Michigan football: Jim Harbaugh talks 2022 signing class - Offense

Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh signed yet another top 10 class, and he’ll have a chance to add to it in February. Five-star cornerback Will Johnson was the headliner, but Harbaugh and Co. inked 21 players Wednesday who can all play at a high level.

“This is a great day. It always is,” Harbaugh said. “You officially know the guys you’re going to be coaching, but to put it in perspective, it’s hard to do in words. These young men, these families, they’re going to be part of your lives; you’re going to be part of their lives. Long and trusting friendships. The opportunities to have those are endless. 

RELATED

• 10 Biggest Michigan Recruiting Takeaways From National Signing Day

“Its signature day, both literally and figuratively. It’s one of those days. I remember when I signed my national letter of intent. I know where I was, I know what I was doing, what I was wearing, who was around. It’s just one of those kinds of days that lives in memory. To see another class go through that, it’s heartwarming. It’s a beautiful day. 

Harbaugh and his Michigan staff landed players from 15 states and two countries. In some cases, Harbaugh said, they’d been recruiting the kids for years. Reporters haven’t done a good enough job telling their stories and giving their backgrounds, he said. 

“Just the tremendous people they are. The parents they come from, the families they come from, the communities, the villages … it takes a village. It doesn’t get talked about,” he said. 

“It’s wins, losses, touchdowns and tackles. They’re all amazing, and this group is certainly an amazing group.”

Harbaugh loves the Michigan offensive line class

Harbaugh dished on the offensive linemen, first, staring with three-star Colorado lineman Connor Jones.

“Connor Jones was one of the first to commit in the class,” he noted. “The first time we visited was back in the Zoom days, the COVID days when you couldn’t come to practice, couldn’t come to visit on campus. That’s how things started. Then when he did officially visit, he committed to Michigan. His family is a big Michigan family all the way out in Colorado. Great family. 

“He’s long, tall — just what you want your tackles to look like. He’s a heck of a good player and a really good student. His core GPA is right there in the mid-threes. That’s where you take out the electives … this isn’t gym class, not the electives. It’s the core classes, the honor classes and the AP classes. You want your offensive linemen smart. If not, they can get a quarterback or a running back killed.” 

Former Virginia pledge Andrew Gentry was somebody they recruited a couple years ago. He’s a high four-star and an elite lineman.

“He was top of the class — Zak Zinter, Gentry, Reece Atteberry, Jeff Persi,” Harbaugh recalled. “Gentry was right the at the top, a real high four-star guy. He’s a 96, 28^th, way up there at the top. He’s about 6-8, serious length and big and strong. I know he’s well above 300 — like 310, 15, 20, but doesn’t look like it. There are some guys that can be 320 pounds and look like a bowl of jell-o. This guy is 320 pounds and looks like it’s cut out of marble. He’s a tremendous player. 

“Just last week I was contacted by Todd Gentry [his dad]. Andrew had been committed to Virginia and was doing his Mormon mission. The coach from Virginia resigned his position there. They said we were way up there, one or two when they committed to Virginia. So, I got on a plane, was able to talk to the church and some of the elders. He was granted a 90-minute visit. We had lunch and he committed once that lunch was over.”

It was one of those ‘special things that doesn’t occur every recruiting cycle,’ Harbaugh noted. 

“But we are thrilled. We really thought he was something special,” he said. “Now, after visiting him for 90 minutes, imagine the maturity, the selflessness of his mission and the way he’s matured is tremendous. He was already a pretty mature guy. 

“You want to talk about smart? How would you like to have a son who has a 4.5 GPA according to the NCAA? You’re talking anywhere in the country would like to have him … tremendous, tremendous student and tremendous football player. 

Alessandro Lorenzetti comes to Michigan via Canada. He prepped in Connecticut and played ‘good football,’ Harbaugh said. 

“He visited here in the summer. This was the only time we were able to do evaluations on 2022s,” he said. “When everything happened this past summer, a blanket waiver was given by the NCAA where you could do a private workout. So Alessandro came and knocked the socks off [O-line coach] Sherrone Moore. Then the recruiting process was really turned up with Alesssandro. Great kid, great guy, great parents.”

