Elite recruit that spurned Jim Harbaugh makes list of "Freak" 2025 college athletes

One of the biggest "what-if" recruits of the Jim Harbaugh era is Washington, DC native tight end Nyckoles Harbor. The 6-foot-5 235 235-pound tight end is an absolute blur on the football field. Harbor was thought to be favoring Harbaugh and the Wolverines up until days before his commitment, when the South Carolina Gamecocks swooped in and snagged him. With his size and speed, Harbor would have been a matchup nightmare for opposing Big Ten defenses.

Harbor would have been a freshman during the 2023 National Championship season, and adding him to one of the most talented rosters in college football history, even as a freshman, would have been incredible. The thought of Michigan running a two-tight-end set with ,Colston Loveland and Harbor lining up opposite one another would have given any defensive coordinator chills. As it were, he ended up as a Gamecock, and while he saw the field sparingly, his numbers were not eye-opening (12 receptions, 195 yards, and one touchdown). During his sophomore campaign, those numbers improved (26 receptions, 376 yards, and three touchdowns), but they still do not reflect the talent he possesses.

Now heading into his junior season, it seems as though experts are expecting a breakout year for the big tight end. He was recently named to Bruce Feldman's annual "College Football Freaks List" for the 2025 season. Harbor came in at number three on the list, trailing Ohio State's Jeremiah Smith and Alabama's Kadyn Proctor, in that order. Any Michigan fan reading this list and seeing Harbor's name has to feel a certain way about how that recruitment ended, even three years later. Watching freshman phenom Bryce Underwood air it out to a physical specimen like Harbor would have been something special.

MORE: Former top Michigan recruit makes elite list of Rivals "Best Five Stars"

Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore watches quarterback Bryce Underwood (19) | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Elite recruit that spurned Jim Harbaugh makes list of "Freak" 2025 college athletes

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