Michigan Football signee Jaden Smith requests release from his NLI

The offseason after winning a national championship isn’t playing out like many Wolverines fans hoped it would. There was always some suspicion that Harbaugh would follow through with his ultimate desire to win a Super Bowl in the NFL, but it has been difficult to watch him hire away so many crucially important Michigan football assistants for jobs with the Chargers, leaving Sherrone Moore to scramble to replace them..

The question at the back of a lot of fans’ minds was what impact the coaching turnover might have on recruiting. We got a small preview of the negative side of that turnover when we learned that Jaden Smith, the No. 278 overall prospect and No. 19 linebacker in the country asked to be released from his letter of intent to play for Michigan football.

The coaching turnover on the defensive side of the ball is an issue Michigan football will have to deal with, and could have a big impact on recruiting. The Wolverines have done a good job holding on to recruits so far and so Davis’ decision shouldn’t be viewed as some sort of doomsday judgment about the program, but rather a reality of what the Wolverines face as a team in transition trying to move forward.

It hurts to lose a four-star signee, but it’s part of doing business. Players are often close to the coaches that recruited them and now that all of those staffers are gone, you can understand why Smith and other recruits might reconsider. It’s just part of the business.