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The Michigan Wolverines secured their first commitment in the Class of 2020 last week — and it was a big one. Four-star guard Zeb Jackson from Maumee Valley Country Day in Ohio announced that he will be playing his college ball for John Beilein in Ann Arbor.
The highly sought-after recruit went public with his decision via a creative social media video featuring some of Michigan basketball’s best moments in the last 5 years. Jackson paid homage to Trey Burke’s pickpocket of Keith Appling in 2013, Burke’s iconic three-pointer later that year in the Sweet 16, and Michigan’s newest basketball classic — Jordan Poole’s scissor-kick buzzer beater against Houston. He then went and on to thank his family and sign off with a “Go Blue.”
Jackson is listed at 6-2 and 160 pounds and is ranked 66th nationally according to the 247 Sports Composite. He received offers from a number of top programs across the Big Ten and the country, including Michigan State, Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Virginia, Xavier, and Butler. Michigan, however, was involved in Jackson’s recruitment from the beginning and is reported to have had a leg up on the competition because of an AAU connection between Jackson and Quincy Simpson, the father of Wolverines point guard Zavier Simpson.
Whether it’s the recruiting pundit chatter or the interest from other programs across the Big Ten, all signs point to this being a major recruiting win for Michigan. Take a brief look at Jackson’s high school tape and you’ll see that the Wolverines are getting an athletic, long playmaker in the backcourt who can handle the ball and work in the ball screen game.
Moreover, Jackson finds crafty ways to get to the basket in isolation situations and is not afraid to rise up and use his jumper. It’s not yet clear what Michigan’s rotation will look like in the Fall of 2020, when Jackson arrives on campus — but, as of now, he seems like a perfect fit for John Beilein’s two-guard offense and Luke Yaklich’s newly prolific, pit-bull defense.
Wolverine fans will surely be happy with this news, especially as the team prepares to head into a new season.