3 Michigan Football recruiting storylines for 2026 National Signing Day

The Early Signing Period is just one day away, and the Michigan Wolverines are hoping to lock in their entire 2026 recruiting class this week. This class is another really strong effort for Sherrone Moore and company, with two five-stars and a ton of other three- and four-star recruits.

Here are three of the biggest storylines to follow for the Wolverines’ 2026 Early Signing Period.

Last year, the flip of Bryce Underwood was the talk of the football world when he did so a couple weeks before National Signing Day. While the Wolverines aren’t pursuing any recruits as highly ranked as Underwood this late in the cycle, there are a few options for a flip.

Four-star cornerback Havon Finney is one name to watch. The Top-100 overall prospect from California has been committed to LSU since April, but the firing of Brian Kelly had him looking into other options, with Michigan being the biggest threat to flip him. But with him not making the trip for The Game, it seems highly unlikely at this point that Finney will wind up anywhere else but LSU.

Perhaps Top-100 four-star athlete Salesi Moa could pull a stunner at the last minute. A Tennessee commit, he surprisingly visited for the Ohio State game over the weekend. He took an official visit to Michigan over the summer before making his pledge to the Volunteers, so perhaps the Wolverines can sway him to Ann Arbor before pen meets paper on Wednesday.

Three-star linebacker Marcus Jennings is the other player to monitor. The Detroit native committed to Pitt in March, but an unofficial visit to Ann Arbor in early November resulted in him landing an offer from Brian-Jean Mary. Can Michigan flip a prospect away from Pitt for a second straight year? It’s not likely at this juncture, but still possible.

Four-star edge rusher Julian Walker stunned us all when he committed to the Wolverines on July 1. The son of a strength and conditioning coach at South Carolina, it was assumed by everyone he would eventually commit to the Gamecocks. However, Lou Esposito worked harder than anyone and eventually landed his commitment.

But Walker has taken numerous visits to South Carolina — his hometown team — this season and has only visited Michigan once, just last week for The Game. Will the familiarity and proximity to home (and his dad) of South Carolina eventually win out? Or will Esposito and Michigan hold on?

The Wolverines currently have the No. 11 overall class in the country (per 247Sports’ composite), but how high can it climb? Can it get into the Top-10?

If they flip Finney, they will go up to No. 10 as things stand today. Their ranking wouldn’t change at all if they flip Jennings, so it’s likely Michigan will be on the outside of the Top-10, but be pretty close to breaking through.