Despite some bad news that yet another Michigan defensive assistant is leaving the coaching staff, this time defensive backs coach Steve Clinkscale, it’s not all doom and gloom on the recruiting trail.
Friday, five-star defensive back D.J. Pickett announced his top five schools, and Michigan made the cut. Listed alongside Michigan were LSU, Oregon, Georgia, and Miami.
For those of you who might be unfamiliar with Pickett, he is a 6-foot-2, 170 pound defensive back in the 2025 recruiting class. Currently, he’s ranked as the No. 7 recruit nationally, No. 3 corner back prospect, and No. 1 prospect in the state of Florida according to the 247Sports composite ranking. He is a resident of Tampa, Florida and is playing his high school ball at Zephyrhills High School.
When speaking with Steve Wiltfong and 247Sports, Pickett mentioned that he picked these five schools in particular due to, “the connections that (Pickett) has with the coaches.” He also mentioned that he plans to only take official visits to the schools in his top five.
Pickett was in Ann Arbor in November to watch Michigan defeat Ohio State at the Big House, something that surely must have boosted the school’s stock for him. Pickett also mentioned to Wiltfong that the departure of Jim Harbaugh didn’t bother him, however, the departure of Steve Clinkscale could change things.
“Me and Coach (Steve) Clinck(scale) have a real good bond,” Pickett said to 247Sports. “The coaching change really didn’t matter as long as Coach Clink was still there.”
For now, Michigan is in the good graces of Pickett, and could badly use his services since there are no defensive backs currently committed to Michigan’s 2025 class. Additionally, Will Johnson will likely depart for the NFL after this season, so the Wolverines will need some high-end talent in the defensive backs room.