Harbaugh has yet to do his in home, so he’ll visit him in Montreal next month. He’s never been there, he added, so he’s excited on both counts. 

Tight ends will add to a talented room

Tight ends Marlin Klein and Colston Loveland provide two new faces to a veteran room. Both were ‘blessed by mom, dad and God,’ Harbaugh said. 

“Marlin Klein is from Germany, been over here in the U.S. playing some football. Long, tall and fast … Marlin and Colston,” he said. “Everything you’re looking for in tight ends. They’re 6-5, 6-6-ish type guys, well over 230, 240. 

“I had a chance when I visited Colston, got a little workout in myself, but was in the weight room training. He does not look like a high school senior. He’s going to be a midyear, and he’s going to come right in and look like he belongs like the juniors on the team and the seniors, probably going around 235, 238. You can easily see in the frame that he is going to be a rocked up 256, 258 type guy that will run really well. The V-shape, wide shouldered, narrows to the hips as opposed to the wide at the hips and narrow at the shoulders. 

“I’m not saying Marlin Klein is a pear shaped kid by any means. He’s just as impressive.”

The wide receivers, meanwhile — Darrius Clemons, Tyler Morris and Amorion Walker — all have incredible skills, Harbaugh said. 

“These guys are so, so good. Darrius Clemons, think Nico Collins,” he said in making a comparison. “He’s tall, physical, great big catch radius, runs all the routes well. He’s going to do it all.

“Tyler Morris is very Roman Wilson like. Very fast, elusive, shifty. A playmaker. He’s not short by any means, but he can do the reverses; very shifty. He’s really good. Both guys — Darrius Clemons is a 3.4, 3.5 GPA. Tyler Morris is 3.5 without the electives. Super smart guys. 

“Amorion Walker is even taller — probably close to right around there with Darrius Clemons, and a 3.9 GPA. It’s going to be one of the smartest receiver groups you’ve ever seen. Amorion and I had a really great connection during the recruiting process … very Andrel Anthony like in build and catch radius.” 

He expects all three to come in and vie for time immediately.  

“You’re not going to keep them on the bench very long,” Harbaugh said. “They’re tall in stature, big with the wide catch radius, and that’s something that can be a real complement to our team right now. 

Michigan backfield gets a boost

Running back C.J. Stokes is a big, physical back who is also very mature, Harbaugh said. His shoulders ‘look like boulders or volleyballs,’ and he comes ‘from a great program.’

“He’s really well trained, really genetically gifted. He looks great,” Harbaugh said. “He has muscles everywhere, but he’s also very fast. He’s going to be a physical type back. Backs are a little harder to compare than other positions, because they all have a unique kind of style. I think he’s going to be a real physical guy between the tackles. Pass pro, all the things you want him to do. Real excited about C.J. Great guy.”

He’s bonded with his dad, too, just as he has with quarterbacks Jayden Denegal and Alex Orji’s father

Orji was solid for Virginia Tech until the program’s coaching change. Harbaugh and Co. let them know they were there. 

“We’re not going to twist anybody’s arm, but they decided to come up on an official visit. That was the first time I met Alex and his family,” he said. “It was love at first site for me.

“We’re super excited he’s coming here. I have seen him on tape a lot. He plays at the highest level of football in Texas and rushed for 1,200 yards. You can watch the tape and see this guy is a tremendous runner …. 1,200, that’s way, way up there for a quarterback.”

He can throw it really well, too, Harbaugh added. 

“When you see him in person — I don’t know what he weighs, but there’s not an ounce of fat on him and he’s 235, 240,” he said. “It’s like watching Herschel Walker playing quarterback who can really throw the ball. We’re super excited about him. 

They saw Denegal in June and were able to do a 1-on-1 evaluation, including drop back, pass and mechanics. 

“He has great stature as a quarterback and throws the ball extremely well. He’s pretty darn athletic,” Harbaugh said. “But it’s a great feeling to have two quarterbacks coming in in the same class. We haven’t had that here for a very long time, and it’s going to be fun to watch. We’ll put the balls out there and each have a great skill set how they get the job done and win for the team. 

“That bodes really well for us.”