As official visits commence this upcoming weekend, let’s take a look at the five most important recruits officially visiting Michigan this summer.
Michigan
Michigan voters express shock, sorrow for the country over Trump assassination attempt
Voters in Michigan said they were worried about the country’s political climate as they reacted Saturday evening to news of a reported assassination attempt on former president Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania.
Elaine Donnelly was at her home in Livonia, watching the Pennsylvania campaign rally on her phone when the shooting occurred. She said she was horrified to witness it, saying she could instantly tell by the sounds that it was gunshots, not firecrackers.
“It’s horrible that there is this level of violence and hate,” said Donnelly, president of the Center for Military Readiness and a former appointee of Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush to presidential commissions on issues dealing with women in the military.
Her and others’ focus on Saturday night was more on the national state of affairs than the November election, which Michigan is expected to play a pivotal role in. They mostly expressed shock and sorrow for the status of American politics, public safety and unity in light of the incident.
Donnelly, a Republican who plans to vote for Trump, said the incident quickly reminded her of the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy. She said she was grateful Trump was all right and that she would have been equally horrified if there had been an attempt on President Joe Biden.
Bryan Vliem, 44, of Grand Rapids said he “knew things would be heated” due to the national political climate and presidential race. “But not that bad.”
Vleim said he found out about the shooting from looking at the social media platform Reddit while eating dinner. He identified himself as politically independent, having voted for both Republicans in the past but more for Democrats lately.
Michael Fracker, a 76-year-old retired teacher in Ionia, was surprised and saddened when he heard about the incident. He’s worried that even after Saturday’s shooting, things won’t calm down any time soon.
“There doesn’t seem to be any middle ground anymore,” said Fracker, who considers himself a Republican. “The pendulum has swung so far both ways that there’s no middle ground. That’s sad. Because our country needs to have some unity again.”
The assassination attempt is a dark moment in the nation’s history, conjuring memories of the assassinations of Kennedy and his brother, Robert Kennedy, as well as the failed attempt on Reagan on March 30, 1981, in Washington, D.C.
That day, would-be assassin John Hinckley Jr. fired six gunshots toward Reagan, wounding him and three others. Reagan was seriously injured but was stabilized at nearby George Washington University Hospital. Hinckley reportedly had no political motivation for the attack but was instead trying to impress actress Jodie Foster.
That attempt and Saturday’s incident in Butler, Pennsylvania, are just two of many attempts to kill U.S. presidents.
Theodore Roosevelt, in one instance, was wounded by a gunman while campaigning for a third presidential term in 1912, some three years after he left office. More recently, then-President George W. Bush survived an assassination attempt on May 10, 2005, when an assailant hurled a grenade toward his podium during a speech in the eastern European country Georgia. The assailant pulled the pin on the grenade, but it did not detonate.
Other plots to assassinate presidents have failed after detection by security personnel. Four U.S. presidents — Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield, William McKinley and Kennedy — have been killed all while in office and all as a result of gunshot wounds.
Herb Saulnier, a 49-year-old truck driver from the Shiawassee County community of Henderson, considers himself an independent but attended one of Trump’s rallies during his 2020 campaign.
He was saddened by the news out of Pennsylvania but didn’t believe that would influence his participation in future campaign events for one side or the other.
“It’s not going to distract me from going there,” Saulnier said. “You never know who’s going to be in any crowd — political event, football game, concert. You just don’t know.”
Debbie Whitcher-Campbell, a 54-year-old from Livonia, had worked a long shift before running to a graduation party and didn’t hear the news until later Saturday night.
Whitcher-Campbell considers herself a Republican but said political rallies like the one in Pennsylvania Saturday aren’t appealing. Still, she said, individuals should be able to attend a political event in the U.S. without fear of violence.
“You should be able to freely voice your opinion without any fear,” she said. “I mean, what the hell is going on? This is the message we’re giving to our children that this is acceptable.”
Michael Langan was enjoying a show at Planet Ant Theater in Hamtramck when he saw the footage of Saturday’s shooting. He said it wasn’t a shock, and he’s fearful of what’s to come.
“It’s really unfortunate that happened, and it’s even worse to know one of his fans died,” said Langan, 38, of Detroit.
Sitting at the bar, Langan said he didn’t find the violence hard to believe.
“I’m surprised it doesn’t happen more often. I don’t think anyone in public office should have their life put in jeopardy, but when you foster that negativity and anger into a pile with a match, you’re gonna catch a flame,” said Langan from Detroit.
“I think he will use it as a crutch for election points, and anyone would, to be fair,” he said about Trump. “I’m actually afraid about how his people will seek retribution for this. And it’s unfortunate that a fan of his was killed. I’m curious who did it and why, but it doesn’t change what happened.”
