Hankins done with UM?

Johnathan Hankins (3* DT) could decide his collegiate decision as soon as this Thursday, but his plans may not include Michigan. Whilst he insisted Michigan is not completely out of the running, he did say that Ohio State and Florida are the frontrunners. 

Michigan and Alabama are in the trailing pack, and it looks like Rich Rod will have to use his snake oil to lure the talented prospect to Ann Arbor. Due to the shock announcement of Urban Meyer's resignation/leave of absence at Florida, I would put Ohio State as the clear favorite here. 

Hankins' family still remain Michigan fans, and they might try to push the Wolverines effort, but some kind of in home talk is needed to persuade Hankins to join UM.

Slow days

No real news on the recruiting front for Michigan concerning the class of 2010, but you can check out an article about 2011 Ohio Safety Ron Tanner, here. Unless there is some major news soon, there will be no new posts until the new year.

Apart from that, Happy Holidays!

Back in play

Earlier this year a lot of Wolverine fans were left scratching their heads when highly recruited prospect Torrian Wilson committed to Stanford. Wilson had previously named Michigan his favorite, making the announcement was a huge shock to most.

All that doesn't matter now as the OG has withdrawn his commitment to the Cardinals. Michigan, Tennessee and South Florida will now fight it out for the 3 (should be 4) star prospect. A couple of weeks ago there were rumors that Wilson would visit Michigan in January, but de-committing before this was unexpected. 

Still, this is a player that Rich Rod would definitely take in this class. Wilson is an under armor all American, so watch out for him in that game coming shortly!

Josh Furman Goes Blue!

Four star S/LB prospect Josh Furman last night announced his commitment to Michigan over Virginia Tech, roughly one month after he told both schools of the decision. Furman made the move public in front of the crowd at the Maryland Crab Bowl, becoming the 25th member of the class of 2010 (if you include Adrian Witty).

As a player, he has great speed and can easily beat offensive linemen in the pass rush, he runs a around a 4.36 forty yard dash. However he will need to bulk up a bit to play outside linebacker in college, but he says he's looking forward to working with strength and conditioning coach Mike Barwis, who was a factor in his decision.

Overall Wolverine fans should be very happy with this news, Furman has great potential and could be an impact player early on. 

Note: If you haven't seen it already, check out vote on the right hand side of the screen!

Donovan Warren to enter NFL Draft

Michigan's top cornerback, Donovan Warren, has declared he will enter the NFL draft. The junior registered 4 INT's and 66 tackles this season, and was a bright spot in an otherwise poor defensive secondary. 

Warren's father broke the news to GoBlueWolverine just recently, saying that Warren had informed coach Rod earlier this morning.

It's obviously bad news for the Wolverines, but it definitely opens the door for Cullen Christian and J.T Turner, who will be looking to earn starting roles next fall. It will be interesting to see if this affects the Boubacar Cissoko situation.

Crab Bowl Delayed

kellwood said... 

Do you know with any certainty if the Crab Bowl is delayed do to weather? I had seen posts to that effect on the two main Michigan message boards?

The Maryland Crab bowl's official website says that the bowl game has been delayed until Monday, which means Josh Furman's college announcement will probably be delayed as well.

Oklahoma it is

Unfortunately for Michigan, both Tony Jefferson and Kenny Stills have committed to the Oklahoma Sooners. Both had UM in their final groups, but it wasn't to be.

Attention now turns to Josh Furman's announcement later today at the Maryland Crab Bowl.

Cissoko working hard

Michigan CB Boubacar Cissoko was kicked off the team earlier this year for violating team rules, but it appears now there might be a way back for the talented sophomore. I say talented...well Cissoko had a poor start to 2009, especially against Notre Dame, but they did have one of the top receiving groups in the country.

Cissoko, a former 5 star recruit is working hard on the academic side of things to get back on the team, and earn back his place as starting corner. If Donovan Warren leaves for the NFL, it would be great to get an experienced corner back on the team, otherwise Troy Woolfolk might be moved back to corner...again.

Check out this article from the Detroit News about it here.

Reminder #2

Look out for the Kenny Stills/Tony Jefferson announcement tomorrow at around 9pm pacific? Read an article today about Stills being down to just Oklahoma and Florida, I don't think this is necessarily true, however I'll be stunned if he chooses Michigan.

Jefferson is a slightly more hopeful matter, he got the in-home visit from Rich Rod, which must count for a lot, plus he really enjoyed his official to Ann Arbor this fall. 

Prediction: My heart says Jefferson to Michigan....my head says both are going to Oklahoma!

Ash Commits!

LoverofTroy said...

I just got news Ash commited to Michigan. Does it affect on Hankins?

I've just got back in, its 2am GMT, and read the comment above.  To my delight Richard Ash has committed to Michigan, making him the 24th commit for the 2010 class (including Adrian Witty). Ash is a three star recruit on scout.com, but a 4 star on rivals, which is promising. The likes of LSU and USC have also offered the talented youngster, but the Michigan-Pahokee pipeline keeps on going, which is vital for the Maize and Blue!

Back to the question posted, how does this affect Johnathan Hankins? Probably negatively. By taking Ash, Michigan essentially fill the need at DT for this years class, assuming they consider Terry Talbott a DT. If Furman commits to UM on Saturday, spaces in this years class will be sparse, and Hankins will probably end up at Ohio State. Unless most/all the big announcements concerning Michigan go badly (Furman/Jefferson/Stills etc), there probably won't be room for a 3rd DT in the class. 

Would Rich Rod take a commitment from Hankins or Jatashun Beachum now? Probably not. What about Mike Thornton? Or Jibreel Black? There are some talented DT's out there, but with Michigan leaning towards a 3-4 scheme on defense, perhaps defensive backs are a greater priority, especially since Will Campbell will be there for three more years. 

Reminder

Just a quick reminder to look out for the Josh Furman announcement this Saturday. Furman will choose between Michigan and Virginia Tech at the Maryland Crab Bowl, however due to a knee injury, he won't be playing in the game.

This is a real 50/50 call, neither school has an apparent lead for the talented athlete, but he would be a great edition to both classes.

John Hankins Update

The list of schools for Hankins is as follows: Ohio State, Michigan, Florida and Alabama, in that order. He was meant to announce his choice this week, but has delayed it. If he did announce this week, it would have been to Ohio State, but a Rich Rodriguez home visit has really shaken things up.

Hankins' family are all pro-Michigan too, as they want to be able to watch him play next year. He will host Florida and Alabama coaches this week, (possibly Nick Saban! Which is a testament to how good Hankins is), and a decision will likely come before Christmas. 

One big question: If Richard Ash commits to Michigan before Hankins, does that mean he's heading to Ohio State? I know Michigan would probably take two DT's, especially since Terry Talbot has been talking about playing at DE. It will be interesting to see it all unfold, and don't forget about Jatashun Beachum, who I think probably has the best potential of all three recruits.

Tony Jefferson Update!

ESPN's #1 Athlete Tony Jefferson helped his team to a CIF title (regional title?), although he had to watch the final drive on the sidelines due to an injury. Scout.com caught up with Jefferson after the game, and he confirmed Oklahoma, Michigan and USC are the schools left in his recruitment.

The injury is a sprained AC joint, which could be quite serious, but Jefferson seemed positive he'd make the Army AA game in January. Also, despite some sources announcing Oklahoma and USC as the frontrunner's in Jefferson's recruitment, Brandon Huffman (Scout.com/West Regional Recruiting Manager) now seems to think it will come down to Oklahoma and Michigan. 

D-Line Updates

- I'll start with the bad news. Johnathan Hankins has put Ohio State at the top of his list after the official visit to Columbus last weekend. The three star DT from Michigan will make his decision fairly soon, and the Buckeyes will now be favored, but the distance factor might just keep UM in it.

- In other news, Richard Ash is rumored to be on the verge of taking back his commitment to West Virginia. If this were to happen, Michigan would likely be the school to take Ash, a three star DT from Pahokee, FL.

- Arguably the top DT left on Michigan's board is Georgia prospect, Michael Thornton, who could be looking at a Jan 15th visit to UM.

Slow days

The recruiting front has been a bit of a wasteland for the last few days, and so will still blog for a while. My laptop currently has 30 mins of battery left, and I have no electricity to power it up due to my house being flooded? Bad times! 

Anyways, sit tight, the blog will be back as soon as possible!

Michigan back in it?

The list of potential DT's for Michigan just keeps growing. Cincinnati commit Jibreel Black has all but withdrawn his commitment from the bearcats after head coach Chip Kelly left for Notre Dame. Michigan was one of the schools interested in Black earlier this year, and now it seems like he will visit UM, along with MSU and Indiana.

He'll wait until the new coach is announced at Cincinnati, but he gave the impression that if a completely new coaching staff was brought in, he wouldn't be a bearcat. 

Black is the #21 DT in the nation and a four star prospect according to scout.com, he was previously committed to Indiana before choosing Cincinnati.

Jefferson-Stills Update

Tony Jefferson and Kenny Stills have decided to announce their collegiate choices together on December 18th, but according to scout.com, neither will choose Michigan. Both players were at the Michigan-Ohio State game, and both came away with positive reactions to it.

Stills is apparently to choose between Oklahoma and Florida, whilst Jefferson likes Oklahoma and USC. If this is the case, I think they will both pick Oklahoma, as they are rumored to be a package deal.

