4-Star Offensive Lineman Chooses Miami Over Michigan, Nebraska

The Wolverines were in the Top 3 for one of the best interior offensive linemen in the 2025 class, but came up short on commitment day...

Matt Lounsberry | Jul 5, 2024

Dec 3, 2022; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; A Michigan Wolverines player holds their helmet following their 43-22 victory against Purdue in the Big Ten Championship at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports / Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

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Michigan Wolverines

After a festive June on the recruiting trail, Michigan football is still waiting for the fireworks to start in July after coming up short for fourth 2025 target this month.

On Friday, four-star Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman interior offensive lineman Seuseu Alofaituli committed to Miami among a 'Top 3' which also included Michigan and Nebraska. The 6-foot-3, 280-pounder is considered the No. 77 overall prospect, No. 3 interior offensive lineman and No. 3 player from the state of Nevada according to 247Sports' Composite rankings.

Committed to the U
Thank you Jesus!!#GoCanes @coach_cristobal @CoachMirabal @CoachEdPata @dtrain2901 @CoachField @CoachBain58 pic.twitter.com/PMmt7pSEQd
— ‘SJ’ Seuseu Alofaituli (@AlofaituliSj) July 5, 2024

Alofaituli visited Ann Arbor back on June 7 as part of an official visit tour of his top three schools. The Nevada native took subsequent trips to Nebraska (June 14) and Miami (June 21), with the Hurricanes clearly leaving a big impression on that final visit.

Michigan offensive line coach Grant Newsome, who takes over the position after coaching tight ends for the Wolverines each of the last two seasons, was U-M's primary recruiter in the battle for Alofaituli. Newsome has landed two commitments in the 2025 class thus far in four-star Franklin (Mich.) Wylie E. Groves offensive tackle Avery Gach (No. 249 overall) and three-star Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy interior offensive lineman Jaden Strayhorn (No. 437).

After a slow start to this current recruiting cycle, Michigan is up to 13 commitments in the 2025 class after adding eight verbal pledges in June. However, the Wolverines have seen three previous high-profile prospects commit elswhere this month in four-star Philadelphia (Pa.) St. Joseph defensive lineman Maxwell Roy (Ohio State), four-star Brooklin (Mass.) Dexter interior offensive lineman Hardy Watts (Wisconsin) and four-star Danville (Calif.) San Ramon Valley edge rusher Marco Jones (Texas A&M).

Good news could be on the way next week for Michigan however, as the Wolverines are the current favorites to land four-star Center Valley (Pa.) Southern Lehigh tight end Andrew Olesh (No. 121) and three-star Destrehan (La.) wide receiver Phillip Wright (No. 533). Olesh — who is also considering Alabama and Penn State — is set to announce his commitment on July 8, while Wright will make his announcement on July 13 between Michigan and Georgia Tech.

Michigan's 2025 recruiting class is currently ranked No. 20 in the country and No. 7 in the Big Ten, through the Wolverines average player ranking of 91.03 is the third-best mark in the conference.