Sting Factor: Four-star Taylor Groves decommits from Michigan
When a major program loses a key recruit, Rivals.com takes a look at how big of a blow it is to the respective school, analyzing it from a local and national level. To quantify the “sting” of each decommitment, we assign a score from 1-10, with one being no big deal and 10 being a catastrophic hit.
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THE STORYLINE
About a week after landing an offer from Michigan, four-star Taylor Groves committed to the Wolverines even though many other schools had been recruiting him for longer.
Michigan also wanted Groves as a defensive back while others pegged him at receiver but it did not seem to bother the Cross Plains (Tenn.) East Robertson standout.
But less than two months later, Groves announced he would be de-committing from Michigan and looking at all his other options.
At defensive back, the Wolverines have already secured commitments from five-star Will Johnson and four-star Kody Jones, plus they’re in the running for other top players at cornerback and safety in the 2022 class.
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LOCAL REACTION
“Groves committed to Michigan without ever having visited. With schools now scheduling June official visits, it's clear Groves wants to see schools and explore other options. While it didn't appear that a decommitment was imminent, it wasn't a surprise that the out-of-region prospect took a step away from the Wolverines.
"Groves was a bit of a project at safety, having played wide receiver for the majority of his career. With such a strong defensive back class nationally this cycle and the Wolverines already holding verbal pledges from five-star Will Johnson and four-star Kody Jones, this isn't a huge loss for the Wolverines.
"Michigan is still very much in play for guys like four-star Myles Pollard and four-star Dillon Tatum, and in the mix for heavy hitters like five-star Jacoby Mathews and Rivals100 recruit Bryce Anderson.” – EJ Holland, TheWolverine.com
Sting Factor: 4
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NATIONAL REACTION
“If Groves was committed for a long time and Michigan missed out on some key defensive back targets because of it that would be one thing. But that did not happen since the four-star was only committed for a few weeks. If he ends up at Notre Dame which is possible, the Sting Factor number could be higher because Groves is a talented two-way player but if he goes somewhere in the SEC then it’s not that big of a loss.
"Michigan has lots of talented targets across the defensive back spectrum and it seems like Groves wanted to play receiver anyway so while losing four-stars from a recruiting class is never ideal, I don’t see this being a really important loss by the time signing day rolls around.” – Adam Gorney, National Recruiting Director
Sting Factor: 3