Michigan moves up in 2025 national recruiting rankings after pair of commitments

Michigan Wolverines football moved up to No. 14 in the 2025 On3 Industry National Team Recruiting Rankings following the verbal commitments of four-star Archbishop Shaw (LA) wide receiver Jacob Washington and three-star Stockbridge (GA) linebacker Chase Taylor on Monday.

The pledges were Michigan’s third and fourth in the last two days, joining four-star running back Donovan Johnson and three-star offensive lineman Kayden Strayhorn as the players to drop from Victors Weekend.

RELATED:
• Michigan lands commitment from key LB target Chase Taylor
• Commit Impact: What landing Jacob Washington means for Michigan

Washington is the nation’s No. 329 overall player, 50th-ranked wide receiver and 9th-best player in the state of Louisiana, per the On3 Industry Ranking. Taylor ranks 604th, 60th at linebacker and 64th in the state of Georgia.

“Every conversation I had with Coach Bellamy was a great one,” Washington said after receiving an offer from Michigan in April. “We attended the same high school and played under the same head coach. We already had that connection. Coach Bellamy is a phenomenal coach and person as well. I liked how he approached coaching. He was always involved with his players at practice. He told me something that stuck with me. He said, ‘I coach them hard but love them harder.’ That stood out to me.”

Michigan 2025 Recruiting Class

Following Monday’s commitments of Washington and Taylor, the overall 2025 recruiting ranking for Michigan (90.056) sits higher than the likes of Texas, Rutgers, Missouri, Florida State, Miami (FL), Wisconsin, TCU and others.

Rounding out Michigan’s 2025 recruiting class are Top 100 Oak Park (Ill.) Fenwick EDGE Nate Marshall, Top 100 Gonzaga (Md.) safety Kainoa Winston, On300 Ft. Myers (Fla.) Bishop Verot quarterback Carter Smith, four-star IMG Academy RB Donovan Johnson, four-star Birmingham (Mich.) Groves offensive lineman Avery Gach, four-star Palatine (Ill.) High EDGE Jaylen Williams, four-star Howell (Mich.) High defensive lineman Bobby Kanka, three-star Archbishop Shaw (La.) RB Jasper Parker, three-star IMG Academy (Mich.) IOL Kaden Strayhorn and three-star Alcoa (Tenn.) High tight end Eli Owens. 

Several 2025 top targets remain on Michigan’s board, such as five-star Overland Park (Kans.) Blue offensive tackle Andrew Babalola, Top 100 Monroe (N.C.) High safety Jordan Young, Top 100 Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman offensive tackle Douglas Utu, Top 100 Center Valley (Pa.) Southern Lehigh tight end Andrew Olesh, Top 100 Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei running back Jordon Davison, Top 100 Oradell (N.J.) Bergen Catholic wide receiver Quincy Porter, Top 100 Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy linebacker Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng, and four-star Philadelphia (Pa.) St. Joseph Prep defensive lineman Maxwell Roy, among others.

2025 Big Ten Recruiting Rankings

Michigan is currently No. 5 in the Big Ten Conference and trails Ohio State, USC, Oregon and Penn State. All 18 programs currently possess at least seven verbal commits this cycle.

1. Ohio State
2. USC
3. Oregon
4. Penn State
5. Michigan
6. Rutgers
7. Wisconsin
8. UCLA
9. Nebraska
10. Washington
11. Iowa
12. Minnesota
13. Michigan State
14. Illinois
15. Indiana
16. Northwestern
17. Maryland
18. Purdue