Wolverine TV: Breaking down four-star Michigan EDGE commit Jaylen Williams

Michigan landed a commitment from four-star Palatine (Ill.) High EDGE Jaylen Williams on Monday afternoon. He picked Michigan over finalists Nebraska, Tennessee and Texas A&M.

The Wolverine’s EJ Holland shares his thoughts in the video above.

Williams Recruitment

Williams notched an offer from Michigan last spring and made multiple unofficial visits soon after, including for the game against Ohio State in November.

Michigan was considered the leader for Williams for the majority of the cycle. However, the Wolverines were hindered by offseason staff changes — former defensive line coach Mike Elston bolted for the NFL, while his replacement, Greg Scruggs, was dismissed from the program.

New Michigan defensive line coach Lou Esposito had Michigan right back in the picture going into Williams’ official visit and sealed the deal during his time in Ann Arbor.

Here is what Holland had to say about Williams.

“Jaylen’s recruitment has been fun,” Holland said. “I’ve had my prediction in since November. Jaylen has always wanted to go to Michigan. I will tell you that he was very close to committing to Michigan in January. But then you had all the staff movement. Jim Harbaugh took Mike Elston with him to the NFL. Greg Scruggs was his replacement, and Michigan parted ways with him after that whole situation. Lou Esposito had to play from behind, but he’s done a fantastic job of building a relationship with Williams. He locked in the official visit with him and was able to get him to commit before leaving Ann Arbor. Williams is a bigger pass rusher that should play the same role as ex-Wolverines Mike Morris. I think he’s really undervalued by On3 in the rankings and should move up.”

At 6-foot-5, 238 pounds, Williams is ranked as the No. 22 defensive lineman and No. 278 overall prospect nationally, per the On3 Industry Ranking. He is also ranked as the No. 6 overall recruit in the state of Illinois this cycle.

Michigan now has six commits in its 2025 recruiting class — Williams, Top 100 Oak Park (Ill.) Fenwick defensive lineman Nate Marshall, On300 Fort Myers (Fla.) Bishop Verot quarterback Carter Smith, four-star Birmingham (Mich.) Groves offensive lineman Avery Gach, four-star Howell (Mich.) High defensive lineman Bobby Kanka and three-star Alcoa (Tenn.) High tight end Eli Owens.

The class entered the day ranked No. 18 nationally and No. 5 in the Big Ten, per the On3 Industry national team recruiting rankings.