Recruiting Roundup: BBQ at the Big House shaping up to be a family affair

Also, a Michigan commit is finishing rehab and nearing a return to play.

The end of the July recruiting dead period is quickly approaching, which also means fall camp is just around the corner. Before the football staff turns their attention to preparation for the 2024 season, they’ll look to end summer recruiting with a bang.

In this edition of the Recruiting Roundup, we’ll discuss a couple BBQ attendees with family ties to the Michigan program, and a future Wolverine who’s set to make his return to the field after an arduous rehab from injury.

BBQ at the Big House is family friendly for Michigan recruits

Peach State 2025 four-star edge Julius Holly is expected to make his first return trip to Ann Arbor since officially visiting and committing to the Wolverines in June.

Holly will be in attendance for the BBQ at the Big House this weekend, and he won’t be coming alone. His younger brother, class of 2027’s Jaxon Holly , is also planning on attending after being offered last month.

Jaxon plays edge alongside his brother at Alpharetta High School in Georgia. Although he’s still more than two full calendar years away from National Signing Day, the younger Holly has recently seen his recruitment start to take off, with offers from Texas A&M , Ole Miss and West Virginia in the last three months.

The Holly’s won’t be the only brothers on campus this weekend. True freshman defensive lineman Owen Wafle officially enrolled at the university this summer as part of the 2024 recruiting class. His younger brother Luke is a talented edge rusher in the 2026 class and told 247Sports’ Brice Marich ($) he is planning to be in attendance at this weekend’s festivities as well. This will mark the third trip to Ann Arbor for the younger Wafle, including a trip for the spring game earlier this year.

Luke is a 6-foot-4, 230-pound edge rusher at The Hun School in New Jersey and is ranked as a top-200 prospect, according to 247Sports’ composite . He holds a number of other impressive offers at this point in his recruitment, including Georgia, Ohio State, Penn State and Notre Dame.

After landing two talented defensive linemen in the 2024 and 2025 classes, respectively, Michigan will look to leverage its family ties in the recruitment of their younger brothers. We will have a preview along with a full list of the BBQ attendees later this week.

Photo via 247’s Brice Marich

Michigan commit completes rehab, cleared to return to the field

The Wolverine’s EJ Holland visited 2025 four-star running back commit Donovan Johnson last week in Savannah, Georgia as he finished his rehab from injury. Johnson, a 6-foot, 210-pounder tore the ACL in his knee in the spring of 2023 and missed his entire junior season. Despite the injury, Michigan running backs coach Tony Alford prioritized him and ultimately landed his commitment after an unofficial visit in June.

Johnson told Holland ($) the loyalty Alford displayed despite the injury was a major factor in securing his verbal pledge.

In the clips compiled by Holland below, you can see Johnson working on his footwork, agility and explosion. Johnson was fully cleared for football activity in May and has spent the rest of the summer in his native Georgia getting his body ready for the fall.

He’ll now make the trip back to Florida where he’ll play his senior season at IMG Academy. Prior to his injury, Johnson was considered one of the top overall recruits in the country and boasted impressive track speed as a Junior Olympian. If Johnson is able to return to his pre-injury form and put up an impressive senior campaign, he could be one of the bigger steals of the cycle.

Before committing to the Wolverines, Johnson once announced a top schools list that consisted of Georgia, Tennessee, Florida State , USC, and Ohio State, the latter of which is where his relationship with Alford began. Johnson will pair up with fellow 2025 four-star commit Jasper Parker to form a dynamic backfield for the Wolverines.

Quick Hitters

• On Saturday, 2025 top-100 wide receiver Derek Meadows committed to LSU . He was originally slated to commit the weekend of July 13, but delayed his decision after a late push by Notre Dame and Michigan. Alabama was also in the final group of schools in consideration by Meadows. Michigan will turn all attention to a pair of other highly-touted receivers, as four-stars Andrew Marsh and Jerome Myles are set to attend the BBQ.
• Turning to the hoops side of recruiting, Trey McKenney, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard from Flint, told Travis Branham of 247Sports ($) he is in the process of trimming his top schools list and is expected to announce a top-eight soon. The top-15 player recently scheduled his official visit to Michigan for Sept. 21. McKenney was one of the first players Dusty May made contact with when he was hired earlier this year and remains a top priority.
• Darius Acuff, the top ranked point guard in the 2025 class and eighth overall recruit, will make his college decision on Friday. Acuff attends IMG Academy but is a Michigan native and will air his announcement live from a youth center in Detroit. Acuff will pick one of Arkansas, Kansas, or Michigan.