Sherrone Moore's Michigan targets elite 2026 class linebacker with the latest recruiting move

Like many other college coaches, Sherrone Moore and his staff are traveling to meet recruits in person before the NCAA dead period begins on Feb. 3. The Wolverines have been actively extending scholarship offers, with one of their latest targets in the 2026 class being three-star linebacker Mathieu Kanu, who received an offer from Michigan on Thursday.

Kanu attends Patriot High School in Virginia. He shared the news about his Michigan offer on X, tagging the Wolverines' linebacker coach Brian Jean-Mary and assistant director of recruiting John Collins.

"Blessed to receive my 18th d1 offer from Michigan !! @luc_brian @jpcollinsjr_ @UMichFootball," Kanu posted on X.

Kanu has been a hot name in the recruitment world lately and received personal visits from multiple head coaches last week, including this week's visits from North Carolina's Bill Belichick and Virginia Tech's Brent Pry. Besides them, he also hosted coaches from Wisconsin, Wake Forest, Maryland and Michigan.

January was an eventful month for Kanu, as he received offers from East Carolina, Indiana, Virginia, Syracuse, Kentucky, Georgia Tech, West Virginia, Minnesota, and Michigan State. He also holds offers from North Carolina, Penn State, South Carolina, Virginia Tech and Maryland.

As of now, the Nittany Lions are the leader in Kanu's recruitment with a 93.6% chance of securing his commitment, according to On3. However, he has no definite timeline for commitment, and the momentum might shift given a strong push from other schools moving forward.

What potential does Mathieu Kanu bring to Michigan?

At 6-foot-3, 220 pounds, Mathieu Kanu has the potential to develop into a rush end at Michigan. He has yet to receive rankings from several recruiting outlets, but Rivals has rated him as a three-star prospect.

"[Kanu] is a phenomenal kid," Patriot coach Sean Finnerty told Inside Nova about Kanu. "He's so humble. It's refreshing."

Kanu was named first-team All-State as a junior in 2024 after making 137 total tackles (100 solo and 37 assisted), 16 tackles for loss, three sacks and three forced fumbles.

Landing Kanu would be a big addition to Michigan’s 2026 recruiting class, which currently has two commitments but no linebackers.