Although these prospects were both longshots for Michigan, I find it hard to believe both have ruled out UM. There will be a press conference with video of the event, and if they do the whole "hats" thing, I wouldn't be surprised to see a Michigan hat up there, even if they don't choose it.

Coaches on the move

The Michigan coaches are out on house visits this week, some important ones to say the least. Coach Rodriguez will be in Ohio checking in on some current commitments tomorrow, whilst Tony Dews (WR coach) will be in California visiting Sean Parker. Also Rod Smith (QB coach) will be in Florida with DT prospect Richard Ash.

Later on in the week Michigan are expected to meet with Tony Jefferson, Kenny Stills and Josh Furman, but I'm not 100% sure which coaches are going where, although I'm hoping Rich Rod makes it out to California.

Monday's News

Two main things for today. Firstly OG Torrian Wilson has confirmed that he will take an official visit to Michigan, despite committing to Stanford earlier this year. The visit will more than likely be on January 22nd. Tennessee will also get a visit.

The second piece of news has been a rumor for a week or so now, but it was confirmed to me today. Ohio safety Latwan Anderson will visit Michigan officially sometime in December. This is great news for Michigan, who would definitely make room for Anderson in the class. He's one of the top safeties in the country, and could play early at UM, which will be a factor in his recruitment. 

Best visit so far

"It was a good visit, I would call it my best visit so far," Parker said. Californian safety prospect Sean Parker took his official to UM last weekend, and Michigan is sure to be in the mix to sign the talented recruit on signing day.

ESPN caught up with Parker to talk about the visit, you can read the article here.

Johnathan Hankins update

Johnathan Hankins made the short trip to Michigan this weekend for his official visit, and came away with a lot to think about. Hankins will visit Ohio State this weekend before decided later this month.

Hankins was hosted by long time friend Thomas Gordon, but he also got to hang out with Will Campbell and Teric Jones. The three star DT was impressed by the facilities at Michigan, as were his parents.

I think we probably have Hankins right now, largely due to the distance factor. He lives about 20 minutes away from the UM campus, so family and friends can easy come and see games etc. William Campbell told him one thing he couldn't leave was his nieces and nephews, which really hit Hankins. 

Jerald Robinson - Interesting comments

Long time Michigan commit Jerald Robinson took his official visit to Ann Arbor this weekend, he got to talk to current players and commitments, as well as some of the other visitors.

His host was J.T Turner, but he got to speak a bit with Donovan Warren, who told Robinson to work hard straight away, and wished him good luck. Good luck, does that imply Warren won't be there? Some reports say Warren is leaning towards the NFL.

Robinson didn't speak that much with the non-committed visitors, but he said all of them had a good time, and he expects at least one of them (Richard Ash, John Hankins, Sean Parker) to commit, let's hope hes right.

He also mentioned that he speaks quite a bit with Maryland S/LB Josh Furman, and he expects Furman to choose the Wolverines later this month! Robinson is definitely optimistic, "we’re going to get a National Championship. One or more!” Again, lets hope he's right.

Kenny Stills Update

Five Star WR Kenny Stills has put Michigan into his top six schools along with Cal, UCLA, Oklahoma, Florida and Miami. His decision could come as soon as December 11th, due to a local news station wanting to televise the announcement.

Stills was at the Michigan-Ohio State game, and 'loved' the visit, but chances are he will end up elsewhere. He would be a great get for UM, as he would provide a legitimate deep threat for Tate Forcier next season (Stills runs a 4.36 40yd dash).

Commit #23

Michigan has very few scholarship places left for this year's class, so they should go to the better prospects left on the board. On with the news, Ray Vinopal has committed to the University of Michigan.

I find it hard to get excited about this commitment, scout.com rates him as a two-star prospect, and the #144 Safety? ESPN agrees, two stars with a rating of 68. Rivals.com also rates him as two star, which begs the question, why did he get a Michigan offer?

You have to look at what is left on the board for UM, four star players like Tony Grimes, Josh Furman, Sean Parker. Ratings aren't everything, many under the radar recruits go on to have great college/professional careers. I also trust Rich Rodriguez, he's a good recruiter and knows what it takes to fit into his system.

Ray will definitely be playing safety at Michigan, which worries me slightly after reading the ESPN analysis, "Looks more natural at running back than he does in the defensive secondary". 

Enough negativity, lets look at the positives. In reading his past interviews, Ray comes across as a smart football player, which is echoed by his 4.5 GPA. He also has good speed and acceleration, boasting a 4.41 electronically timed 40 yard dash. He may need to add some weight before college, but he has good intensity on the field, makes all the tackles and knows his assignments.

Vinopal's commitment leaves very few places left in class of 2010, it'll be interesting to see how things unfold from here on in.

Under Armor AA game

After writing the last post, I suddenly wondered, who is in the Under Armor All American game? I searched through google and went on ESPN recruiting site etc, couldn't find anything. Twenty minutes later, ESPN put up the entire roster, how strange. 

Anyway, the complete roster for the Black and White team can be found here.

Michigan won't be represented on the White team, unless Mike Thornton suddenly has a big change of heart and goes to UM, unlikely. The only player on the Black team is Devin Gardner, who is one of two quarterbacks on the team with Alabama commit Phillip Sims, I imagine they play one half each?

It's kind of disappointing to only have one player in the game, especially since they had four last year (I Bell, T Lewan, C Roh and Q Washington).

Cullen Christian to play in Army AA game

Recent Michigan commit Cullen Christian has been selected to play in the Army All American game in San Antonio, on January 9th. He'll join fellow Wolverine Will Hagerup on the East team, as they go up against some of the best players in the country.

Cullen may go up against scout.com's #1 receiver Robert Woods, or USC commit Dillion Baxter, who are both on the West team. 

Dec 4th Visitors (Update)

Quick Hitters:

- ND commit Spencer Boyd has apparently canceled his visit to Ann Arbor after speaking at length with Notre Dame, this is no big loss to Michigan. 

- The good news is that Sean Parker will be on campus this weekend looking at the Wolverines, Parker is rated as the #6 safety in the nation by scout.com. 

- Johnathan Hankins is still scheduled to be there this weekend also

- Michigan commits will be there in numbers to convince the prospects that UM is the place to be! Jeremy Jackson, Terry Talbott, Terrence Talbott, Austin White, Courtney Avery, Christian Pace and Jerald Robinson will be there.

The two big names, Devin Gardner (#1 Dual Threat QB) and Ricardo Miller (good recruiter) will be there as well, which is important.

Soft verbals to visit Ann Arbor

You may have noticed that Richard Ash, a defensive tackle from Florida committed to West Virginia today, but he is far from a solid commitment for the Mountaineers. Ash was a possible visitor for the Michigan-Ohio State game, but he missed his flight. Now it looks like he'll be visiting this weekend instead. Even if he doesn't commit to Michigan soon, it might put more pressure on John Hankins or Jatashun Beachum to pull the trigger.

The other surprise visitor this weekend will be Notre Dame commit Spencer Boyd. He is a three star cornerback from Florida, and although we need DB's, apparently he got burned three times in his recent match-up with WR Kenny Shaw! I don't think Michigan would take him over Tony Grimes.

Note: Michigan is apparently looking at him as an athlete now, if that makes much difference, I think with the talent left on the board, there isn't enough room for Boyd.  

Sam Webb talks to John Hankins

Scout.com's Sam Webb talks to Johnathan Hankins and his father to talk about recruiting, why Michigan offered so late, and what lies ahead for the talented senior.

Check out the full article here.

Upcoming visits

The season may be over, games may be done, but official visits are still happening in Ann Arbor, ones that could shape the recruiting class of 2010.

December 4th: Five current UM commits will visit, including Ricardo Miller, who hopefully will do his own recruiting on Johnathan Hankins, who will take his official visit this weekend. 

Others Upcoming:

- Ray Vinopal, should visit UM in the next few weeks, UM is in a good position for the two star recruit.....yay?

- Sean Parker, will definitely visit Michigan during December, unsure of the exact date at the moment

- Torrian Wilson is also a possible visitor. He committed to Stanford in a hurry earlier this year, things aren't set in stone just yet though

The list of longshots includes the following; TJ Clemmings, David Mackell, Mike Thornton, Tyrone Cornelius, Tobi Okutemi, Lorenzo Waters, Gabe King and Dior Mathis.

Jatashun Beachum Update

Jatashun "Big Tex" Beachum spoke to Sam Webb today about his official visit to Michigan, and where the wolverines stand in his recruitment. There were some rumors that Michigan weren't in the race anymore (see article here), but Big Tex confirmed Michigan is still there. 

He said he doesn't have a leader right now, but he did prefer the Michigan visit to the Arkansas one, which is promising. I think most UM fans were expecting a commitment after the OSU game, including myself, but his mom has told him to take all five officials, since he's never been out of Texas before. 

Distance isn't a factor, which is good to hear, and another advantage for UM is that his coach is very pro-UM right now. 

Sean Parker Update

In the last post I mentioned how the change in coaching staff at Notre Dame might affect Sean Parker's decision, I might have actually been right! Sean caught up with scout.com after his team's latest victory in the playoffs.

He said he will definitely visit Michigan, hopefully in the next few weeks. Oregon, USC, Cal and Washington are the other options, he didn't mention Notre Dame at all. He has already taken an official to ND, so it seems strange not to mention the Irish.

Parker is the ranked as the #6 safety in the nation by scout.com, to get him on campus would be great for Michigan, he's a player RR would definitely make room for.

