2021 Safety Rod Moore Picks Michigan, Feels At Home

Michigan recruiting is on a tear and picked up another pledge from talented three-star safety Rod Moore on Sunday.

For the second time in as many days, Michigan landed a 2021 commit on the defensive side of the ball when Clayton (Ohio) Northmont three-star safety Rod Moore chose the Wolverines on Sunday.

“I’ve been thinking I wanted to wait until the middle of football season or after football season, but that feels like it’s too long for me,” Moore told Wolverine Digest. “I had feels for different schools, and the school I’m picking, I feel like it can be my home. I am just like, ‘’why am I waiting? I’m not waiting on any other offers’. I’ve been building relationships with the teams that have offered me, so what am I waiting for if I already feel at home somewhere else?”

A couple months back, Moore picked up his offer from Michigan on March 18. Moore, teammate Markus Allen and a contingent of other prospects were scheduled to visit Ann Arbor that same weekend, but the coronavirus quarantine put a stop to those plans. Still, Moore landed his offer and began to forge a bond with the Michigan staff.

In late April, Allen issued his commitment to the Wolverines’ staff, and Michigan kept pushing for Moore to join the quickly growing group of recruits. Allen soon joined in on that effort and was a positive factor in Moore’s decision.

“We’ve been pretty close since the summer because we went on a camp tour together,” Moore said. “We went through this process kind of together because we both basically started at the same time… He is playing a role in trying to get me to go there.”

Michigan is also the home to former Northmont defensive end Gabe Newburg, and he shared positive anecdotes from his time playing for the Wolverines as well.

At 5-11 and 180 pounds, Moore is a speedy player that spends his football offseason working on his track and field prowess as a 100-meter and 200-meter sprinter. This speed translates onto the football field, and the three-star safety prospect accrued 85 tackles, four interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries last season.

With Moore now in the fold, Michigan has 13 commits in its 2021 class, which ranks No. 8 in the country according to 247Sports.com. Moore is the sixth defensive player to commit to Michigan so far.

Yesterday, Michigan added a pledge from Bolingbrook (Ill.) High three-star linebacker Tyler McLaurin, further helping round out the defensive portion of U-M’s recruiting class.

With 25 offers to his name, Moore picked Michigan over programs such as Kentucky, Cincinnati, Indiana and Pittsburgh. These schools were named to his top five on April 24, but Michigan eventually beat these teams out in the race to earn Moore’s verbal commitment.

Now that Michigan has two defensive backs committed in 2021, who should the Wolverines target next in the position group? Which prospects stand out at this point? Let us know!