Emma Armstrong, 19, of Novi was at the gym when a friend told her that Trump was shot.
“I was shocked because you don’t think that that would actually happen,” Armstrong said. She characterized the assassination attempt on Trump as a situation similar to when former President John F. Kennedy was shot.
“It’s crazy,” Armstrong said. “I hope he’s OK. I hope he recovers. I hope it doesn’t affect the election.”
But Armstrong added that she thinks “it definitely will have an impact.”
“He’s probably gonna get some sympathy votes,” Armstrong said. “And depending on who shot him, I think that’s going to impact too. I think that stuff is gonna come up in the next few days.”
Jennifer O’Connell, 42, of Calumet, said she unfortunately wasn’t all that surprised to get a call from her mother with the news of what happened in Butler.
“They tried pretty much everything else to stop him from running, and none of it worked. He’s just becoming more and more popular,” said O’Connell, who plans on voting for Trump.
“I am a Trump supporter, but I’m one of those that can see both sides of it,” she added. “I don’t care if you’re left or right. This is just wrong. You should never attempt to try to take somebody’s life, period. I don’t care how much you disagree with them.”
“It’s sickening. And this is not America. This is not who we are.”
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As temperatures rise in Michigan each summer, so to do the chances of harmful algal blooms (HABs) developing in our lakes, causing a risk to both ecosystems and public health.
HABs are formed wherever there is rapid growth of cyanobacteria, or blue-green algae, which are naturally found in lakes, rivers and ponds. Some cyanobacteria found in blooms contain toxins that can be harmful to people and animals, and often present as blue-green, yellow or brown streaks, foam, or thick paint-like scums on the water surface, according to the Michigan Departments of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE)
To help keep track of these harmful algal blooms across the state, EGLE has teamed up with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) to update its online reporting form to include harmful algal blooms. Now the public can easily report suspected HABs to the state by filling out the form at Michigan.gov/HABs. Individuals can also make a report by calling EGLE’s Environmental Assistance Center at 800-662-9278.
“This new online form is an easy and efficient way for Michiganders to help monitor and safeguard our water resources,” said Jerrod Sanders, director of Water Resources Division at EGLE, in a news release. “This tool improves efficiency and helps us respond to potential risks more effectively.”
It will also allow EGLE and MDHHS staff to better understand how HABs develop, and creates the potential to send out public notifications about what areas to avoid as a way of keeping people and pets safe when they’re detected.
Breathing in or swallowing water with HAB toxins can cause asthma-like symptoms, difficulty breathing, stomach pain, vomiting, diarrhea, runny eyes and nose, weakness, headaches or dizziness. Skin contact can also cause rashes, blisters or hives.
“If you had contact with or swallowed water with a suspected HAB and feel sick, call your health care provider or seek medical attention as soon as possible,” said Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, chief medical executive.
Locations of HAB reports verified by EGLE and results of cyanotoxin testing will be displayed on the Michigan Harmful Algal Bloom Reports Map for the public to review.
For more information on health effects, causes and reports on the occurrence of HABs in Michigan lakes, visit Michigan.gov/HABs.
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KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Beach season is here, and Lake Michigan is the most popular of the Great Lakes for swimming. However, it can also be the most dangerous.
According to the Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project, 81 people drowned in the Great Lakes in 2025. 36 of those drownings, or almost half, happened in Lake Michigan.
“Even an Olympic swimmer is not going to swim against the rip current,” Pat Whelan, Plainwell district supervisor for the Michigan DNR Parks and Recreation Division, said.
What makes a rip current so dangerous is the natural instinct to try and swim back to shore. However, it is not the way to escape.
“It’s a term called ‘flip, float, and follow,’ where you flip on your back so you can breathe,” Whelan said. “Follow that, float on the top of that current and follow it out into the lake until you can feel it release you. Then you’re going to swim parallel to the shore, and then the waves themselves will help push you back into the shore.”
It’s been more than 20 years since Andy Fox, 17, drowned in a rip current at Grand Haven State Park, but the pain is still fresh for his mother, Vicki Cech, who rarely goes to the beach.
“When I have company in, sometimes I’ll walk out on the pier, but as a rule I just don’t go there anymore,” Cech said. “Not that beach, because that one does have a lot of sad memories for me.”
Pictured is Andy Fox, 17, in this undated photo. Fox drowned in a rip current at Grand Haven State Park in 2006. (Cech/WWMT)
Compared to other Lake Michigan beaches, Grand Haven State Park has added safety features as conditions are known to change rapidly.