Charlie Weis fired!

Notre Dame have officially fired Head Coach Charlie Weis today after a 6-6 season with the Irish. Weis had ND's offense clicking all year, but like Michigan, defense was the problem for most of the season.

Anyway, the reason I'm posting this is because a change in Head Coach at a program like Notre Dame has a huge impact on recruiting. Recruits who had built a relationship with Weis now find that worthless, as he'll probably be somewhere in the NFL, rather than at ND. 

The main recruit this involves for Michigan is four star safety Sean Parker, who has ND and UM in his top four schools. He should be visiting Michigan this winter. Parker has stated he will have to get to know the new coaches, "It would have to start all over, because I would have to get to know the coaching staff like I did with the staff they have now."

Michigan offer Hankins

Johnathan Hankins (Detroit, MI) has received an offer from Michigan, but is it too late for UM to secure the 3 star defensive tackle. Hankins already has offers from the likes of Florida and Ohio State and Oklahoma. He visited Florida this weekend, and will soon make the trip to Ohio State.

Hankins is rumored to have been a Michigan fan growing up, but have UM waited too long to offer him. I'm guessing Rich Rod was expecting a commitment from Jatashun Beachum, and since they haven't got that, they are trying to cover all bases by offering Hankins.

One of his coaches has said he'll probably visit Ann Arbor in the next few weeks.

Jefferson decommits, USC and Oklahoma left?

Four star prospect Tony Jefferson has de-committed from UCLA, however Michigan hasn't made the final cut. Jefferson told ESPN that he will decide between USC and Oklahoma. He visited USC this weekend for their game against UCLA.

"The UCLA players really disrespected me before the game," Jefferson said. "When they saw me, they were all cussing at me, telling me to never come around Westwood again and things like that. These were guys that I had hung out with before and it was a lot of the team. I guess I kind of see it since I was committed there and was wearing USC gear before their big game but I still didn't appreciate it."

Jefferson would have been a great get for the Wolverines, he's rated very highly by all recruiting analysts. He visited Michigan for the Ohio State game, and reports from that seemed positive for Michigan.

Update: Scout.com says Jefferson will decide between USC, Oklahoma AND Michigan. This makes more sense, since everyone seemed to think Jefferson was really into UM after the visit. But we'll wait and see, he will announce his decision in December.

Spartanburg falls in semi-final

Spartanburg's Cornelius Jones (Michigan QB commit) has had a storybook run in the playoffs this year, turning in several great performances against some of the top teams in South Carolina. Sadly the run came to an end in the state semi-finals against James Byrnes High School. 

Byrnes is lead by scout.com's #2 overall prospect, Marcus Lattimore. He had 186 yards and four scores on 19 carries (9.7 average). 

Inkster falls at the last hurdle

Inkster High School has lost its state title match-up for the 2nd straight year, this time losing to Lowell 27-6. Inkster QB and Michigan commit Devin Gardner could only manage 9-17 passes and his running game never got started. He ended up with minus 26 yards rushing!

It's unfortunate for Devin, who was looking to avenge last year's loss to East Grand Rapids, but Lowell proved to be strong opponents, which is reflected by their 13-1 record.

Josh Furman Update

Josh Furman caught up with scout.com's Sam Webb this week, and announced that he has already decided on a college for next year. Furman will declare his choice at the December 19th Crab Bowl.

Michigan and Virginia Tech are the only schools left in the race, and Furman has visited both officially. When talking of the chosen school he said location factored into it, and since Furman is from Maryland, Virginia Tech is the closest school, which would lead me to think that he chose the Hokies? But we'll wait and see!

Cullen Christian is a Wolverine!!!!

Everyone expected it for months, but its still a great feeling to know Cullen Christian will be playing for the Maize and Blue next year - and I mean playing, not just sitting on the sidelines.

Scout.com's #3 rated cornerback chose Michigan over offers from Ohio State, UCLA, West Virginia and Pittsburgh amongst others. He's a physical corner, but has good speed and coverage skills.

Rich Rod was the first one to offer him a scholarship, and that probably means a lot to a recruit. Great job to the recruiting team on this one, Michigan was always in the lead but never let up, and they have a great player to show for it.

It turns out Cullen gave a verbal commitment to Michigan back in May, but chose to officially announce it after taking some visits. It's great to have him at Michigan! GO BLUE!

Smith picks UNC

Tight End Alex Smith has chosen to play for North Carolina next year over offers from Michigan, Wisconsin and Kentucky. In a normal year Smith would have been a good addition to UM, but with so few scholarship spaces left, defensive players are the priority.

Smith originally committed to Cincinnati, who are now ranked #5 in the BCS! Why didn't he stay with them??? Oh well, good luck to Alex! 

Decision Day

Long time Michigan lean Cullen Christian will announce his college decision today at 6.30pm at the Comfort Inn, Penn Hills. Cullen is the top DB Michigan has gone for this year, and everyone expects him to be at Michigan next year.  

Ohio TE Alex Smith will also announce his decision today as well, with Michigan said to be the "Wild Card" in the race. Wisconsin, Kentucky and North Carolina are said to be the other options for the four star recruit. 

Smith's main concern with Michigan is the limited use of the Tight End in RR's offense, although Kevin Koger has had a pretty good year at the position. I think we'll definitely get Cullen, but I'll be surprised if Smith chooses UM, I reckon he'll choose....umm...Wisconsin?

Cullen Christian Update

Scout.com's #3 CB Cullen Christian caught up with Sam Webb this week, following his official visit to Michigan on the weekend. Cullen said the visit was his best yet, he loved the atmosphere and got plenty of time with the coaches and other recruits there.

All signs point to him committing to Michigan, I'll be shocked if he ends up elsewhere!

Donovan Warren Update

Michigan's top CB, Junior Donovan Warren is likely to be back for the Maize and Blue next year, giving a huge boost to the Michigan secondary. Warren has been a standout player in a below average defense, picking up four interceptions this season. He is one of the top corners in the Big Ten and could make the conference 1st team.

Warren could enter the NFL draft this year, and would go in the first couple of rounds. When speaking to scout.com, Warren gave the impression he would be back next year, however nothing is decided for good just yet.

If Warren were to come back, the secondary next year would actually look quite promising. Warren and Woolfolk would be two experienced players with lots of speed, and there would be young talent with players like Vlad Emillen, Brandon Smith, J.T Turner and then the recruits from the 2010 class. 

Warren has to do whats best for him and his family though, and being rated so highly by the top draft analysts, no one could blame him for wanting to go to the NFL. However...Brandon Graham was in a similar position last year, he came back for his final year of college and improved his draft stock even further.

Tony Grimes and Clarence Murphy Update

Four Star CB Tony Grimes and three star DE Clarence Murphy officially visited Michigan this weekend, and both came away with Michigan as their favorite school. (Check out an interview with Tony Grimes on MGoBlog here.)

So Michigan leads for the Florida teammates, but there is a catch. They don't want to commit until signing day in February, but that might be too late. Michigan only has around 5 scholarships left in this class, one of which they have reserved for Cullen Christian - I think? So if Michigan picks up a few commitments between now and signing day, which is very likely, then there might not be room for Grimes and Murphy. 

The question is, how badly does Rich Rod want these two players, and will he find room for them no matter what? We'll have to wait until signing day to find out.

Tony Jefferson Update

I honestly can't remember the last time it was this busy in recruiting, I love it!

Tony Jefferson, arguably the top player left on Michigan's board now has the Wolverines well and truly in the mix. Jefferson is a very soft UCLA commit, and he will take two more visits this fall.

He said the atmosphere was crazy in Ann Arbor and at one time, he did feel like committing, but he won't make his decision until mid December. Tate Forcier was his host for the trip, which could have been good since they are both from San Diego, although you would imagine Tate was in a pretty bad mood after the game! 

Jefferson will visit UCLA again and maybe one more school before deciding.

Note: The news will be flowing today, so scroll down, you might have missed a post!

Sunday's News

The regular season is over, and since there is no bowl game for Michigan, the focus now switches to recruiting...which is great for me! Anyway, on with the news.

- Inkster high school has advanced to the division 2 state championship game after a 12-3 victory yesterday. Inkster is lead by UM commit Devin Gardner, who rushed for a 12 yard TD to secure the victory in the 4th quarter. #

- On the subject of Devin, he obviously couldn't be in Ann Arbor on Saturday, so instead he turned up to the hoops game on Friday night to greet the recruits there, like Tony Jefferson, Ken Stills etc.

- And on the subject of those Californians, how did they find the visit to Michigan? WR commit Ricardo Miller had his recruiting hat on again this weekend, and spoke a lot to the three prospects, and they all seemed to love the trip. He also got to know Big Tex Beachum, the DT.

- Speaking of Jatashun Beachum (you see how this post is flowing?), Sam Webb of scout.com spoke to the Big man's high school coach who said Big Tex MIGHT be ready to pull the trigger and commit. The visit clearly went great, and Michigan is most likely in the lead for the prospect. He will probably go home first and talk things over with his family etc, but he probably will commit sooner rather than later. 

- Josh Furman had a monster day at running back this week, racking up 414 yards on the ground...check out the highlights here.

- Two star safety Ray Vinopal also came away impressed with the Michigan game, and the Wolverines are probably at the top of his list right now. Clearly RR and the boys see something that the recruiting sites don't, although saying that his stock is definitely on the rise this fall. 

