Junior Colson Goes Blue
Michigan’s 2021 recruiting class continues to soar as Brentwood (Tenn.) Ravenwood four-star outside linebacker Junior Colson committed to Michigan on Sunday afternoon. Colson chose the Wolverines over Oregon, Ole Miss, Tennessee and LSU, though the blue chip prospect held over 30 scholarships.
With Colson in the fold, Michigan now has the No. 8 recruiting class in the country and skipped over both Iowa and Minnesota for the No. 2 position in the Big Ten with 14 total pledges.
On Saturday, Wolverine Digest outlined how close Colson is with the Michigan coaching staff, which was an important element in his decision. In fact, Colson also mentioned that the academics at Michigan in addition to a family-like football program helped the U-M coaches create an enticing culture in Ann Arbor.
“Especially with Coach B.J. [Mary] recruiting me and Coach Don Brown. They’ve done a really great job of jut showing me ever since I got my offer, they’ve always been on top of it and been on me.”
As the primary recruiter for Colson, Coach Jean-Mary has formed a close bond with the four-star prospect. Colson has the size, speed and tackling prowess to make an impact at linebacker, and U-M sees the recruit as a potential Viper at the next level.
While Colson’s potential role in his college’s defense is important, he has a connection with Coach Jean-Mary that extends outside of the X’s and O’s of the game.
“I talk to him like every day. We talk for hours, just talking about random stuff that isn’t even about football. We just talk and he’s there you as more than just a football coach.”
Standing at 6-3.5 and 224 pounds, Colson is a dynamic pass rusher that racked up double-digit sack totals last year. For the coming season, Colson is determined to reach the 200s for total tackles. And the year after, Colson is looking to transition to the Viper role at Michigan.
“They want me to play the Viper position, so I’ll be playing like in high school, being able to play multiple positions,” Colson said. “Being able to come in and compete for a spot right away, being able to get the starting spot as a freshman and being able to produce.”
Now as Michigan’s 14 commit in the 2021 class, Colson discussed what his official visit plans may hold.
“I was planning on taking official visits pretty soon, but all this has gotten crazy,” Colson said. “I plan on committing and then maybe taking my official visits after that or maybe just taking an official visit to the school I’m committing to.”
At this point, Michigan’s defensive haul in 2021 also includes six other three-star prospects: defensive end T.J. Guy, defensive end Dominick Giudice, linebacker Casey Phinney, linebacker Tyler McLaurin, cornerback Ja’Den McBurrows and safety Rod Moore.
Do you think Michigan can finish its 2021 class by sneaking into the top five nationally? What would be considered a successful class in your eyes? Let us know!
