Plus. a top-300 WR expanded on a recent visit, and Michigan’s new DL coach makes contact with a commit.
In today’s edition of the Recruiting Roundup, we’ll dive into a Miami linebacker commit visiting Michigan later this month, a wide receiver target who recently made a visit to Ann Arbor, and Michigan’s new defensive line coach reaching out to a commit he will soon be coaching.
Miami LB commit making multi-day visit later this month
Elijah Melendez, a top-150 four-star linebacker prospect who committed to the University of Miami in December, is reportedly taking a multi-day visit to Ann Arbor next weekend, according to The Wolverine’s EJ Holland ($) .
Melendez has been connected to Michigan since before he made his commitment. He was one of dozens of players in Ann Arbor for the victory over Ohio State , and he was previously recruited by Brian Jean-Mary at Tennessee, who is now the linebackers coach at Michigan.
“Michigan has always stayed in contact with me and the staff has been very real. I love Michigan,” Melendez told The Michigan Insider in February ($) . “Coach BJ is real and he’s from around the same area as me, so we click really well. I have always viewed Michigan as a top contender for me. I always loved Michigan and now adding coach BJ, I just hope they recruit me hard because it’s been a few months without a linebacker coach and Michigan was still in my top-three. Now we’ll see what they can do with one.”
Miami is much closer to home for Melendez, who is from Kissimmee, Florida. But the fact he’s still visiting Michigan means there is clearly still some interest. We’ll continue to monitor this recruitment following his upcoming trip.
Four-star WR target expands on recent visit
Taz Williams, a 2025 four-star wide receiver ranked just inside the top-300 on the 247Sports composite , was one of a few players to visit Michigan this past weekend . Williams told The Wolverine’s Holland ($) he liked getting the chance to watch practice and speak with new head coach Sherrone Moore.
“I really enjoyed talking to him,” Williams said. “He’s more of a players coach. He’s really involved with the players. I think he’s going to keep them winning. Even when he took over for that little amount of time, Michigan was still Michigan. He’s going to take small things Harbaugh gave him and have some Harbaugh traits, but he’s going to put his own personal twist on things.”
Williams also recognized the coaching ability of wide receivers coach Ron Bellamy.
“I really enjoyed watching practice,” Williams said. “They were going hard through individual drills. Everything they did was 110 miles per hour. I’ve seen some practices where receivers slack off. They don’t do that at Michigan. Coach Bellamy corrects you and doesn’t scream at you. He helps you get better.”
Williams has yet to announce a decision timeline, but it’s encouraging for Michigan that he will be back for an official visit on June 21.
New Michigan DL coach reaches out to 2024 DL commit for first time
According to a recent report from Zach Libby of The Wolverine ($) , Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore and new defensive line coach Lou Esposito have officially made contact with 2025 in-state four-star defensive line commit Bobby Kanka.
This is important, as it is the first Kanka has heard from the new coaching staff. It was also good timing, as Kanka will be in Ann Arbor with his family this upcoming weekend, as well as on April 20 for the spring game.
On the 247Sports composite , the Howell native is rated 363rd in his class overall, 41st among defensive linemen and third among recruits from the Mitten State. Kanka committed last August under Mike Elston, and loved to see Michigan dominate in the trenches en route to the National Championship this past season.
Kanka reportedly visited Michigan State with some high school teammates last week, so it’s good to see the new coaching staff get in touch with one of Michigan’s three commits in the recruiting cycle. That communication hopefully provided Kanka and his family with some reassurance.