Getty Image / Scott W. Grau/Icon Sportswire
The Michigan Wolverines under new head coach Sherrone Moore are assembling a top-tier 2025 recruiting class, the first, without Jim Harbaugh. That class includes 2025 Wolverines commit Eli Owens, a 3-star tight end from Alcoa, Tennessee who previously received an offer from Michigan rival Ohio State.
As a 3-star tight end, Eli Owens would make an impact at any College Football program and for as different as the Ohio State Buckeyes and Michigan Wolverines are, they’re still two schools cut from very similar cloths when compared to every other program in the nation. I’d go as far as to argue that Michigan and Ohio State have more in common with each other (blue chip legacy, national championships, Heisman winners, powerful alumni based, B1G, etc) than they have differences.
With that said, Eli Owens recently sat with Michael Smeltzer of the Wolverine Chronicle to discuss his commit to Michigan and the topic of his Ohio State recruitment came up. In a show of maturity and diplomacy, Eli Owens started by saying he “will never hate on Ohio State” and admitted he was “seriously considering” the Buckeyes. But he then broke down how his recruiting visits to Michigan and Ohio State differed.
More specifically, he talked about how at Michigan they immediately started discussing with him how his time in Ann Arbor would go if football didn’t work out. They explained how he would be set up for success for the rest of his life with University of Michigan academics. And in Columbus, academics and life outside of football was a complete afterthought:
“When I was at Ohio State they never talked to me about what would happen if football didn’t work out… At Michigan that was like the first meeting.”
-2025 Commit Eli Owens
Full interview: https://t.co/o3gOPSQbYS pic.twitter.com/WKcOEccsKl
— Wolverine Chronicle (@WolverineChron) August 20, 2024
While I, a person who never played D1 football for one of the best programs in the nation, would certainly be swayed by the sales pitch of best-in-class academics, allow me to play devil’s advocate for a moment… I can’t help but wonder how many recruits weren’t swayed by this same pitch that Eli Owens was.
There are a LOT of athletes banking on success on the gridiron and that being their only path. It’s a singular focus and school is just something they go through the motions of in pursuit of the next level (College -> NFL Draft -> big contract -> Hall of Fame, etc).
However, when you’re the Michigan Wolverines with 10 National Championships, only trailing Notre Dame and Alabama in the modern era, it is easy to pitch your incredible academics when the reining national champions’ on-field success speaks for itself.
After hearing this story from Eli Owens, I’d be intrigued to hear more from recruits who received offers from rival schools and how those approaches to recruiting differed. But in the era of NIL, ‘croots are so timid to speak candidly about schools because there’s always a chance they might be transferring to the rival after just one season. Money talks.
Here is the full Eli Owens interview with Michael Smeltzer: