Michigan Recruiting Insider – Elite prospects headline 2026 linebacker board

On this week's edition of The Michigan Recruiting Insider Sam Webb, Steve Lorenz, and Brice Marich discussed 2026 linebacker recruiting on the heels of the Wolverines strong performance in the 2025 recruiting cycle. Emboldened by their flips of Bryce Underwood, Ty Haywood, Shamari Earls, and Nate Marshall from SEC heavyweights, and landing of Andrew Babalola, Michigan is aggressively pursuing some of the no. 1 and no. 2 linebackers on 2026, in Gainesville (Ga.) and USC commit Xavier Griffin and Loganville (Ga.) Tyler Atkinson. The crew also highlights other targets the Maize & Blue is hot on the trail of like Top247 Auburn commit Shadarius Toodle and Top247 Owings Mills (Md.) Nick Abrams. The conversation then turns to stock-on-the rise targets like Nokesville (Va.) Mathieu Kanu and Richmond (Va.) standout Markel Dabney. Longtime target Kenneth Goodwin out of Harbor City, Harbor City, California is also discussed.The Recruiting Insider has a new official sponsor, Passes, the official NIL partner of Michigan athletics. Passes joined forces with U-M to help recruit and retain top student athletes and create an ecosystem for unprecedented fan access. If you want to begin supporting Michigan student athletes via direct interaction and engagement with their content via Passes, click here: https://www.passes.com/michiganThe Recruiting Insider is presented by Wolverine Boots & Apparel. As America’s Original Work Boot Brand, Wolverine is a champion of blue-collar work ethic whenever and wherever it shows up, whether that’s on a job site or a football field. That’s why Wolverine has proudly partnered with The Recruiting Insider in presenting the Recruit of the Week, as Wolverine student-athletes embody this blue-collar grit and resilience through and through. Shop Wolverine Boots' Michigan collection here: https://www.wolverine.com/US/en/maize-and-blue-collar/