Michigan football has been trending as the favorite with a pair of 2026 running back recruits but things got even more serious this week with four-star Javian Osborne.
Out of Forney, Texas, the 5-foot-10, 197-pound running back is one of the top prospects in the 2026 class, ranking 60th overall and fourth among running backs.
As a sophomore, he ran the 100-meter dash in 11.05 and rushed for over 2,200 yards, averaging over seven yards per rushing attempt.
Tony Alford has played a pivotal role in this recruitment. So did Texas running backs coach Tashard Choice, who just took a job with the Detroit Lions. This seemed to help the Michigan Wolverines in this recruitment but it was hard to know how much.
I will NOT be taking an Official Visit to Texas weekend of June 13th-15th‼️@SWiltfong_ @ChadSimmons_ @adamgorney @samspiegs @TomLoy247 @MikeRoach247
— Javian “JO” Osborne (@osborne__era) February 21, 2025
Well, on Friday, Osborne announced on X that he was canceling his official visit scheduled for Texas this summer, leaving only an official visit to Michigan football. The Michigan Wolverines already felt like the leader but Texas has been the main contender.
Now, that the Longhorns appear to be out of the picture, Michigan football has been projected to land Osborne according to a 247 Sports crystal ball from a Texas expert, as well as an On3 recruiting machine prediction from EJ Holland of The Wolverine.com.
Texas is still listed as the favorite according to On3's recruiting prediction machine but that should change soon. It's only a matter of time. UCLA just offered this week, so that's something to watch but the Wolverines are trending for another big-time commitment.
Michigan football's visit with Osborne is expected to come this summer, so a commitment might not be coming soon, but there's no doubt that the Michigan Wolverines are the leader.
Michigan baseball suffers first loss of the season
After a 4-0 start to the 2025 season, the Michigan Wolverines suffered their first loss on the baseball diamond on Friday dropping a 10-4 decision to No. 22 TCU. Mitch Voit belted his third home run of the season for U-M. Jonathan Kim also managed three hits and an RBI to pace the Wolverines offense.
However, the TCU offense exploded to the tune of four home runs. They also had two extra-base hits as they scored four runs in the sixth and eighth innings. Cade Connolly got the loss for the Wolverines. Michigan baseball will take on Kansas State on Saturday at 2 p.m.
Michigan Wolverines softball improves to 7-4
Jessica Conway had two extra-base hits -- a home run and a triple for Michigan softball in an 8-3 win over Kent State on Friday in Florida. Indiana Langford also notched three hits while Erin Hoehn earned the win after allowing two runs on five hits in four innings of work. She also struck out seven.
In the second game of the day for Michigan softball, the Wolverines rallied from a 4-0 deficit to win 5-4 over South Florida. Ella Stephenson drove in the last three runs for Michigan including the game-tying run and a solo home run in the seventh that proved to be the game-winner. Hoehn got the win after tossing four scoreless innings in relief.
Next up on Saturday is a game against Troy for the Michigan softball team (7-4). The first pitch will go out at 11:15 a.m.