2021 WR Markus Allen Decommits From Michigan

After opening the 2020 season strong with a pair of strong efforts, Clayton (Ohio) Northmont wide receiver Markus Allen has decided to decommit from Michigan and open up his recruitment. Allen's teammate, 2021 safety Rod Moore, is still committed to the program.

In the past, Allen has spoken highly about the Michigan program, and he liked what he was hearing from U-M offensive coordinator Josh Gattis, which makes his decision to reopen his recruitment a little bit puzzling.

Prior to his decommitment, Allen was part of a 2021 class at Michigan that was littered with talent, especially at the receiver position. U-M currently holds verbal pledges from East Lansing (Mich.) High wide receiver Andrel Anthony, Fresno (Calif.) Central East wide receiver Xavier Worthy and Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei wide receiver Cristian Dixon.

Taking four wide receivers in one class would be on the higher end of pass catchers for one cycle, but it would not be unheard of for the Wolverines. In the past, Michigan signed three wide receivers in the 2019 class and four wide receivers to cap off the 2017 cycle, so it seems like U-M goes heavy on that position every other year. Still, Allen was off to a strong start to his senior season with nearly 200 receiving yards and four total touchdowns, so it looked like Michigan had landed a talented prospect with a high ceiling going forward.

Who can Michigan replace Allen with?

Throughout the 2021 cycle, Michigan has remained a consistent factor for Atlanta (Ga.) Pace Academy wide receiver Jayden Thomas, and he currently has U-M in his top group. Word out of the Georgia area is that Thomas favors Notre Dame and Michigan the most, but he has expressed disappointment with the recruiting dead period that is still going on.

“It's been picking up a lot,” Thomas said of his contact with Michigan back in June. “Coach [Jim] Harbaugh, Coach [Josh] Gattis, those guys are just really, really pushing me. It's on Zoom calls, phone calls, FaceTimes with my parents and stuff.”

Both Worthy and Anthony committed to Michigan after Thomas made those comments, so it was unclear how hard the Wolverines would pursue the SI All-American candidate moving forward. However, once Michigan was allowed to send out official offers to prospects in the 2021 class on Aug. 1, Thomas was one of the first to receive his scholarship to U-M.

Another player to keep in mind for this cycle is Ewa Beach (Hi.) James Campbell wide receiver Titus Mokiao-Atimalala. Last Friday, the four-star recruit released his top 10 and Michigan was included along with Notre Dame, Hawaii, UCLA, Utah, USC, Maryland, Virginia, Nebraska and UCF. Rivals.com has Mokiao-Atimalala as the No. 3 player in the state this year, and it's clear that he is partial to the Michigan program.

How should Michigan close out the 2021 cycle at the wide receiver position? Should the Wolverines stand pat there and focus elsewhere or look to add another receiver? Let us know!