Last note, don't forget Tuesday is the big day, Cullen Christian announcement, Michigan are favorites!

Game Reactions

Michigan finishes the 2009 season with another loss to Ohio State, however the Wolverines were by no means outplayed. Big errors at key points in the game was the difference, along with an Ohio State defense that was all over the running game of 3rd and 4th string Michigan RBs.

Forcier had the offense moving well in the first half, but simply fell apart late in the game, throwing four interceptions in total. The surprising performance of the day came from the Michigan defense, which held its own against Tyrelle Pyror, who always looked a threat on the move. They only conceded 14 points, largely due to the play of senior Brandon Graham, who was relentless throughout. 

The game was fairly entertaining, and if the UM offense had kept it going in the 4th quarter, where they had a few drives starting in great field position, this could have gone down to the wire. Despite the loss I'm sure we'll see some commitments from the recruits at the game.

Weekend Predictions

Michigan vs Ohio State, The Game. You may well hate tMhe Buckeyes, but you cannot deny that they are the better football team at this moment in time. Lead by a very strong defensive line, OSU is going to get a lot of pressure on Tate Forcier, who has had trouble holding onto the football this year.

On offense, the Buckeyes aren't that impressive, but when the play breaks down, Tyrelle Pyror will cause problems with his running ability. Brandon Graham needs to get pressure on him early, and probably knock him out the game! Brandon Minor is very doubtful for the game, which is a shame, because Michigan are a different team on offense with him in the lineup.

Michigan need something very special to happen in this game, they can't rely purely on the offense to put up points, the defense has to force turnovers and maintain Pryor. If its close at the end, Tate Forcier may become the hero of the moment again.

I'm not going to do a prediction for the score, instead I'm going to predict that this game will result in four commitments for Michigan, "Big Tex" Beachum (DT), Tony Grimes (CB), Clarence Murphy (DE) and Cullen Christian (CB).

It's all about California

California has produced some great talent this year in high school football, and Michigan will be hosting three of the best the state has to offer this weekend. Tony Jefferson already knew he wanted to visit Michigan, but two of his friends will be making the trip with him.

USC commit Dillion Baxter will be in Ann Arbor for The Game, as will Kenny Stills. Stills has been hot and cold with Michigan all year, but apparently the three friends have always spoken about going to the same school, and Michigan is an option.

Baxter has had an unbelievable senior season, racking up 58 TD's. He excels in open space, often beating his man in one on ones, which is why he is so keen on the spread offense. Stills is probably the least keen on Michigan at the moment, he favors Florida, Oklahoma and USC. Dillion, despite being a USC commit is by no means out of reach for UM, he likes the system and really just wants to see how the atmosphere compares to USC and how the coaches and players interact. 

The three prospects are all extremely talented, but for Michigan fans I would imagine the defensive player, Jefferson, is the most important target, but securing any of these three would be a great boost to the Michigan class of 2010.

Update: Also, anyone who is going to the UM basketball game tonight might get to see the recruits there, along with DT "Big Tex" and Florida Superman/UM commit Marvin Robinson!

"The Game" - Visitors

It really doesn't get any bigger than this. Michigan vs Ohio State is still "The Game" no matter what any analysts may say, and its still The Game for Michigan recruiting as well. The UM will host many of the nations top prospects this weekend, and whatever the result, we're are sure to see a commitment or two. 

Anyway, let's take a look at each of the recruits that SHOULD be in Ann Arbor this weekend for Official visits:

- Cullen Christian (#3 CB)

- Tony Grimes (#10 CB)

- Clarence Murphy (3* DE)

- Jatashun "Big Tex" Beachum (4* DT/DE/QB/RB) (Yeah he can play all those, but most likely DT if he signs with UM, check out this article by Sam Webb on Big Tex here. 

- Rashad Knight (3* CB)

- Kenny Shaw (4* WR)

- Tony Jefferson (4* Safety on scout.com, ESPN top 10 player)

Here are some of the recruits that MIGHT be in Ann Arbor this weekend for Official visits:

- Dillion Baxter (4* RB, USC commit, haven't heard anything about him and Michigan before, but he might be at the game this weekend for an official.

- Kenny Stills (5* WR, quoted as saying he doesn't want to end up in the Midwest....but apparently stills wants to be at the game?)

- Richard Ash (3* DT from Pahokee, FL)

Unofficial Visitors (not guaranteed to show either) 

- Ray Vinopal (2* S)

- Dior Mathis (4* CB)

- Josh Furman (4* S/LB)

There will also be some 2011 prospects on unofficial visits, such as Florida RB Demetrius Hart. Also there for the game will be some current 2010 commits including Ricardo Miller, who always does his best on the recruiting side of things! Despite a lot of great defensive talent on show, there are still some disappointments. Georgia prospects Mike Thornton and Tyrone Cornelius will not be making the trip, and neither will defensive tackle Beau Allen or Safety Sean Parker, these prospects will likely visit UM during December when playoffs etc have finished.

Olaniyan Commits to UCLA

Four Star OLB Aramide Olaniyan has committed to UCLA this week, after visiting the Bruins on the weekend. The visit was described as "perfect" by Olaniyan, who previously had Michigan as his leader after de-committing from Duke earlier in the summer.

He visited UM for the Notre Dame match, and was set to return to Ann Arbor in December for an official visit, however that won't be happening now. This is a big loss for Michigan, as Olaniyan was a real possibility to land a top defensive prospect, you can't help but wonder if this would have happened if Michigan were 7-4 instead of 5-6.

Gameday Predicitons

Away against Wisconsin is never an easy game, no matter what team you are.

"When you come into Camp Randall Stadium to play a game, you better double clutch your chin strap because your gonna be in a smash mouth game" - Bonus points for whoever posts a comment to this post naming the person who said that quote....

Anyway, Michigan is struggling to say the very least, they have lost their last five games against Division 1 schools, admittedly so close ones though. IF the defense finally shows up, then Michigan could stick around for while. Wisconsin is known for their running game, and Michigan isn't too bad against the run, although they do give up the big play every now and then. The badgers will try to pass it as much as possible, but they don't have a great QB at the helm, so expect there to be an INT or two.

The Michigan offense can be lethal at times, when Brandon Minor is on form, he's the best back in the Big Ten. But this one is all about defense, can that secondary finally have a solid game?? It could be close, or it could be a blowout win for the Badgers. Anything more than a 10 point loss and RR will really start to feel the heat, of course as long as he beats Ohio State he'll be safe for a while!

I think Michigan will struggle early, but pick it up towards the end, then Tate "the great" Forcier gets back to his old ways, leading a game winning drive. Although you should expect to see Denard Robinson get a drive or two in this game.

UPDATE: Word is that Tate Forcier violated a team rule this week and won't start against Wisconsin! Denard Robinson may well get the start, lets hope he's ready. Robinson certainly has a lot of potential, given his incredible speed, but it's his throwing that needs to be on form if Michigan expects to win this game. 

Gameday Prediction: Michigan 31, Wisconsin 27

Ohh Jim, Poor Show!

Everyone's favorite High School cornerback Cullen Christian just became even more cool after he dropped the Buckeyes from his list yesterday. Scout.com's #3 rated corner has said he won't visit OSU this weekend as planned, and he won't be rescheduling. 

It appears Jim Tressel and the boys asked Cullen to change his official visit less than 24 hours before he was due on campus, and they also wanted him to postpone his decision date! The news did not go down well with Cullen's father, who stated he was very unhappy with the situation. 

The long time Michigan lean will visit UM for the OSU game, and make his decision three days later at a press conference in Penn Hills. Unfortunately for Cullen his high school team lost their 2nd round playoff match to Gateway, so his senior season is now over.

Josh Furman Update

Maryland Safety/LB Josh Furman has named his top two schools at the moment, and Michigan is one of them. The four star recruit stated Michigan and Virginia Tech lead over Rutgers and Maryland. 

He's visited both Michigan and VT now, enjoying both visits, he'll also try to visit Rugters and Maryland before his decision date of December 21st. 

He picked the best day of the year to visit Ann Arbor, September 12th, the thrilling comeback against rivals Notre Dame, and since then Michigan has been right at the top of the list. He always speaks strongly about the importance of academics, and strength + conditioning programs, I feel he'll end up in Ann Arbor, especially given the lack of depth at safety for UM.

Kenny Shaw update

Florida WR Kenny Shaw is pretty much down to five schools, one of them is Michigan. The four star prospect will visit Michigan for the Ohio State game along with his teammate, 2011 RB Demetrius Hart. 

Shaw is excited about the visit, but he still insists that Florida State are the team to catch. Tennessee, Florida and Georgia are also in the mix, and he'll visit the Bulldogs this weekend.

I might just be drifting off into a fantasy world here, but imagine if Michigan actually beat Ohio State? The atmosphere is always incredible at "The Game", but if Michigan were to snap a 5 game losing streak to the Buckeyes then Ann Arbor would literally erupt, and it could just sway some recruits.

I'll be doing a full rundown of all OSU visitors closer to the date, but it truly is a huge weekend for recruiting.

Quick Hitters

My Internet was down yesterday, so here's a quick catchup of what happened yesterday and this morning.

- Bobby Swigert has committed to Boston College, choosing the Eagles over Michigan and Nebraska. No big loss.

