Michigan Vaults to No. 1 in 2014 Recruiting Class Rankings for ESPN

It's great to be a Michigan Wolverine, especially if you've scoped out the latest class recruiting rankings released by ESPN.

At least for now, the Wolverines are indeed "the leaders and the best" in the world of college football recruiting—according to ESPN.

Tom VanHaaren of ESPN tweeted out the link to the newest rankings, with Michigan all alone on top:

The Wolverines' class was bolstered by the addition of Lawrence Marshall, 4-star defensive end and ESPN 150 recruit, and his presence alone in the class was enough to propel Michigan over Florida and Texas for the No. 1 spot in the latest edition of the rankings.

Eight of Michigan's nine commitments are ESPN 150 recruits. 

Looking ahead, there's a good chance that Brady Hoke and company will remain on top of these rankings for at least a little while longer. Jabrill Peppers, the No. 1 cornerback recruit in the nation according to ESPN, is looking to make his decision on May 26, per VanHaaren, and Michigan would seem to be the favorite for his commitment.

Michigan is the top team on Peppers' 247Sports interest list, and all 20-of-21 experts who predicted in the 247Sports Crystal Ball feature for Peppers picked Michigan. 

A commitment from Peppers could really open the recruiting floodgates at Michigan, as the Wolverines are high on the interest list of other notable recruits such as 5-star defensive ends Da'Shawn Hand (top two) and Malik McDowell (leader), as well as 4-star offensive tackle Alex Bars (top two). 

It's worth noting that at the moment of writing this, the 247Sports Composite Team Rankings rank Michigan at No. 5, and both Rivals.com and Scout.com rank Michigan at No. 7.

Keep in mind that it's not these rankings that matter though, but the ones that come out on national signing day. That said, nobody's going to dispute how important a hot start on the recruiting trail is, so this is great news for Michigan.

Will Michigan finish with the No. 1 recruiting class in the 2014 cycle? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.