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Andrel Anthony To Follow In Footsteps Of Favorite Player Donovan Peoples-Jones

The newest Michigan wide receiver commit broke down why he decided to pick the Wolverines on Friday, July 31.

Announcing on his home field at East Lansing High School, wide receiver Andrel Anthony committed to Michigan yesterday to give the Wolverines their fourth in-state commitment of the 2021 cycle. After making that decision, Anthony declared that he would turn his recruiting efforts to Rocco Spindler and Donovan Edwards in hopes that they make a similar decision by choosing Michigan.

From that standpoint, Michigan was quit effective in convincing Anthony to join U-M's class and used a full court press to always stay in his ear. And according to the new Michigan commit, it was a true team effort.

“Its the vibe I got from the coaches from day one, from my sophomore year was a lot different,” Anthony said. “I really like Tucker's staff, I just haven't been able to get to know them like I have with Michigan's since sophomore year, so that was a big part as well. Just being there around the coaching staff and the players, they love to talk to me. They're excited I came this weekend, so that played a big part as well.”

Since Michigan State is in its first year with head coach Mel Tucker at the helm, Anthony had a lot more time to build a bond with the Wolverines coaches. However, Anthony also built a quality relationship with Michigan commit Xavier Worthy in recent months, and he called current U-M receiver Giles Jackson the Director of Recruiting due to his tenacity in helping the Wolverines land new prospects.

Over the last three years, Anthony has heard from Michigan quite a bit, and he has taken multiple visits to Ann Arbor for football. This past weekend, Anthony made a last minute stop to pick up more of a feel for the U-M campus for a change.

“I've talked to Donovan Peoples Jones a lot [in the past],” Anthony said. “He was my favorite player when I was watching their team, so that's pretty cool. Coach [Jim] Harbaugh always said he's going to pass the torch to me, so that's pretty awesome. I was on the phone with Coach [Josh] Gattis, Harbaugh and [Matt] Dudek, he handles recruiting, while I was there.”

When reviewing Anthony's finalists, neither Penn State nor Michigan State have a wide receiver committed at the moment, while Michigan had three players at the position committed prior to his announcement. But regardless of the competition for playing time, Anthony says that the overall quality of the wide receiver room will be a strength of the team moving forward.

“We are going to be great,” Anthony said. “You look at Alabama, and they have a lot of receivers. You can't guard all of them.”

In that same direction, Michigan currently has a plethora of inside players that will work out of the slot, so Anthony is likely to begin his career on the outside, though he does have the ability to move inside if need be.

“They have a lot of slots and only two or three outsides next year with Nico and Ronnie Bell could potentially play outside too, but he's more of a slot,” Anthony said.

Anthony mentioned that either Michigan State or Penn State could have been his runner up, but he reaffirmed that Michigan truly felt like his “home,” and that's why he became the commits No. 21 of the '21 cycle for the Wolverines.

What are your thoughts on Michigan's latest pickup? Do you value Anthony's commitment even more knowing that he was a priority for Michigan State and grew up in East Lansing? Let us know!