Wolverine Digest

Michigan football commit makes huge leap in latest recruiting rankings

A Wolverines EDGE commit has just made a big jump in the latest Rivals300 rankings
Seth Berry|
Michigan edge Derrick Moore (8) celebrates a sack against Michigan State quarterback Alessio Milivojevic (11) during the second half at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing on Saturday, October 25, 2025.
Michigan edge Derrick Moore (8) celebrates a sack against Michigan State quarterback Alessio Milivojevic (11) during the second half at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing on Saturday, October 25, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Michigan Wolverines

Michigan football class of 2026 four-star EDGE commit Julian Walker from Dutch Fork High School (Columbia, SC) made a huge jump in the latest Rivals300 recruiting rankings that were released on Monday.

Walker jumped 26 spots from the No. 81 ranked player in the class of 2026, all the way up to the No. 26 spot in the nation. The movement for Walker was one of the most drastic jumps out of all players in the class in the Rivals300 rankings as he moved up 55 spots.

A national scout gave their take on Walker's game in light of the newest rankings.

"Michigan EDGE commit Julian Walker has prototypical size and athletic ability with fantastic block disruption. As a senior, he’s been able to collect nearly 15 tackles-for-loss. And standing at 6-foot-6, 255 pounds, Walker plays with phenomenal pad level and impressive bend given his size. Even at 255 pounds, he’s not nearly filled out in his frame. He has so much room to develop and add substantial mass to his frame. He has the body type, physicality and athleticism to potentially play along the entire line of scrimmage outside of nose tackle. All the way from 3-technique to a stand-up edge, Walker has all of the physical and athletic tools that defensive coaches covet at the position and his potential is as high as anybody in the entire 2026 cycle along the line of scrimmage.” —Cody Bellaire, National Scout

As Bellaire noted, Walker's performance on the field, combined with his versatility and overall potential has allowed those who follow recruiting to take notice as he ascends in the rankings.

Walker committed to Sherrone Moore's program on July 1. The South Carolina native has taken several gameday visits over the fall to see Shane Beamer's Gamecocks, while also taking a visit to North Carolina in early October.

Sherrone Moore
Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore reacts to a play against Purdue during the second half at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor on Saturday, November 1, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

While South Carolina continues to push for the flip, the Wolverines will have to fend off the home state school down the stretch as the early signing period approaches in December.

After the latest Rivals300 release, Michigan's class of 2026 ranks No. 12 in the nation, according to the Rivals Industry Rankings.

The early National Signing Day is on Dec. 3.

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Published
Seth Berry
SETH BERRY

Seth began writing on Michigan athletics in 2015 and has remained in the U-M media space ever since, which includes stops at Maize N Brew and Rivals before coming onto Michigan On SI in June of 2025. Seth has covered various angles of Michigan football and basketball, including recruiting, overall team coverage and feature/analysis stories relating to the Wolverines. His passion for Michigan sports and desire to tell stories led him to the sports journalism world. He is a 2020 graduate of Western Michigan University and is the former sports editor of the Western Herald, WMU's student newspaper.

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