Grand Haven uses the color warning system, but at other beaches, they have flags.
At Grand Haven State Park, however, there is an electronic lighting system on an orange tower. When the life ring on that tower is pulled, Ottawa County dispatch is alerted right away.
Blue towers on the beach are equipped with cameras, providing a video feed of what is happening where the life ring was pulled.
Electric lights instead of flags are used to alert people of swimming conditions at Grand Haven State Park.
“They can push the bottom and actually talk back and forth with central dispatch,” Whelan said.
Alongside these additions, Cech would like to see lifeguards on Grand Haven’s beaches.
“I know there’s all kinds of different things we have down there. Life rings closer to the water and everything like that,” Cech said. “But I’d say the only thing which I see South Haven has finally gotten lifeguards, the ultimate would be lifeguards.”
Michigan got rid of lifeguards at state parks in the 1990’s. The DNR said it was a combination of cost and liability concerns.
South Haven, however, welcomed lifeguards back to the city’s beaches for the first time in 25 years on Monday.
Those lifeguards do not yet have chairs and towers yet, but they will be posted between each flag section, with green, yellow and red colors marking that day’s swimming conditions.
More information about the Great Lakes Surf Rescue Project can be found online.
Five-star CB Joshua Dobson, June 12
247Sports “only” has Dobson ranked 43rd nationally. Meanwhile, their composite says he is the 11th-best player in the entire class. Regardless of what the analysts think of the versatile Dobson, he would be a fantastic get for the Wolverines.
Four-stars Tavares Harrington and Darius Johnson, along with three-star Charles Woodson Jr. and three-star Maxwell Miles form an excellent foundation for the class’s secondary. Dobson would not only be the cherry on top, but the hot fudge, sprinkles and peanuts, too.
Here is what he said about Michigan, according to Rivals’ Keegan Pope ($):
“Man, they’re definitely up there. Not a lot of people talk about them in my recruitment, which I don’t know why, but Michigan is strong.”
Four-star WR Dakota Guerrant, June 19
We all know about Guerrant and the Wolverines’ interest in the Harper Woods, Michigan, product. Landing four-star Quentin Burrell does ease some of the pressure of adding a potentially elite playmaker on the perimeter, especially with Oregon playing a significant role in Guerrant’s recruitment, too.
Those Ducks appear to be a serious obstacle. Rivals’ Steve Wiltfong recently talked about Guerrant’s potential pairing with Oregon on “The Wiltfong Whiparound” and how he loves their offense.
Perhaps that marriage is set in stone and Michigan is simply entertaining him on the visit. Perhaps Whittingham and Ron Bellamy can sway the in-stater to stay home.
Three-star edge rusher Ifeanyi Emedobi, June 19
The Wolverines are trending up for the Fort Wayne, Indiana edge rusher. Emedobi may seem a bit redundant with Recarder Kitchen and Jayce Brewer already preparing to don the maize and blue. However, perhaps there are plans for either of the 6-foot-6 Kitchen or 6-foot-5 Brewer to play a more complete defensive lineman role, rather than pure edge work, which feels more likely for someone of Emedobi’s stature (6-foot-1.5, 215 pounds).
Emedobi also only recently started playing football, so who knows where he ends up at the collegiate level. Considering his final four includes Penn State, Indiana and Minnesota, let’s hope Michigan — not the conference foes — gets to solve that question.
Three-star WR Charles Britton III, June 19
Another in-state wide receiver, Britton III, aka “Tre,” hails from Belleville but is drawing heavy interest from Missouri, according to Rivals.
Here is what he had to say about Michigan, via Rivals’ Allen Trieu ($):
“Really, just like being so close to home,” Britton said. “I get to visit them whenever I want really, so I can just get to see how things are going with them. They could take up with me whenever they want too. They’re in my face more, I’d say, because they’re right down the street, so I get to go to them, they get to go to me as many times as possible. So I’m just putting in new relationships and building them fast. It really is — they’re Michigan.”
The official visit should help determine if this is simply love for the hometown school or a legitimate interest in being a Wolverine.
Four-star IOL Lincoln Mageo, June 5
Mageo, from Oceanside, California, may not be regarded as a blue chip prospect, but this is a program that does not necessarily need the most highly touted trenchmen to develop stars. Mageo recently talked to Maize n Brew and praised offensive line coach Jim Harding.
“I loved watching coach Harding break down technique during indy period so that everyone could understand,” Mageo said. “That is the type of coaching that I’m looking for. A coach who takes time to break down technique and focuses on development.
Four-star Jakari Lipsey, and three-stars Sidney Rouleau and Louis Esposito make up the offensive line group in this cycle so far.
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