Recruiting Roundup: Four-star QB commit opens up about new Michigan staff

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The Michigan Wolverines have their new coaching staff locked in, and now they are focused on building the roster. Most of the news has been surrounding the transfer portal, but keeping together the 2026 class and recruiting guys in the 2027 class are both crucial tasks.

Let’s discuss the current happenings in today’s Recruiting Roundup.

Peter Bourque still locked in after Kyle Whittingham hire

2027 four-star quarterback Peter Bourque committed to Michigan back in August, but things are looking a lot different now. Almost the entire coaching staff has changed, but that isn’t all that went into Bourque’s decision.

“Honestly, I hated the recruiting process,” Bourque told On3’s Ethan McDowell ($). “I hated going on all those visits. But even more than that, Michigan’s a special place. My decision was more than the relationships I made with the coaches. It’s the place where I wanted to play football at and I could see myself being a student at for four years. … It was definitely hard because the staff I got recruited by is all gone, but Michigan’s always going to be Michigan. It’s a place where everyone wants to play at, in The Big House in front of 110,000.”

The place is important, but the relationships are crucial as well. The new quarterbacks coach at Michigan is Koy Detmer Jr., and he is making sure Bourque knows how much the Wolverines value him.

“He wants to build a relationship with me,” Bourque said. “I’m a priority at Michigan.”

Bouque saw the system Whittingham and new offensive coordinator Jason Beck ran at Utah, and he thinks that he will fit into it well.

“What they ran at Utah is a lot of quarterback runs, and I wonder if they’re going to do that with Bryce because he’s capable of doing it, and I think I’m a good enough athlete to play in that system as well,” he said.

2027 OL commit praises Kyle Whittingham hire

Another recruit who is pleased with Michigan’s hire is 2027 three-star offensive lineman Tristan Dare. He committed to Michigan in August as well, and he was happy with the Wolverines’ choice for their new head coach.

“Definitely a wild experience, but coach Whittingham is an amazing hire with his reputation at Utah. And then coach Harding, with his reputation as an o-line coach — he has two projected first-rounders both at tackle out of Utah this year,” Dare told On3’s Ethan McDowell ($). “So obviously, a great reputation for those coaches, and I’m just excited to build that relationship.”

Dare went in-depth on what he likes from his new position coach as well.

“The experience he’s had, that’s definitely a good thing,” Dare said. “Kind of in the same way the University of Michigan has a reputation of being a good football program, you want someone who knows what they’re doing and has experience, but also just a coach who is worried about their players getting better and focused on both them being the best people on and off the field and being the best they can be for the team. It’ll be interesting to see.”

When Dare committed, he thought he would be working with Grant Newsome and Sherrone Moore. There is a new staff, and Dare has one important question for his coaches.

“I think one of the main questions is where they see me, what’s their plan?” Dare said.

New CB coach working on top 2027 target

One of the most important targets in the 2027 class for Michigan is four-star safety Myles Baker. The Wolverines have a new cornerbacks coach in Jernaro Gilford, and he connected with Baker on Friday. He is planning a trip to California to see Baker soon, and his effort already seems to be paying off.

“Actually coach Gilford reached out to me today,” Baker told The Michigan Insider ($). “(He told me) he was going to come out next week. It’s a good feeling that even though the defensive staff is mostly gone, someone valued me enough to have new coaches reach out to me.”

Baker took a visit to Ann Arbor most recently for the Ohio State game, so his interest in the Wolverines dates back to the previous regime. Hopefully he vibes with the new staff members and remains interested in Ann Arbor being his future college football home.

Quick Hitter

• The first offer of the Kyle Whittingham era was extended last week, and it went to 2027 four-star safety Bode Sparrow.

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