Michigan Football: Top 5 Misses in the 2012 Recruiting Class

Michigan obviously had a great 2012 class, but there were a few prospects they didn't get that they would have liked to.

Now that Alex Kozan has officially signed with Auburn, it looks like Michigan's 2012 class is officially over with, as there shouldn't be anymore additions or subtractions.

Here's a look at the top five guys Michigan had a shot at (at one point or another), ranked in order of talent.

5. Chris Muller (Boyertown, Pennsylvania)

Chris Muller didn't come into the picture for Michigan until very late in the recruiting process.

When Greg Schiano left Rutgers, rumors immediately began to speculate that some of their top recruits may look elsewhere, and Muller's name was one of the first that came up.

For a while, there seemed to be interest between Muller and Michigan, but when Rutgers decided to hire their offensive line coach, Kyle Flood, Muller decided to stay with the Knights.

Looking back, not getting Muller really doesn't mean anything to Michigan.

The Wolverines currently have the best offensive line class in the country for 2013, and if they would have gotten Muller, this 2013 group probably wouldn't be shaping up the way it is.

Who They Signed With: Rutgers

4. Jordan Payton (Westlake Village, California)

Jordan Payton's recruitment can be categorized as somewhat of a joke.

It started out normal, as the star receiver from California was a long-time USC commit.

However, he decided to decommit and look elsewhere. Michigan, Notre Dame and California seemed to be his new favorites.

It looked, at one point late in the process, as if he was ready to commit to Michigan, but decided to hold off.

He then committed to California, and that looked to be the end of the process. However, Payton wasn't committed to Cal for long, as he then decommitted from the Bears and pledged to Washington.

However, on National Signing Day, he made another switch, signing with UCLA, finally ending the process.

Seeing as how badly Michigan needs big-time receivers, they could have used Payton.

Who They Signed With: UCLA

3. Joshua Garnett (Puyallup, Washington)

Josh Garnett was, by far, the one that hurt the most.

He was simply a big-time player, and even though he was from Washington, there seemed to be a good chance that he would end up at Michigan.

It came down to Stanford and Michigan, and Garnett did a good job of keeping things quiet, as nobody had any idea which way he was leaning.

Even at the press conference, nobody knew which school he was going to pick until he finally made his announcement.

The sting of losing out on Garnett is quickly fading though, as the 2013 offensive line group is starting to take shape.

Still, it would have been nice to land Garnett, as he will likely be remembered as "the one that got away."

Who They Signed With: Stanford

2. Gunner Kiel (Columbus, Indiana)

If Jordan Payton's recruitment was a joke, then Gunner Kiel's wasn't far off.

Michigan seemed to be one of the top schools early in the process, but Kiel decided to commit to Indiana, where his brother, Dusty, played.

However, that didn't last too long, as he decided to decommit and look elsewhere. Michigan's name immediately popped back up, but didn't seem to be as real of a contender this time.

The Wolverines already had a commitment from Shane Morris, and really didn't need another top quarterback.

Kiel's recruitment only got crazier, as he decided to commit to LSU, which looked to be the end of the process, but then signed with Notre Dame.

Losing out on Kiel really wasn't too big of a deal for Michigan.

Who They Signed With: Notre Dame

1. Zach Banner (Lakewood, Washington)

Michigan looked to be a realistic contender early in the process for Zach Banner.

However, they began to fade, as it became clear that Banner probably wasn't going to play far from the West Coast.

Oklahoma and USC became his top schools, and Michigan was all but eliminated.

Losing out on Banner doesn't hurt a whole lot though, because of the offensive line talent in the 2013 group.

Who They Signed With: USC