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Wolverine TV: Breaking down new Michigan DL commit Alister Vallejo

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Alister Vallejo

Michigan scored an important recruiting win on Tuesday night when it landed a commitment from three-star Liberty Hill (Texas) High defensive lineman Alister Vallejo.

The Wolverine’s EJ Holland shares his full thoughts on Vallejo in the video at the end of this story.

Vallejo Recruitment

Michigan extended an offer to Vallejo during his first-ever visit to Michigan this spring. The Wolverines made him a top priority over the last several months and quickly ascended as major contenders.

Vallejo named Michigan a finalist along with Notre Dame and Kansas going into the summer.

Notre Dame hosted Vallejo for a visit earlier this month and seemed to have plenty of buzz leading up to his decision. However, Michigan defensive line coach Lou Esposito never stopped working and was able to help U-M beat out the Irish.

Here is what Holland had to say about Vallejo.

“This was another big Michigan recruiting win over the Irish,” Holland said. “Michigan beat out Notre Dame for On300 EDGE McHale Blade and now did the same with Vallejo. You have to give a lot of credit to Michigan defensive line coach Lou Esposito, who did a phenomenal job in this recruitment. Esposito identified Vallejo fairly and built a really strong relationship with him. Esposito never stopped pushing and won him over. In Vallejo, Michigan is getting an undervalued prospect who projects as a three-technique. He’s perfect for that Mason Graham role.”

Vallejo will now make his official visit to Michigan on June 20.

At 6-foot-3, 310 pounds, Vallejo is ranked as the No. 51 defensive lineman and No. 460 overall prospect nationally, per the On3 Industry Ranking. He is also ranked as the No. 62 overall recruit in the state of Texas this cycle.

Michigan now nine commits in its 2026 recruiting class — Vallejo, Top 100 Billings (Mont.) West tight end Matt Ludwig, Top 100 Newberry Park (Calif.) High quarterback Brady Smigiel, On300 Jacksonville (Fla.) Mandarin cornerback Brody Jennings, On300 Chicago (Ill.) Simeon EDGE McHale Blade, three-star Cartersville (Ga.) Cass offensive lineman Bear McWhorter, three-star Washington (D.C.) St. John’s EDGE Tariq Boney, three-star Denver (Colo.) Mullen tight end Mason Bonner and three-star Dallas (Texas) Parish Episcopal wide receiver Jaylen Pile.

Michigan entered the day with the No. 15 ranked 2026 recruiting class nationally, per the On3 Industry team recruiting rankings. Michigan is also ranked No. 5 in the Big Ten. USC currently has the top class in the conference.

Michigan also has the No. 10 ranked transfer portal class this cycle, per the On3 transfer portal index.

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