3 thoughts on commitment of Kainoa Winston to Michigan football

You could sense a big commitment was coming for Michigan football after Sherrone Moore posted on X this morning, #GoBlue.

It turned out to be about a commitment from four-star safety Kainoa Winston. The 5-foot-10, 185-pound safety is ranked 88th overall in the 2025 class according to the 247 Sports composite rankings.

Winston is from Washington, D.C, and the Wolverines beat out Penn State, Oregon, and North Carolina, among many others, for his commitment.

Sherrone Moore's program is starting to heat up on the trail. After going months without a commitment, the Wolverines have two this week, with more recruits coming on campus this weekend for official visits.

As far as Winston's commitment, here are some thoughts on why it's huge for Michigan football.

An elite prospect

Forget the rankings, just watch the highlights. Winton jumps off the screen and is explosive when it comes to tackling. He's a track athlete and set a school record in the 200 meters running 21.58.

Winston plays mostly two-high safety for his high school but he could probably play either safety spot for Michigan football. He. might even be a nickel. He's only 5-foot-10, but he's built and he's got a knack for finding the ball.

Winston has everything you need to be a stellar Big Ten defensive back. This is a great get and another feather in the cap of Sherrone Moore and Lamar Morgan, the new secondary coach.

A strong blue-chip ratio

The blue-chip ratio, according to Bud Elliott of 247 Sports, says that a team needs at least 50 percent of its team to be made up of blue-chip recruits to win a national title or even compete for one.

In the 2025 class, the Wolverines are seven for seven. Winston is ranked ninth at his position and is the second top-100 commitment for U-M in this class. Michigan football had just one between the 2023 and 2024 classes.

But over the past two years, Michigan has a blue-chip ratio of 73 percent. I know there aren't as many five-star commitments (none) as people would like coming off of three consecutive Big Ten titles and a national championship, but momentum is building under Sherrone Moore and the signs of progress are evident.

Lamar Morgan is a dude on the trail

We haven't seen the new secondary coach on the field much beyond the spring, but on the recruiting trail, he has proven to be one helluva hire.

When the Wolverines needed some reinforcements from the transfer portal, Morgan went to work and helped land two cornerbacks and two safeties in a few days time.

This might be the most impressive win though. Landing a top-100 commitment after being on the job for just a few months speaks to his ability as a recruiter. I have confidence in what he can do on the development side of things after this spring, and if he can be stellar there too, Michigan will really have something.

There's a reason why Jesse Minter had him on the shortlist if Clink ever left and when he did, Moore was smart to get Morgan on staff. So far, it's worked out like a dream.