Michigan Lands 2021 Wide Receiver Markus Allen
Michigan’s 2021 recruiting class is adding commits at a speedy pace, and Clayton (Ohio) Northmont wide receiver Markus Allen is the latest to join U-M’s top 10 class after announcing his pledge on Twitter.
“For the next four to five years, I will be continuing my football and academic career at the University of Michigan,” Allen declared. “Go Blue!”
Back in February, Michigan offered the 6-2, 190-pound prospect and immediately positioned itself as one of Allen’s top schools. From that time, Allen made a plan to visit Ann Arbor in March with his teammate, three-star safety Rod Moore, and two other friends, 2022 four-star athlete C.J. Hicks and 2022 three-star defensive tackle Derrick Shepard.
All four players hold offers from the Wolverines, but the coronavirus forced the talented group to push their visit back. At that time, Allen caught up with Wolverine Digest and mentioned that among his recently-named top 10, Michigan would be the school he visits first after the coronavirus dissipates.
As it turns out, Allen did not need to take that visit before securing his position as a Michigan commit. Allen did, however, discuss his bond with the Wolverines’ staff and offered a description that foreshadowed his April 28 commitment.
“The relationship with me and Coach [Josh] Gattis is very good,” Allen said. “We text all the time, even when it’s not just about football we still text and everything. So, me and him have created a good bond and that bond is probably going to get better over the next couple months.”
Right now, Allen is listed as a three-star prospect and the No. 83 wide receiver in the nation, but that ranking is not exactly indicative of his talent. Last season, Allen produced to the tune of 51 receptions for 1,099 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns for Northmont. As a big-bodied receiver, Allen was especially dangerous in the red zone and used his physicality and strength off the line to create separation in his routes.
After Michigan offered in February, Allen fielded eight more Division I offers, and Kentucky was one school that has been involved in his recruitment for quite some time. The Wildcats were one of the top schools in contention but were not able to fend off an aggressive push by Michigan to land the rising prospect from Ohio.
With Allen now in the fold, Michigan sports the No. 10 class in the nation and the Big Ten’s No. 4 class according to 247Sports.com. Last Friday, Michigan added three-star cornerback Ja’Den McBurrows to its class, but Allen is the first wide receiver commit for the Wolverines in the ’21 cycle. Michigan did already have one pass catcher pledged in four-star tight end Louis Hansen, but Allen’s commitment only adds to the potential weapons for five-star quarterback commit J.J. McCarthy down the road.
Click here to watch Allen's junior highlight tape.
Michigan’s 2021 class grew on Tuesday with the addition of three-star wide receiver Markus Allen. Will his teammate, safety Rod Moore, soon join him as a Wolverine pledge? How will the rest of the 2021 class shake out? Let us know!
