Flip Watch: Lorenzo Styles Jr.
Lorenzo Styles Jr. committed to Notre Dame in the fall of his junior year and it was a major commitment as the Irish overcame some built-in obstacles to land his commitment.
Rated as the seventh-best receiver in the 2021 class and No. 37 nationally which puts him on the fringe of five-star status, Styles’ father played for Ohio State and the four-star plays at Pickerington (Ohio) Pickerington Central, just miles from Ohio State’s campus.
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CLASS OF 2020 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
CLASS OF 2021 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Position | Team | State
Styles has talked highly of Notre Dame throughout his recruitment and that continues to be the case into the spring, but there have been some rumors that other programs are making a strong push to flip him.
That’s no surprise since Styles is the top receiver in the Midwest, but Michigan has seemingly been making major in-roads with the Notre Dame commit and he’s been in contact with coach Jim Harbaugh. There’s no doubt the Wolverines are making Styles a high priority even though he’s committed to Notre Dame.
Michigan State, under first-year coach Mel Tucker, Florida, Kentucky and others are other schools who could be involved in Styles’ recruitment.
Notre Dame has lost two commitments recently, which is as many as it lost in the 2019 (2) and 2020 (0) classes combined. Four-star receiver Deion Colzie, backed off, as did four-star guard Greg Crippen, who flipped to Michigan.
Styles is talking to other teams but that does not necessarily mean the four-star is ready to flip.
Will he?
MICHIGAN
Notre Dame has been losing some traction on the recruiting trail after a hot start, and Michigan is looking to steal perhaps its most prolific commit in Styles. Harbaugh had a very productive FaceTime with Styles last week, and the Wolverines are making him a priority for what should be a smaller wide receiver class.
I'm not guaranteeing a flip to Michigan, but the Wolverines have put themselves in perhaps the strongest position to steal him away from Notre Dame. Styles is keeping the door open as evidenced by his conversations with not only Michigan but also several other schools like Florida, Kentucky and Michigan State. - EJ Holland, TheWolverine.com
NOTRE DAME
There has been buzz by various outlets that say Styles' commitment to Notre Dame isn't strong and believe Michigan is in a good spot for him, but that's not what I've been gathering. This all depends on who you talk to, but Styles, according to my sources, has given the staff indication that he is sticking with his Notre Dame commitment.
However, the saying goes 'when there's smoke, there's fire' so there should be a level of concern here, but at the end of the day, I think Styles will stick with his Notre Dame pledge. This whole situation could end up strengthening his commitment to Notre Dame. It's pretty public now that he's been communicating with other schools, and he may decide to shut that down. - Mike Singer, BlueAndGold.com