Michigan Football: 5 Biggest Recruiting Commit Busts in Program History

Andy Lyons/Getty Images

Michigan has gotten its share of 4- and 5-star recruits throughout history, but obviously, not all of them have panned out.

Still, everybody knows that that is simply part of recruiting, knowing that a number of the players you sign won't make it at the college level.

The reasons obviously differ, but I'm going to avoid guys who were busts because of injuries in this article. Also, no players currently on the team make this list, as those players still have a chance to shed their "bust" status (ex: Will Campbell).

There are obviously no right or wrong answers to this list, so opinions will vary wildly.

5. Boubacar Cissoko (DB) 2008 Class

Andy Lyons/Getty Images

Coming out of high school, Rivals.com had Boubacar Cissoko as the 44th overall player in the country.

Even though he was only 5'9", Cissoko had offers from schools such as Georgia, LSU, Penn State and Tennessee. However, he chose Michigan over all of them and looked to be the next shutdown corner for the Wolverines.

He did see plenty of playing time as a true freshman in 2008, but things went downhill from there.

Rich Rodriguez eventually kicked him off the team for off-the-field issues, and things got much worse.

Cissoko was imprisoned for theft and attempted armed robbery. Then, while in jail, Cissoko was accused of three counts of assault on prison employees.

4. Justin Turner (DB) 2009 Class

umgoblue.com

I think J.T. Turner is overshadowed a bit by Demar Dorsey and therefore doesn't get as much attention. I also think that he's a bit overshadowed by Will Campbell, seeing as how they were both in the 2009 class.

People seem to forget that Rivals.com had Turner as the 35th-best player in the country, two spots away from being a 5-star, while Scout.com did indeed have him as a 5-star.

He redshirted his freshman season at Michigan and was gone soon after.

John Bacon's book Three and Out really details the ugly departure and downfall of Turner at Michigan. Attitude and lack of motivation seem to be the main factors.

3. Marques Slocum (OL/DL) 2006 Class

gobluewolverine.com

Slocum was a mammoth lineman from Pennsylvania. He stood 6'5" and weighed right around 330 pounds out of high school.

Rivals.com had him as the No. 37 player in the country, while Scout.com had him as a 5-star.

Slocum had an impressive offer list from the likes of LSU, Miami and Oklahoma. He also participated in the US Army All-American Game.

However, he was eventually dismissed from Michigan for academic and conditioning reasons.

He was the definition of a bust, as he recorded only one tackle in his entire career.

2. Kelly Baraka (RB) 2001 Class

blog.mlive.com

Kelly Baraka was a consensus 5-star running back and was also a high school All-American. He was supposed to be the next great back to play for Michigan.

However, he was arrested twice for marijuana possession before his freshman year and was suspended for the season by Lloyd Carr.

Still, he was set to return for the 2002 season and bring a style of speed that Michigan hadn't seen in the backfield since Tyrone Wheatley. That never happened, though, and Carr eventually kicked him off the team.

1. Kevin Grady (RB) 2005 Class

Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

I don't know how fair it is to have Grady in this top spot, but for now, I'm listing him as the No. 1 bust.

Grady was a consensus 5-star running back out of high school. He was absolutely huge, weighing 230 pounds, but figured to fit great into a pro-style, grind-it-out offense.

Grady is one of the few true busts that actually stuck around his entire career.

He actually looked good his freshman season, backing up Mike Hart, but there weren't too many bright spots after that.

He was eventually moved to fullback and saw his playing time decrease even more once Rich Rodriguez took over.

A misdemeanor drunk driving offense also saw him begin the 2008 season suspended from the team, but he was eventually reinstated.