News and Views: Sherrone Moore on recruiting, the QB race, and more

Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore and his staff waited a long time to nab a commitment, but they landed a good one today in top 100 defensive end Nate Marshall. There should be more pledges in the weeks to come, too, and while Moore comes from the Lloyd Carr school of interviewing (not an insult — he just keeps a lot close to the vest), it’s clear he’s gotten comfortable with the media.

Moore talked recruiting, the quarterback competition, and more in his final spring wrap-up. We give our thoughts on today’s comments in our news and views column:

NEWS: Michigan landed a huge pledge from Chicagoland standout edge Nate Marshall, ending a months-long commitment drought.

SHERRONE MOORE: “Yeah, not really slow. There’s a process on how we do things and who we want and what we get. I can’t comment on recruits and when they’re going to commit. We’re taking it day by day, and we’re going to find the best fit for us.”

VIEWS: But it had to be good to not only land one, but such a good one. We’re talking about the defending national champs and three-time Big Ten champs, after all, so all things being equal, this should be an outstanding class.

All things aren’t equal, of course, given that U-M has stuck to its transformational, not transactional policy, which is why we hold our breath even on pledges until they sign. There is middle ground there somewhere and Moore is about to pound the pavement in search of NIL money.

NEWS: Michigan quarterback Jack Tuttle should be good to go for summer and will compete for the starting job with Alex Orji and Davis Warren.

MOORE: “He’ll be in it. We talked about this as a team, as a staff. The dudes that he backed up are Michael Penix and JJ McCarthy [at Indiana and Michigan]. So, he’s got talent … we’ll see what happens when he gets to fall camp.”

VIEWS: As we mentioned in a recent ITF, some on the team believe Orji and Tuttle could provide a nice platoon. Today, the same source said he wouldn’t be surprised if Tuttle won the job, even after solid spring game performances from Orji and Warren.

We’ll see what happens. We do know, though, that this is wide open heading into all, and the guy who puts the most work in and shows the most improvement is going to have a leg up to start the opener vs. Fresno State.

NEWS: The Michigan team looked fast and physical Saturday during the spring game under new strength coach Justin Tress.

MOORE: “He’s done an outstanding job. It’s great. Herb was outstanding, but Tress knows he’s not Herb, and Tress did it his way. The same process and implementation and things that he’s done is what Herb did. He was right by him for the last six years, and it’s just continued to escalate and continue to progress and make the players better.”

VIEWS: Some have said the testing numbers and improvement were on par with Ben Herbert’s thanks to Tress, who has been more “big brother” than “father figure.” He’s put his own stamp on things, but every player bought in and really took conditioning to another level.

“I think he’s done a tremendous job with his staff, and the new little wrinkles and things that we’ve done a little differently have helped,” he said. “The guys have really loved it and appreciate it, so it’s been awesome. They came in this spring ready to go … I feel like sometimes you end practice and they can go another hour.”

They needed a seamless transition there, and apparently, they got it.

NEWS: Linebacker Jaishawn Barham came in from Maryland and made an instant impact on defense this spring.

MOORE: Instinctual, physical, violent, fast … he’s everything you want in the linebacker. He’s quiet as can be, just goes about his business the right way, just how we like them. The transfers that come in here, they just come in, assimilate themselves into the culture, and keep attacking.”

VIEWS: They’d like him to be a bit more vocal, some have told us, but it takes some transfers longer. We remember teammates telling us they had to tell center Olu Oluwatimi he was one of them now, and not to hold back.

Regardless, Barham is clearly an outstanding fit, just like offensive line transfer Josh Priebe. Michigan continues to win the portal … hopefully, that continues (though we do expect some defections this spring — and hopefully, not too many).

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