Recruiting: Sherrone Moore, Grant Newsome visit 5-star offensive tackle target

The Wolverines' coaching staff has been active on the recruiting trail during this bye week...

Matt Lounsberry | 19 Hours Ago

Michigan tight ends coach Grant Newsome talks to players at a timeout during the second half of U-M's 30-3 win on Saturday, Sept. 2, 2023, at Michigan Stadium. / Junfu Han/Detroit Free Press / USA TODAY NETWORK

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Michigan Wolverines

Michigan's coaching staff has been active on the recruiting trail during this bye week, with the first signing day for the 2025 recruiting class just under two months away.

Head coach Sherrone Moore and offensive line coach Grant Newsome checked in on arguably the Wolverines' top remaining target tonight, visiting five-star Blue Valley Northwest (Kan.) Overland Park offensive tackle Andrew Babalola at his high school game on Thursday.

Michigan HC Sherrone Moore and OL coach Grant Newsome in attendance to watch 4⭐️ OT Andrew Babalola!👀 pic.twitter.com/F9QU6ZbkQ7
— Rivals (@Rivals) October 10, 2024

Michigan and Stanford have been entrenched in a battle for the 6-foot-6, 280-pounder for months, and it's a battle that could rage throughout the remainder of the 2025 cycle. Babalola also has Auburn, Oklahoma and Missouri in his 'Top 5', but the Wolverines and Cardinal have been the favorites to land the five-star for some time.

According to 247Sports Composite rankings, Babalola is considered the No. 25 overall prospect, No. 4 offensive tackle and No. 1 player from the state of Kansas in this class. He has offers from a total of 35 FBS schools, including recruiting heavyweights such as Alabama, Georgia and Oregon.

"I think every time we talk about Andrew Babalola, Michigan just seems to get a little bit more...we get a little more juiced up about Michigan each episode," On3 recruiting expert Steve Wiltfong said back in early August. "So I think Michigan and Stanford are the two that I still... I think he ends up at one of those two.

"The thing that's changed is that it used to be, when you talked to a source, it would be 'that' school and Stanford. Now some people are saying it's 'that' school and Michigan...He's the guy that, when you look at the five-stars, he's probably the last one to talk NIL. Like, he's an old-school recruitment that's just trying to do the best he can to find his best fit on and off the field. His mom has gone on the visits, his dad... just talking it over with his family. They're struggling to get it down to one, he likes all of these opportunities."

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