Sibling legacy linebacker Ndi Etta commits to Michigan

Michigan landed the likely final commitment of its 2026 recruiting class Sunday afternoon when Ndi Etta officially announced his pledge to the Wolverines. The sibling legacy linebacker prospect from Argyle (Texas) Liberty Christian visited the program this weekend. 

Etta is the younger brother of U-M defensive lineman Enow Etta, and he was the only recruit to earn an offer from the program during its coaching search. The Wolverines continued to prioritize him, visited him earlier this month and brought him in for an OV the weekend before national signing day. 

Ndi is very familiar with the program thanks to his older brother, so the offer meant a lot to him. 

“Obviously, I love Michigan, but now I just think it boosts even more,” Ndi said shortly after receiving the scholarship. 

Defensive line coach Lou Esposito is his primary recruiter. The Wolverines are recruiting the 6-1, 215-pound sibling legacy recruit to play outside linebacker/defensive end. He recorded 68 total tackles, 17 stops for loss and 10.5 sacks as a senior this fall with Liberty Christian and racked up a handful of Group of Five offers before U-M entered the mix in December.

Army was the other team in contention for the class of 2026 prospect when Michigan joined his recruitment. Toledo, Miami (Ohio) and UTEP also extended scholarships.

He’s the fourth linebacker pledge of the cycle, joining Kaden Catchings, Markel Dabney and Aden Reeder. Ndi is unranked by Rivals at this time. 

Michigan now holds 24 commits in its 2026 recruiting class — Etta, Charlotte (N.C.) Providence Day kicker Jacob Baggett, three-star Anaheim (Calif.) Western safety Ernest Nunley, five-star Mineral (Va.) Louisa County running back Savion Hiter, five-star Washington (D.C.) Gonzaga EDGE Carter Meadows, Top 100 Honolulu (Hawaii) Kamehameha offensive tackle Malakai Lee, Rivals300 St. Louis (Mo.) DeSmet defensive lineman Titan Davis, Rivals300 Needham (Mass.) St. Sebastian’s offensive lineman Marky Walbridge, Rivals300 Chesapeake (Va.) Oscar Smith wide receiver Travis Johnson, Rivals300 Waco (Texas) Connally cornerback Jamarion Vincent, Rivals300 Liberty Hill (Texas) High defensive lineman Alister Vallejo, four-star Chicago (Ill.) Simeon EDGE McHale Blade, three-star Washington (D.C.) St. John’s EDGE Tariq Boney, three-star Denver (Colo.) Mullen tight end Mason Bonner, three-star Dallas (Texas) Parish Episcopal wide receiver Jaylen Pile, three-star Richmond (Va.) Huguenot linebacker Markel Dabney, three-star Columbus (Ohio) St. Francis DeSales running back Jonathan Brown, three-star Wilmette (Ill.) Loyola Academy offensive lineman Tommy Fraumann, three-star Cincinnati (Ohio) St. Xavier linebacker Aden Reeder, three-star Jackson (Miss.) Hartfield Academy linebacker Kaden Catchings, three-star Saline (Mich.) High quarterback Tommy Carr, three-star Newberry Park (Calif.) High quarterback Brady Smigiel and  three-star Washington (D.C.) St. John’s offensive lineman Adrian Hamilton.