- Munchie Legaux has committed to Colorado over offers from Michigan and Oregon. Scramble QB, wouldn't get  playing time at Michigan. No big loss

- DT Michael Thornton loved his visit to Penn State, despite their loss to the Buckeyes this weekend. If Penn State were to land the Peach State prospect they will have yet another top class defensive recruit for 2010.

- OLB Christian Jones was very impressed with Alabama after seeing them beat LSU on Saturday, and the Crimson Tide "roll" into his top bunch of schools. (Sorry for that terrible joke). 

- WR Kenny Stills has ruled out Michigan, as I predicted a few weeks ago. He said he doesn't want to end up in that part of the country...harsh. So he won't be visiting for the OSU game. 

Floyd decision made

It's Eduardo Clements all over again, except this time we have no chance...

Five star DT Sharrif Floyd has apparently made up his mind as to which college he will be attending next year, but he's not telling anyone just yet. There is a list of about 5-6 schools including Penn State and Ohio State, along with the usual USC and Florida.

He will still take visits, but he already knows where he's going? It doesn't quite make sense to me, why do you need to waste time on visits if you know your going somewhere else? Anyway, bottom line is that Michigan's out!

Gameday Prediction

Its fairly simple, Michigan HAVE to beat Purdue. I've noticed Rich Rod critics have surfaced again on forums, expectedly after 4 losses in 5 games. But still, patience is the key.

Purdue is not a great football team by any stretch of the imagination, and because this game is in Ann Arbor, Michigan should dominate. Both Brandon Minor and Carlos Brown were left off the injury report, which is great news, as the offense badly needs that combo to function properly. 

Brandon Graham will continue his dominance up front, stuffing the run and picking up a sack or two. The defense will look weak at times, but should rally behind Greg Robinson, at least in the second half. 

As far as recruiting goes, I think the only arranged visit is that of safety Bobby Swigert. So its not a huge weekend, but Michigan still needs to show that they are a program on the rise. 

Gameday Prediction: Michigan-38, Purdue 17

Michigan makes final two!

All year long we hear about the lack of depth on the D-line of Michigan, well finally it looks like they have a legitimate shot of landing a great DT prospect. Jatashun "Big Tex" Beachum previously committed to Arkansas, but has since de-committed and named the Hogs and Wolverines as his final two.

He will likely visit Michigan for the Ohio State game, and a commitment could be expected after that visit. Beachum and his whole family were thrilled when the Michigan offer came through, stating he could have committed to UM earlier, but wanted to visit first. It's all sounding very promising for UM, who would get a 280lb DT that says he can run a 4.6 40 yard dash....

He's a four star prospect on scout.com, and things can only get better from here. He has the potential to come into Michigan and contribute right away, even his coach says Michigan has a great chance.

Devin Gardner Update

Make sure you check out Sam Webb's latest article on DetNews, he catches up with Michigan QB commit Devin Gardner on the season so far, his commitment status, and the possibility of early enrollment.

You can find the article here.

Carvin Johnson Commits

Michigan picks up it's 20th commitment of the 2010 class with safety prospect Carvin Johnson. The Louisiana recruit is a true sleeper, he goes unrated by both scout.com and rivals.com, and ESPN haven't even heard about him.

Yet Johnson has great playmaking ability, which is why Michigan have been recruiting him for so long. “I want to come up there and play some football. I make plays. That's what I do. I go for the ball and I hit you if you come down with it.”

Johnson was a visitor for the Penn State game a couple of weeks ago, the trip was a good one, despite a 35-10 loss on the day. Michigan was everything he was looking for in a school, and after a long day of thought he decided to commit.

The commitment of Johnson leaves around 5 scholarships left for the class of 2010, I would think Michigan would want at least two more DB's, and probably a DT as well. 

Eduardo Clements Decision

Four star running back Eduardo Clements has finally gone public with his decision to join the Miami Hurricanes. Clements had announced a couple of months ago that a decision had been made, however he only told the school in question. 

Michigan were in the mix until the end, along with Georgia and Tennessee, however the Canes' strong start to the season including wins over  ranked FSU, GT and Oklahoma, showed Clements that Miami was back to its old self. 

He says he a 100% committed to Miami, although he might visit Tennessee, South Florida  or Michigan.....doesn't sound like 100% to me? But still, he's off the Michigan radar now.

Special Guest Interview!!

Keep checking the blog this week for my interview with a certain recruit Michigan is targeting for the 2010 class! 

Should be fun, first time I've done anything like this!

Sean Parker Update

Four star safety Sean Parker has only taken two official visits this fall (Notre Dame and Cal), and according to his coach, there may only be one more on the cards. Michigan will be the last school that is almost definitely going to get an official visit.

This is great news for Michigan who badly needs a top DB recruit in this class. Greg Robinson has been criticized a lot this year for his defensive scheme, but in truth, he just doesn't have the quality of players needed to run it. Adding Parker, a player will good speed and coverage ability would be a huge boost.  

Quick Notes

Just a few quick hitters for Monday:

- Tony Jefferson loved the visit to Oklahoma, I'm guessing it helped that he spent most of the time with DeMarco Murray and Heisman trophy winner Sam Bradford...

- Defensive Back Rashad Knight is still keen on the Wolverines, confirming to Sam Webb (DetNews and Scout.com Reporter) that he will be there for the Ohio State game.

- Michigan were about a foot away from beating Illinois in my opinion, if only Roundtree could run a bit faster. (I think it was Roundtree that was stopped on the goal-line after a huge gain right?)

There is no need to panic:

- Don't worry about the 5-4 record. Michigan is a young football team, they will develop into winners. They could have beaten MSU (they lost in OT), they could have beaten Iowa (threw an INT on final drive) and they would've beaten Illinois if they got that TD from Roundtree or Minor.

Ok they got smashed by a good Penn State team, but it's not impossible to think Michigan could be 8-1 right now. Football is a game of inches.....*insert rest of Al Pacino Speech here*. If you don't know what I'm talking about, here's the link to a great video taken from the film "Any Given Sunday" (here). Rich Rod is a good coach, if you watched the game on Saturday, you could see at times how dominate the offense could be if it had the playmakers required. Have patience, Michigan will be back.

Gameday Prediction

I absolutely hate this type of game. When you look at a team like Illinois, you think back to the pre-season hype and you just know they have to bounce back one week, you just hope its not this week.

Everything seems to point to an Illinois victory....

-Ron Zook needs to prove himself after receiving a vote of confidence

-The players want to rally behind Zook and salvage the season

-Michigan is in a slump, both QB's playing poorly. Brandon Minor not 100%

-Its at Illinois, Michigan have lost both away games this year.

Despite this, if Michigan plays to its potential, it could win this game. I think it will be close, Michigan need to hassle  the Illini QB early on, don't let whoever it is get into a rhythm. If the secondary holds reasonably strong, and Michigan can get the running game going, they could easily win this game. 

Gameday Prediction: Michigan-31, Illinois-21

Who's Left? (Linebackers)

I put this post off for a while, thought I should finally do it now, seen as not much else has happened today. This is the last in the "Who's left" for Michigan series. Linebacker play has been alright this season, or maybe it just hasn't had much focus put on it due to the play of the secondary, and the lack of depth on the d-line? Either way Michigan could use some new talent here, especially at OLB to maximize the blitz packages that is meant to be the foundation of the Greg Robinson defense? Michigan isn't really in the mix for any middle LB's, at least not after Troy Gloster and Khairi Fortt committed to other schools, but here's who's left on the board.

- OLB Aramide Olaniyan (Woodberry Forest, VA), Michigan is most likely leading for the former Duke commit, although I don't think there has been any official confirmation of this. The four star OLB is rated #9 at the position by scout.com. He visited UM for the ND game and loved it, he will be back in December for an official visit. If all goes well there, he'll be a Michigan player in 2010.

Chances of signing with UM: 60%

- OLB Christian Jones (Winter Park, FL), once thought to be a Florida State lean, he expressed this week that its wide open, with as many as eight schools still in it. However he did say he wants to go to the Michigan-Ohio State match, and generally he seems very interested in Michigan. He's the #6 OLB on scout.com, securing either him or Olaniyan would be great for UM. Still a long way to go in this one, but Michigan could hang in there until the end.

Chances of signing with UM: 20% 

That's pretty much it for Michigan in this class, you could argue that Josh Furman should be classed as a linebacker as well, and let's not also forget that UM already has commitments from Antonio Kinard and Ken Wilkins. 

Tony Jefferson Update

Jefferson, a UCLA commit will be taking three more visits this fall, including Michigan. The four star athlete has interest in Florida and Miami along with the Maize and Blue.

He was initially planning to visit Michigan for the Purdue game, but flights were unavailable, so he will be in Ann Arbor for "The Game" against Ohio State on November 21st. He's mentioned that Michigan were persistent in their recruiting, not giving up even after he committed to the Bruins.

Jefferson continues to re-evaluate things, such as distance to home, which was originally a key factor for the California prospect. He is still trying to set up the Miami visit, but he will be visiting Florida on November 28th for their match against Florida State.

I have a feeling he won't end up at UCLA. 

Looking Ahead

Michigan has two home games left, against Purdue and Ohio State. At the start of the season most UM fans would have considered a home fixture against Purdue as a guaranteed win, however the Boilermakers have had a pretty good year, highlighted by a shock win against OSU.

