Michigan Football Recruiting: How Wolverines Will Survive Loss of RB Ty Isaac

Michigan's vaunted recruiting class took a hit on Tuesday when superstar RB Ty Isaac, long thought to be a future Wolverine, committed to USC instead. Isaac is the top tailback on the Rivals.com and Scout.com recruiting boards, so make no mistake: He would have been a centerpiece of this already-great recruiting class, and his verbal to USC hurts.

That said, this isn't doom for the Wolverines by any stretch, so heed not any overreactions. Here's why Michigan's still probably in good shape.

Deveon Smith is still in the fold 

Michigan does already have a borderline 4-star tailback in its recruiting class in Deveon Smith. Smith is well suited physically for the rigors of the Big Ten, and while he doesn't have world-class speed, well, neither did most of the tailbacks who have thrived in Ann Arbor, up to and including current workhorse Fitz Toussaint.

The depth is still there in the meantime 

Toussaint is coming into his junior season, which means that barring injury, Michigan's essentially set at tailback through 2013.

Backup Thomas Rawls shined at the spring game; he's only a sophomore. Justice Hayes, a 4-star tailback in the 2011 class, redshirted last year. He's got skill too.

That makes three talented tailbacks Michigan can count on for at least the next two years with more help en route in Smith.

If anything, this is good news for Derrick Green 

Michigan cast out plenty of lines looking for top tailback talent in this recruiting class, and one recruit that has warmed to Michigan's advances is top-10 RB Derrick Green from Virginia, who's big (6'0", 215 pounds) and fast (fake 4.4 speed).

Green has offers from basically everybody, but he's high on Michigan and Michigan's high on him. Expect a big push from Michigan's coaches here as the Wolverines try to shore up their tailback depth for the foreseeable future.

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