Road Notebook: Thoughts, intel on top Michigan recruiting targets in Chicagoland

I was on the road in Chicagoland over the weekend and saw Michigan’s four biggest recruiting targets in the area in 2025. Here are thoughts and intel on all of them.

*** Michigan is making Top 100 Geneva (Ill.) Community wide receiver Talyn Taylor a top overall priority for next cycle. The Wolverines hosted him for two visits this offseason, including for the BBQ at The Big House in July. The plan is for Taylor to make a return visit in November for the game against Ohio State. Michigan wide receivers coach Ron Bellamy is in frequent contact with Taylor and his family. In fact, Bellamy was texting with Taylor’s mother while I was at his game on Friday night. Both Taylor and his mother had high praise for Bellamy and the U-M program. It’s safe to say Michigan is a true contender here early on. However, this is a true national recruitment with schools like Georgia, where he visited over the weekend, Notre Dame and USC also heavily involved. As a player, Taylor is a long, lanky wide out that can line up in the slot or on the outside. He’s explosive, has a great catch radius and is super athletic. He’ll likely be in the five-star conversation by the end of next cycle. He has those types of traits.

*** Michigan also hosted Top 100 Oak Park (Ill.) Fenwick defensive lineman Nathaniel Marshall for the BBQ at The Big House over the summer and made a lasting impression. Notre Dame is considered the leader on the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine, but Michigan is right up there after a strong visit. Marshall does have offers from the likes of Alabama, Miami, Oregon and Texas, so it will be interesting to see if his recruitment takes a national turn with time. For now, Michigan is doing a great job of recruiting him and is making a hard push. While Marshall is listed as a defensive lineman, Michigan is recruiting the 6-foot-5, 240-pounder as an EDGE. Marshall appeared to be a bit shorter than his listed height, but he definitely has impressive length and athleticism, doubling as a tight end when I watched his practice last week. He has a thick build in both halves and may be best equipped for the Jaylen Harrell role.

*** Michigan may have the inside track for On300 Palatine (Ill.) High defensive lineman Jaylen Williams, who also visited for the BBQ at The Big House at the end of July. Williams told me he grew up wanting to play at Michigan and had a blast during his time on campus. If Michigan is able to get Williams, it would help with the aforementioned Marshall as the two are close friends. Williams is quickly developing a great relationship with the U-M staff and told me he plans to get back to U-M at some point this fall. While all of this sounds great, Williams does hold offers from the likes of Georgia, Miami, Tennessee and Texas A&M. And that means it’s important to keep a close eye on how much NIL will play a role here. On the field, Williams is a legit 6-foot-6, 280 pounds. He played a lot of standup five on Thursday night, and the Wolverines like him as a bigger EDGE in the same mold as a Mike Morris. I was actually more impressed with Williams than Marshall despite the latter being ranked higher.

*** On300 Chicago (Ill.) Simeon EDGE Christopher Burgess has visited Michigan on multiple occasions, including this summer. The Wolverines were on Burgess early thanks to Michigan staffer Chris Bryant, who is a graduate of Simeon. Right now, I have reason to believe guys like Williams and Marshall are higher on the board, but Burgess is certainly a prospect the Wolverines like and want to continue to monitor. Right now, Notre Dame is considered the leader in this recruitment, and I would give the advantage to the Irish — things could change if Michigan pushes harder. At 6-foot-4, 230 pounds, Burgess has an impressive build, plays the run well and is a strong kid in the trenches. He is still raw from a technical standpoint, but I do like his upside.

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