 right now with a nice win against Texas A&M, they have to match up against Louisville, Clemson, North Carolina, and Florida State (amongst others). I’m willing to bet they drop at least two of their final eight, and likely more.

On the other hand, Michigan football could very realistically be 11-0 heading into The Game. The only game before that which really stands out is at Penn State, which could very well be a toss-up. It’s very possible that The Game decides the winner of the Big Ten East yet again.

Imagine the atmosphere in Ann Arbor for an undefeated matchup between Michigan and Ohio State. In November too? I’d argue nothing beats it. Michigan football is going to have every recruit it can at that game.

So while the Patterson battle is likely on hold until November, it’s definitely not over. This is one to keep an eye on as Thanksgiving rolls around.