Purdue will come to Ann Arbor on November 7th, and two possible visitors for this game are defensive players Bobby Swigert and UCLA commit Tony Jefferson. Jefferson is rated very highly by all major recruiting sites, he previously planned a trip to Ann Arbor before suddenly committing to the Bruins in early summer. He will be visiting either Michigan or Miami that weekend.

Looking beyond this to the OSU game, which will have stacks of recruits, including 2011 RB Demetrius Hart from Florida. Hart has always had UM in the lead, and after this visit he could well be committing to the Wolverines. He'll be visiting with his teammates Kenny Shaw (2010 WR) and Hasean Clinton Dix (2011 S/LB). I'll give an update OSU recruits list closer to the game, as we've learned this year, plans can change.

Anthony Barr down to two

Five Star running back Anthony Barr has left Michigan out of his final two schools, instead selecting UCLA and Notre Dame. USC and Cal were also in the mix for the talented prospect.

His father played at Notre Dame, so they have been the favorites from the start, however I didn't expect him to cut three other schools so fast.

Penn State Reactions

Michigan suffered a beating at the hands of the Nittany Lions last Saturday, and the result of it wasn't just another loss. I think most people knew Penn State was a better team than Michigan, but losing in that manner was unexpected. 

Seantrel Henderson wasn't at the game, as far as I know. If he was lurking in the crowd somewhere, I'm sure he would have been reasonably impressed......with Penn State. 

2010 Safety Carvin Johnson was one of the few main visitors at the game, and surprisingly enough he came away impressed with Michigan. Johnson is a real sleeper prospect, he's unrated by scout and rivals, however Michigan have been on his trail for a long time. He received an offer from the Wolverines in the spring, and the interest in him hasn't slowed down since. Michigan was Johnson's first official visit, and after it UM are #1 on his list. 

Johnson is known, or should be known for his hard hitting style of play, along with great ball skills. A decision won't come until after Christmas, but he's one of very few positive stories of the weekend for UM. 

Gameday Predictions

Penn State are a strong team, but they have several flaws on both sides of the ball, giving Michigan a serious chance to win this one at home.

Firstly Penn State's O-line is pretty inexperienced, as are their wide receivers. On defense, the weakpoint (like Michigan's) is the secondary, which lost all starters from last year. 

Michigan will be boosted by the return of center David Molk, however Brandon Minor and Carlos Brown will not be 100% which is a huge loss, considering Minor had a strong game against the Nittany Lions last year.

If Tate Forcier gets on a roll at the start, Michigan could quite easily find themselves with an early lead, but they have to contain Evan Royster and Daryll Clark, Penn State's top offensive players. This one could go either way, but I have a feeling Michigan might just win it.

Gameday Prediction: Michigan 24, Penn State 20

Flowers cuts Michigan

Four Star safety Marquis Flowers has named his final five schools, unfortunately Michigan was not one of them. Flowers was a possible visitor for the Ohio State weekend, but now he'll be focusing on five others.

Notre Dame, USC, ASU, Arizona and UCLA will fight it out for scout.com's #13 Safety, who could also play running back at the next level.

Sharrif Floyd....

This guy just can't make his mind up! Yesterday I said "Its been an ongoing battle to get Floyd on campus this fall, and I won't be celebrating until he's actually there!" Well I'm glad I put that, because Floyd's plans for this weekend appear to have changed...for the 3rd time. 

First he was set to go to Michigan, then South Carolina, then Michigan again....now its....Ohio State??? GoBlueWolverine (scout.com) spoke with Floyd yesterday, and he hopes to re-arrange with both UM and S Carolina, but OSU should be his visit this weekend. 

Hugely annoying, I really shouldn't post anything about him until signing day!

Penn State Game

South Carolina think Five Star DT Sharrif Floyd will be visiting them this weekend, and why wouldn't they? After all ESPN said so...

But apparently Floyd will be in Ann Arbor for the Penn State match after re-confirming it with GoBlueWolverine (scout.com). Its been an ongoing battle to get Floyd on campus this fall, and I won't be celebrating until he's actually there! In other news, it turns out Seantrel Henderson's visit will be an official this weekend to Ann Arbor. 

This hopefully shows how serious Henderson is about Michigan, and how good our chances are with him. Let's just hope the team can put on a show.

Gameday Predictions

Delaware State.....should be the biggest win of the season. I hope they don't play Forcier to be honest, I'd rather he be fully rested for next week's big game against Penn State. Denard Robinson, despite some poor decisions this year is more than capable of beating Delaware State.

I hear Forcier will start, but expect Shoelace to get a lot of snaps, throwing the football frequently. Michigan can't lose this game, it just can't happen. Brandon Minor showed last week what he is capable of, against a supposedly strong Iowa defense. If Minor was 100% for the whole season, he could easily be the leading rusher in the league. 

The score could be anything from 30-50 points in Michigan's favor, although I do expect Delaware State to score once or twice. Look for Brandon Graham to cause havoc on the defensive line, as well as Donovan Warren locking down his receiver. However, I do hope all UM's top players get rested at some point in the game, let's not have a Tebow incident, i.e we're up by 24 points and our best players go down hurt.

Gameday Prediction: Michigan 56, Delaware State 16

Hold the phone?

Earlier this week scout.com sources announced that Sharrif Floyd would be visiting Michigan on October 24th for the Penn State game. Floyd's coach has just told ESPN that he will be on an official visit to South Carolina that day....

ESPN affiliate Web site NittanyNetwork.com spoke with one of Floyd's coach, Mike White, who said, "He's going to South Carolina Oct. 24. He's talking about going to Penn State Nov. 7."

This is hugely disappointing for Michigan fans, as Floyd is the top DT left on our board, and now it seems like he won't be making a trip to Ann Arbor, assuming this coach of his is right. 

Henderson Quote

"I love that place, RR and the staff down there make you feel like you never left home. It makes you feel like your in a family whenever i've been there. I like that about Michigan"

That's from the nation's number one prospect, Seantrel Henderson. Michigan have a serious chance here! Recent reports state that Henderson can run a 4.9 forty, and ohh yeah he's over 300lbs. This kid is worth the hype, and could be the next Jake Long at Michigan.

New visits set

THIS IS MICHIGAN! As fans, we want the best of the best, and so far this year's class has been slightly disappointing, but also expected after a 3-9 season. However there is light at the end of the tunnel as two big name recruits have chosen to visit Michigan, unofficially.

It looks like the Penn State game on October 24th could be just as important as the Ohio State game, as Michigan will host two five star players....including the nations top prospect, Seantrel Henderson. The big OT will visit Ann Arbor at the same time as DT Sharrif Floyd. Both prospects are massively talented, and landing either of them would be an unbelievable get for Rich Rod and the boys.

Michigan are still in the top group for Henderson, and he still might visit for the OSU game, seen as he's interested in them as well. Four Star TE Alex Smith will also be at the Penn State match, so let's hope they use Kevin Koger a lot in that game to ease Smith's uncertainty over the Rich Rod offense. 

 

Who's left? (Safeties)

The safeties have struggled recently for Michigan, Mike Williams got burned against Iowa a couple of times, and Troy Woolfolk is now at corner, making this a position of need for the 2010 class.

- S Sean Parker (Harbor City, CA), a four star prospect from California, Parker once said he would make the long trip to Ann Arbor for an official visit, but I'm not sure if that's still the plan. The favorites are probably Notre Dame and USC.

Chances of signing with UM: 15%

- S Dietrich Riley (La Canada, CA), another four star Californian, Riley recently visited Tennessee and loved it. He hasn't really mentioned Michigan that much as of late, he'll probably end up at UT or Florida.

Chances of signing with UM: 10%

- S Marquis Flowers (Goodyear, AZ), recently said he would be taking a trip to Michigan, probably for the Ohio State game. Notre Dame are possibly the leaders, but Michigan is growing on him.

Chances of signing with UM: 20%

- S Josh Furman (Millersville, MD), visited Michigan for the Notre Dame match and loved it. UM are most likely the leaders here, with the main competition coming from in state Maryland. He wants to play early, which is a possibility at both schools really, although at Michigan he could be more suited to the Spinner position, currently occupied by Senior Stevie Brown.

Chances of signing with UM: 65%

- S Bobby Swigert (Louisville, OH), 3 star prospect who has Michigan in his final four schools. Nebraska probably in the lead because he visited them recently and it went well. He could be deciding fairly shortly, so this is one to watch out for. However in my opinion Michigan has enough three star prospects in this class, THIS IS MICHIGAN! We should be able to pick and choose recruits easily! I know some players are heavily underrated, but Swigert just doesn't seem like a game changer to me.

Chances of Signing with UM: 30%

Who's left? (Cornerbacks)

Michigan is in a decent position for so many defensive backs that I'll have to split it into cornerbacks and safeties. I watched most of the Iowa game last night, and I thought the secondary was slightly improved, Troy Woolfolk's switch to corner certainly paid off as he made a couple of pass breakups in the 2nd half. But still, Michigan needs depth, and some of these players could definitely add that.

- CB Tony Grimes (Hollywood, FL), one of the more physical corners in the country, Grimes is a four star prospect who currently has Michigan as his leader. He and teammate Clarence Murphy will be going to the same college, and both of them like Michigan. Grimes has been high on the Wolverines for a long time, and although his commitment won't come for a while, look for him and Murphy to end up with the Maize and Blue.

