Michigan football picks up new 2023 commitment from Illinois linebacker

Despite the 2024 recruiting class being the focal point of national attention, Jim Harbaugh continues to add to his 2023 Michigan football recruiting class. At the end of this week, the Wolverines landed yet another defensive commitment from Illinois linebacker John Weidenbach who chose Michigan over several schools, including Illinois, Wisconsin, Yale, and others.

Committed to the University of Michigan. Go Blue! 〽️@UMichFootball pic.twitter.com/3C0G3CFWPR

— John Weidenbach (@ijohnweid6) May 5, 2023

Michigan football recruiting lands new commitment from 2023 Illinois linebacker

Jim Harbaugh’s 2023 class was pretty disappointing on paper, all things considered. Despite winning back-to-back Big Ten titles and finishing in the top-3 two years in a row, the Wolverines’ 2023 class hardly ranked in the top 20 nationally and had zero five-star commits; much of Michigan’s shortcomings in the class can be pinned on the uncertainty of Jim Harbaugh’s future with the program.

Ever since reaffirming his desire to coach Michigan football, Harbaugh has gone on a tear, securing a plethora of talent for the Wolverines in the coming classes. He has also added a few more pieces of the puzzle to his 2023 class, which signed at the beginning of this year. Heading into the 2023 season, there is now a new Michigan football recruiting commitment in the 2023 class: John Weidenbach, a linebacker prospect out of Benet Academy in Illinois.

John Weidenbach is a no-star recruit per the 247 Sports composite rankings, yet he held the interest of a few Power 5 programs, including Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Cal, Iowa State, Duke, and more. He also had some Ivey League interest from the likes of Yale. On Friday, John Weidenbach announced that he has officially committed to play football for the University of Michigan this fall. While there is a good chance that he does not see the field much for the Wolverines, he brings a solid 6-foot-1, 225-pound frame to the table and could find a role for himself on special teams or otherwise.

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