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Wolverine TV: Breaking down new Michigan OL commit Bear McWhorter

ECCrzGbXkAEmHxxby:EJ Holland•about 24 hours•

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Bear McWhorter 1 copy 1
Photo by Chad Simmons/On3

Michigan landed a commitment from three-star Cartersville (Ga.) Cass offensive lineman Bear McWhorter on Friday afternoon.

The Wolverine‘s EJ Holland shares his thoughts on this recruiting win in the video at the end of this story.

McWhorter Recruitment

McWhorter visited Michigan very early on in his recruitment — all the way back in January of 2023. The Peach State prospect returned for the BBQ at The Big House last summer and earned an offer on the spot.

McWhorter quickly became a top priority for Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore and his staff. The Wolverines hosted him for another visit in November and again before the dead period in January.

While Michigan made his group of finalists, many expected McWhorter to end up at Alabama. After all, McWhorter is named after former Alabama coach Bear Bryant. He also grew up a fan of the Crimson Tide and visited Alabama last.

However, Moore and Michigan offensive line coach Grant Newsome continued to fight for McWhorter and did a fantastic job of winning him over.

Here is what Holland had to say about the recruitment.

“All signs pointed to Alabama in this recruitment,” Holland said. “Here you have a Georgia kid who great up a fan of Alabama and was named after Bear Bryant. It made all the sense in the world for him to land at Alabama. Instead, Michigan came away with a big head-to-head recruiting win over the Crimson Tide. Both Sherrone Moore and Grant Newsome did a fantastic job of sealing the deal late. In McWhorter, the Wolverines are getting a true interior offensive lineman who may be a bit underrated. McWhorter projects as a guard at the next level and does a great job of finishing blocks on tape.”

At 6-foot-3, 308 pounds, McWhorter is ranked as the No. 38 interior offensive lineman and No. 415 overall prospect nationally, per the On3 Industry Ranking. He is also ranked as the No. 48 overall recruit in the state of Georgia this cycle.

Michigan now has three verbal commits in its 2026 recruiting class — McWhorter, On300 Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin cornerback Brody Jennings and three-star Dallas (Texas) Parish Episcopal wide receiver Jaylen Pile.

Michigan entered the day with the No. 56 ranked 2026 recruiting class nationally, per the On3 Industry team recruiting rankings. Michigan was also ranked No. 14 in the Big Ten. Oregon currently has the top class in the conference.

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