Chances of signing with UM: 70%

- CB Johnavon Fulton (Manning, SC), rated as the #5 corner in the nation by scout.com, Fulton's stock has risen a lot as of late. Recently said Michigan and Tennessee are teams that could jump into his top 5 at any time, which is important because....“The end of October that’s it... if you aint in my top five, it’s over!”

Chances of signing with UM:15%

- CB Joshua Shaw (Palmdale, CA), just can't make his mind up if he wants to visit Michigan! If he does, it will be for the Ohio State game, who funnily enough are his leaders at this point. All the big programs are after this guy, so I doubt Michigan is going to land him.

Chances of signing with UM: 10%

- CB Dior Mathis (Detroit, MI), rated by most as the top corner in the state of Michigan, Mathis has been to a lot of Wolverine games over the last couple of years. At one point it looked like Michigan were out of the running for Mathis, when he put the Wolverines around 6th on his list! Oregon are the leaders, followed by Michigan State and Michigan, who have come back into the picture this fall. 

Chances of signing with UM: 40%

- CB Rashad Knight (Jacksonville, FL), this one is a real mystery. Firstly its a mystery how scout.com rates him so poorly? (#73 CB????) And secondly, its almost impossible to give a prediction. Michigan are the leaders at the moment, but most people think if Florida State offer, he'll pull the trigger and commit straight away. Florida State badly want Lamarcus Joyner, but if he commits anyway else, look for FSU to offer Knight, and for him to accept.

Chances of signing with UM: 40%

- CB Cullen Christian (Pittsburgh, PA), this is the one everyone wants. Recently set a date of November 24th, and on that day look for him to be wearing a UM shirt/hat etc...I can't see him going anywhere else, he's been a UM lean for a long long time, and although a recent Buckeyes offer shakes things up a bit, Coach Rich Rod has probably already picked a number out for scout.com's #3 CB. The only real question is whether he will earn a fifth star by the end of the year? Over the last few seasons, usually the top 3-5 CB's get 5 stars!

Chances of signing with UM: 90%

Safeties post will be coming on Monday!

Gameday Predictions

Again, like last week, if I was to place a wager on this game, I'd be choosing the home team. But alas, rules are rules, so Michigan are going to win this one!!

ESPN Big Ten blogger Adam Rittenberg mentions daily how Iowa haven't conceded a rushing touchdown in 33 quarters, or something like that. That record will end today.

I hear that Brandon Minor is almost back to full fitness, so he will be the featured RB today after Carlos Brown was left out due to a head injury. Tate "the great" Forcier played extremely well in the last quarter against MSU, and if he can continue where he left off, Michigan could find themselves with an early lead. Mainly because Iowa QB Ricky Stanzi usually struggles early.

Iowa are heavy favorites in this one, and really for Michigan to have a chance the defense has to step up against the run. They need to force Stanzi to make difficult throws, because he will make mistakes. 

Iowa haven't scored many points this year, and if Michigan can put 30 odd points on the board, that will probably be enough. However Iowa's offense could have a season's best outing against a shaky Wolverine secondary.

Final Prediction: Michigan 31, Iowa 24

Who's left? (WR, RB and QB's)

Michigan already has three RB and five WR commits this year, although some will end up in different positions, e.g Tony Drake at slot receiver, Jeremy Jackson at TE maybe? But still there are some recruits left that the Wolverines would happy take, here's a quick rundown.

- RB Anthony Barr (Los Angeles, CA), the 5* recruit will miss the rest of the season after he suffered an injury in his second game. Note in his first game he scored 3 TD's, one of which was a INT returned practically the length of the field. Recruited by many as an athlete, he has a massive frame and could play numerous positions in college. He likes Michigan and will definitely visit this fall. Recently named Notre Dame and UCLA as his top two schools, but I wonder if UCLA will fall back down after they just got 5* RB Malcolm Jones? His father played at Notre Dame, and they really are the team to beat here.

Chances of signing with UM:  20%

- WR Chris Dunkley (Pahokee, FL), the Michigan-Pahokee connection has certainly been strong in recent years, and it will need to be again if UM are going to lure the 5* wideout up to Ann Arbor. Florida are the team to beat here, he has a good relationship with Head Coach Urban Meyer. Michigan at the moment is just trying to get him to visit.

Chances of signing with UM: 10%

- WR Kenny Stills (Encinitas, CA), another 5* receiver, Stills just received a Michigan offer recently. He visited Cal last week and wasn't too impressed with the lack of emotion from players on the sideline, but said he could make an impact there....of course he could, Cal are poor! Stills is still debating (get it?) whether to visit Michigan this fall, if he does, I'd probably guess it would be the OSU game. Only one visit spot left, others are taken by Florida, Tennessee, Oklahoma and Penn State. No clear leader as of yet, but Michigan is a long shot.

Chances of signing with UM: 10%

- RB Eduardo Clements (Miami, FL), the four star recruit has actually committed to a school, but no-one knows which. He named Michigan as a leader about a month before committing, yet for some reason I don't think he'll end up with the Wolverines.

Chances of signing with UM: 33%

- QB Munchie Legaux (New Orleans, LA), had Oregon and Michigan as his top two schools a while ago, but said LSU was coming on. Duel threat QB, but I'm not sure if we actually need another QB in this class. Devin Gardner and Cornelius Jones are plenty, considering that we already have the best QB in the Big Ten on campus. Legaux says the depth chart is important to him, so I don't see him coming to Michigan.

Chances of signing with UM: 20%

Who's left? (O-Line and TE)

Michigan's offensive line was said to be the most improved unit on the team after a disastrous season last year. Unfortunately after a good start to the season the line suffered a couple of injures and really struggled at Michigan State. Another good talking point this year has been the tight end position, in which Kevin Koger has proved to be a real playmaker. Michigan isn't in a commanding position for any recruits in these areas, but here's some to look out for.

-TE Alex Smith (West Chester, OH), previously committed to Cincinnati, Smith withdrew his commitment earlier this summer. One of two tight ends offered, we had a good chance with Smith earlier in the year, but he is too worried about the TE not being used in RR's offense. Michigan did not make final three. 

Chance of signing with UM: 1%

- OT Skyler Schofner (Sunbury, OH), Michigan made his top seven schools earlier in the summer, but he is waiting until after the season to really cut things down. He visited UNC recently, but I see him as an Ohio State lean, although he is still waiting on an offer.

Chances of Signing with UM: 10%

- OT Seantrel Henderson (Saint Paul, MN), the top rated player in the nation on both rivals.com and scout.com, simply everyone wants this guy. And yet, even though all the elite programs want him, I rate Michigan's chances quite highly. First of all he visited Michigan in the spring and enjoyed the visit, so there's a definite possibility he could return for an official visit. Rumors say he will be in Ann Arbor for the Ohio State game. Sources close to Henderson have also stated that he is tracking the Wolverines  progress and is very impressed with the start they made to the season, especially in the huge win over ND. Prediction wise, this is a tough one to call, I don't want to get people's hopes up, but in all honesty I think we could be one of the front runners for the nation's #1.

Chances of signing with UM: 25%

Slight Adjustment

For those who read the previous post, "Who's left" on the defensive line, I have to make one change! The chances of Michael Thornton signing with Michigan are probably a bit higher, as many of you should find out if you read Sam Webb's articles. Today he should be posting news on Michael Thornton on his Detroit News Column, don't miss it! 

Thornton has been quoted as saying Michigan will definitely get an official visit, and that they are right up there with the other schools pursuing the Georgia DT.

Chances of Thornton signing with UM: 20%-25% (A better chance than Sharrif Floyd) 

Who's left? (Defensive Line)

Michigan's defense has been a big talking point this year, the secondary looks weak at times, and the lack of depth all around is somewhat alarming. So who is left in this year's recruiting class that could really help Michigan out next season? I'll start of this little series of posts with the defensive line, which has also struggled at times this year.

- DT Sharrif Floyd (Philadelphia, PA), rated as the one of the top defensive tackles in the class, Floyd is a five star prospect who has shown some interest in Michigan this season, but there are still questions over whether he will visit. Earlier this week there was a rumor that UM commit Ricardo Miller (who now basically recruits for UM) had convinced Floyd to take a visit to Ann Arbor for the Penn State game, another team that Floyd likes.

Chances of signing with UM: 15%

- DT Michael Thornton (Stone Mountain, GA), a four star DT who is likely to take an official to Michigan this fall. Georgia are still the front runners here, so Michigan would need the visit to go extremely well to lure the prospect up north. We haven't heard much about Thornton throughout the whole recruiting process, so I'm guessing our chances aren't that high at the moment, but at least he's visiting.

Chances of signing with UM: 10%

- DE Gabe King (Eugene, OR), has recently got a lot of interest from Michigan, and the wolverines have got back into the picture on this one. California are the slight leaders. He will visit Michigan officially this fall, maybe to the Penn State game. Academics are important to him, as is the tradition of a program. Oregon, Alabama and Tennessee will also get visits.

Chances of signing with UM: 25%

- DE Clarence Murphy (Hollywood, FL), just got his offer from Michigan, will go up to visit with teammate Tony Grimes. Michigan is in a great position to sign the duo, who have stated that they will be going to the same school. Murphy is a three star prospect. Michigan is probably the leader right now for him, and it definitely is for Grimes.

Chances of signing with UM: 70%

I really thought there would be more than four prospects....there are some others, but these are the ones that mention Michigan frequently in interviews.  

Brandon Ifill Update

Three star Safety Brandon Ifill no longer lists Michigan as a contender for his services next year. Ifill has Pittsburgh, Rutgers and Maryland as his top three schools.

