I just got off the phone with Lomu’s head coach, Brock Farrel, at Highland High which is located outside of Phoenix. The conversation lasted about 30 minutes so I was able to get a good feel of Michigan’s recruiting pitch this summer and updates for the fall.
- Michigan first caught eye of Lomu after Indiana offered, who was the first in the Big Ten to extend interest. Jay Harbaugh flew down to the school to evaluate Lomu live during the spring eval period, which then led to Sherrone Moore offering in late-June.
- The offer arrived after Lomu had already taken official visits to Arizona, Cal, and Utah. For essentially the entire offseason, Lomu’s recruitment was looking like he was going to remain out west within the PAC-12 but recent offers from the Wolverines, Ole Miss, and Florida have changed things.
- Lomu took an unofficial visit last Sunday for the barbecue. When Farrel asked Lomu how it went, the three-star was elated about the facilities, coaches, and the campus. He truly felt like Michigan was prioritizing him as a feature piece for the 2023 class.
- Farrel said that Lomu will likely take the two remaining officials in-season but hasn’t set up dates or decided the two schools who will get to host him. But after the experience that he had last weekend, Farrel wouldn’t be surprised if Michigan got another crack in having Lomu return.
- Farrel considers Lomu to be arguably the best player he’s ever had the opportunity to coach. Farrel spoke highly on Lomu’s intelligence off the field, who pretty much as the option to attend any university for educational reasons. Lomu is also a student aide for Farrel, who teaches math at Highland.
- Lomu is the leader of Highland heading into his senior year, whose ability to get others to follow his example impresses Farrel every day. On film, Lomu’s footwork for his size has allowed him to be more than efficient in pass blocking and a road grader in the run game.
- Michigan’s national reputation as a prestigious college for academic reasons has certainly attracted Lomu, as well as learning under Moore, who has talked to Farrel once over the phone and was with Lomu for a good portion of the barbecue. Moore’s success last season by capturing the Joe Moore Award gives Farrel the understanding that Lomu would be developed right under a system that specializes in running the ball and ground-and-pound attacks.
- Lomu will announce his commitment sometime in December, Farrel believes, who won’t share a top schools list or release edits on social media before then. This will be a decision made behind closed doors between Lomu and his parents as they’re VERY close with one another.
- Should Lomu commit to Michigan, Farrel says the incoming senior possesses the versatility to play either position on the offensive line, or be lined up as a tight end or anywhere along the defensive line. Michigan is currently looking at Lomu as a tackle, who’s entered the month of August at 6-foot-5 and 265 pounds.
- Lomu became a top target for Michigan after missing out on multiple 2023 tackles this summer like Charles Jagusah and Kadyn Proctor. Moore continues to offer those uncommitted like Lomu in an effort to bring in more additions to pair with Amir Herring and Evan Link. Other names to monitor are Nick Fattig, Taliafi Taala, Spencer Fano, Nathan Efobi, and DJ Chester.
- The one thing going against Michigan for Lomu is distance as pretty much the entire PAC-12 has pushed for him this offseason. Lomu would like to be relatively close to his family while in college. But the fact that he was at the barbecue is a good sign that he’ll at least be back for a game this season.
- Farrel thinks that if Michigan is able to land Lomu, it's invasion of an area dominated by the PAC-12 will bode wonders for the national brand. The state of Arizona is considered to be one of the top recruiting hotbeds in the country so for the Wolverines to be in the mix for Lomu shows a great deal on their athletic and academic opportunities.
- It’s too early for put in a FutureCast for him to commit to Michigan but we’ll continue to dig more into its chances in the coming weeks. I’ll say though that if Lomu comes back officially, we’ll be talking about him the same as we’ve done with Zack Marshall this week.
- Michigan first caught eye of Lomu after Indiana offered, who was the first in the Big Ten to extend interest. Jay Harbaugh flew down to the school to evaluate Lomu live during the spring eval period, which then led to Sherrone Moore offering in late-June.
- The offer arrived after Lomu had already taken official visits to Arizona, Cal, and Utah. For essentially the entire offseason, Lomu’s recruitment was looking like he was going to remain out west within the PAC-12 but recent offers from the Wolverines, Ole Miss, and Florida have changed things.
- Lomu took an unofficial visit last Sunday for the barbecue. When Farrel asked Lomu how it went, the three-star was elated about the facilities, coaches, and the campus. He truly felt like Michigan was prioritizing him as a feature piece for the 2023 class.
- Farrel said that Lomu will likely take the two remaining officials in-season but hasn’t set up dates or decided the two schools who will get to host him. But after the experience that he had last weekend, Farrel wouldn’t be surprised if Michigan got another crack in having Lomu return.
- Farrel considers Lomu to be arguably the best player he’s ever had the opportunity to coach. Farrel spoke highly on Lomu’s intelligence off the field, who pretty much as the option to attend any university for educational reasons. Lomu is also a student aide for Farrel, who teaches math at Highland.
- Lomu is the leader of Highland heading into his senior year, whose ability to get others to follow his example impresses Farrel every day. On film, Lomu’s footwork for his size has allowed him to be more than efficient in pass blocking and a road grader in the run game.
- Michigan’s national reputation as a prestigious college for academic reasons has certainly attracted Lomu, as well as learning under Moore, who has talked to Farrel once over the phone and was with Lomu for a good portion of the barbecue. Moore’s success last season by capturing the Joe Moore Award gives Farrel the understanding that Lomu would be developed right under a system that specializes in running the ball and ground-and-pound attacks.
- Lomu will announce his commitment sometime in December, Farrel believes, who won’t share a top schools list or release edits on social media before then. This will be a decision made behind closed doors between Lomu and his parents as they’re VERY close with one another.
- Should Lomu commit to Michigan, Farrel says the incoming senior possesses the versatility to play either position on the offensive line, or be lined up as a tight end or anywhere along the defensive line. Michigan is currently looking at Lomu as a tackle, who’s entered the month of August at 6-foot-5 and 265 pounds.
- Lomu became a top target for Michigan after missing out on multiple 2023 tackles this summer like Charles Jagusah and Kadyn Proctor. Moore continues to offer those uncommitted like Lomu in an effort to bring in more additions to pair with Amir Herring and Evan Link. Other names to monitor are Nick Fattig, Taliafi Taala, Spencer Fano, Nathan Efobi, and DJ Chester.
- The one thing going against Michigan for Lomu is distance as pretty much the entire PAC-12 has pushed for him this offseason. Lomu would like to be relatively close to his family while in college. But the fact that he was at the barbecue is a good sign that he’ll at least be back for a game this season.
- Farrel thinks that if Michigan is able to land Lomu, it's invasion of an area dominated by the PAC-12 will bode wonders for the national brand. The state of Arizona is considered to be one of the top recruiting hotbeds in the country so for the Wolverines to be in the mix for Lomu shows a great deal on their athletic and academic opportunities.
- It’s too early for put in a FutureCast for him to commit to Michigan but we’ll continue to dig more into its chances in the coming weeks. I’ll say though that if Lomu comes back officially, we’ll be talking about him the same as we’ve done with Zack Marshall this week.
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