Ifill is of course the teammate of long time Michigan lean Cullen Christian, and at one time the two DB's thought of attending the same college. The chances of this looked good at one point when Ifill came back from a visit to Ann Arbor very impressed.

However now Michigan's interest seems to have faded, the other schools are recruiting Ifill as a WR, whereas UM liked him at Safety, which might have some effect.

Pittsburgh and Maryland are the two leaders, with Rutgers trailing.

Fortt Decision

Four Star Linebacker Khairi Fortt has chosen Penn State today over Georgia and many other schools, including Michigan. Fortt is an extremely athletic player who could earn a 5th star this fall.

This is yet another four star prospect in what looks like a top notch recruiting class for the Nittany Lions. 

Fortt was one of few LB's left on Michigan's board, but never looked that interested in the Wolverines. 

Sometime this week I'll be doing a rundown of all the top prospects left for Michigan, don't miss it!

Word on the street?

Can't really confirm this, but word on the street is that Ricardo Miller has persuaded DT Sharrif Floyd to visit Michigan for the Penn State game.

Good work Ricardo?

Gameday Predictions

Ah yes the predictions are back this week, and what a week this could be for Michigan. The chance to go 5-0, beat a rival, and send Michigan State to a 1-4 start!

If you didn't know anything about football, and you saw a 4-0 team playing a 1-3 team, you would think it should be an easy game. In this case, that is wrong!

Home field advantage could play a factor, due to the lack of experience some Michigan players have on the road, including both QB's Tate "the great" Forcier and Denard "Shoelace" Robinson. However it must be remembered that Central Michigan beat the Spartans in East Lansing. 

But because this is a rivalry game, and the Spartans HAVE to win, it will be difficult for the Wolverines to come away with a victory.

If I were a betting man, I'd probably take Michigan State to win. However since this is a Michigan Wolverine blog, its actually illegal to pick the other team to win....

Gameday Predictions:

- Michigan State will start off well, exposing UM's weak secondary. If JT Floyd starts, as I've heard he will, he could be picked on a lot at the start. 

- Michigan's offense could have a great day throwing the football, MSU's secondary is possibly worse than ours!!!!

- MSU will lead at halftime before Greg Robinson's defense shore things up after the break.

- It could be a classic game, Tate Forcier will probably have to lead a game winning drive....

I'm going for Michigan-30    Michigan State-27

Khairi Fortt Update

Four Star LB Khairi Fortt will make his decision on Monday, but Michigan is no longer in the mix. The Wolverines had hoped to get a visit from Fortt some time during the fall, but it looks like he wants to get it over and done with now. Penn State are meant to hold a slight edge over Georgia, followed by North Carolina and Tennessee.

Cullen Christian sets a date

November 24th will now be the day that many Wolverine fans expect four star cornerback and long time UM lean Cullen Christian to commit to Michigan. The main teams in contention are Michigan, UCLA, WVU and hometown team Pittsburgh.

He plans to visit Michigan for the Ohio State game on the 21st November, it would have to be a terrible visit for Cullen not to choose the Wolverines a few days later...

Troy Gloster to WVU

Troy Gloster (Olney, Md.) has committed to the West Virginia Mountaineers. Gloster had a final two of WVU and Michigan, but he felt very comfortable with the Mountaineers.

"They were one of the first schools to offer me and I always felt like I liked them, but the biggest factor was my relationship with coach Casteel. I just felt very comfortable with him," he said. "That was definitely one of the biggest reasons."

Gloster is a three star  linebacker, but probably the one we had the best chance of getting, don't hold your breath for Khairi Fortt!

Michael Thornton Update

Michigan's hopes of adding another good defensive tackle to the class doesn't just lie with Sharrif Floyd, Michael Thornton also has the Wolverines up on his list.

Thornton is a four star DT from Stone Mountain, GA, with good hands and foot quickness. He is said to fit in well to a 4-3 system. Thought by many to be a Georgia lean, he has recently stated that he will take an official visit up to Ann Arbor this fall.

Joshua Shaw Update

Palmdale (Calif.) cornerback Joshua Shaw is one of the top corners in the country after having a great summer. He has recently visited Ohio State (his current leader) and Florida on officials. But another Big Ten team will now get an official from the 4 star corner, Michigan.

He will visit Ann Arbor on November 21st when the Wolverines take on Ohio State.

Tony Grimes Update

Hollywood Hills, FL Cornerback Tony Grimes has officially set up his visit to Michigan this fall, which will be for the Ohio State game. But where does Michigan stand with the 4 star recruit? And where does it stand with his current teammate Clarence Murphy. 

Grimes and Murphy have already decided to go to the same school together, and Michigan is one of a few schools to offer both players. Murphy plays defensive end, and is rated as a 3 star prospect by scout.com. 

Murphy was very excited to get the offer from Michigan, and Grimes has recently said that Michigan is number one on his list. UM is in a prime position to lure in these two defensive players, but a decision isn't likely to be made just yet. 

Hagerup Commits!

Whitefish Bay, WI 's Will Hagerup has committed to the Michigan Wolverines Class of 2010! Hagerup is one of the most highly rated punters in the nation, and the only one to receive an offer from Michigan, which makes it all the more important, as we could have been in trouble without him.

Hagerup is rated as the 4th best punter by scout.com and the 4th best overall kicking specialist by rivals.com.

He attended the Indiana game on the weekend and funnily enough his brother was the punter for Indiana! "It was a great visit, I felt extremely comfortable with all the coaches and people," he said.

Will chose Michigan over Ohio State, Florida and Wisconsin, all of which he had visited in recent months. I thought he was leaning towards Ohio State after watching them play USC, given the atmosphere at that game. But Michigan have had their fair share of excitement this fall, with nail biters against Notre Dame and Indiana.

 

Looking ahead

Next week Michigan plays MSU in East Lansing, it will be hostile, it will be loud, and it will be tough. Although MSU have lost 3 games, they will very fired up next week. It will also be Forcier's first away game, and although he says he doesn't get nervous, I'm sure the atmosphere might shake him a bit at the start. Michigan will need to score some TD's early to quiet the crowd and deflate the MSU players morale.

Michigan have already beaten last years win total, and could even start 5-0, which would be great, but the defense has to be solid next week.

On to recruiting now, and will some Michigan State recruits be starting to ask questions about the Spartans after they start 1-3. This could be the defining game of their season, starting 1-4 is unthinkable for team that had such high hopes preseason. One of the best recruits in the state of Michigan is defensive end/linebacker William Gholston. The MSU commit stated a couple of months back that he might still visit some other schools, to make sure he made the right choice. Stealing Gholston away from the Spartans would be unbelievable for Rich Rod and co. A win on Saturday could help?

Damn Internet!

I moved into University today, expecting to have the internet set up and ready to go, unfortunately that wasn't the case! So I couldn't do my gameday predictions, but I would never have got 36-33 Michigan.

Anyway, here's some quick analysis from the two minutes of footage I saw on ESPN!

- The defense is poor! Yeah I said it people, anyone who thinks Michigan are going to go far this year could be in for a rude awakening when we actually play a decent team. You can't let INDIANA score 33 points!

-Tate Forcier is pure clutch, when he is needed most, he will prevail. The pass to Odoms on 3rd and 8 was great, as was his dive into the endzone to give UM the lead at 29-26.

-Was that an interception? From what I saw it looked pretty dubious. If I remember correctly, when the ball is up for grabs like that and both players are contesting for it on the ground, then they give the benefit of the doubt to the offense? Whatever the case, well played to Donovan Warren, who basically saved the game with that pick. Indiana can't complain, theres no garantee they would have scored had that been ruled a catch.

-Carlos Brown could be the man? Personally I'm a huge fan of Brandon Minor, we got glimpses of what he can do against Notre Dame, but unfortunately for Minor and Michigan, he has been plagued by an ankle injury so far this season. In fairness to Brown, he got his chance and took it. The last two games have been great for him, making some big plays, so it will be interesting to see how it plays out when both of them are fully fit.

Sean Parker Update

Once a five star prospect on scout.com, Sean Parker has seen his stock drop slightly over the summer, but all the big programs are still after the California safety.

Parker attended the Notre Dame vs Nevada game, and was impressed with the fighting Irish. His other official visits will be to Washington, Tennessee and Michigan. USC and UCLA are still well in the mix, but due to distance he doesn't want to take an official visit to them. 

Despite Parker's short height (5'10), he hits very hard and has good speed, there has been talk of him moving to corner once he gets to college. Parker along with fellow Californian Dietrich Riley are the two best safeties left on Michigan's board, just adding one of them to the class would be a huge achievement.

Slow Day

Pretty average day in terms of recruiting news, but here's a few quick notes:

- The OSU is shaping up to be huge day for recruiting, Michigan could be hosting several 5 and 4 star players such as Seantrel Henderson, Sharrif Floyd, Tony Grimes, Cullen Christian, Joshua Shaw and others. Of those listed, Grimes is the only confirmed one, but others are quite likely.

-Will Hagerup is still meant to be visiting Michigan this weekend, despite some rumors that he would visit for the Penn State game in order to see a better atmosphere. But I think he wants to get the decision done soon, I'm guessing he'll end up with Ohio State and UM will look like fools for not offering Mike Sadler.

Back in the race for Fulton?

John Fulton saw his stock rise during the summer months and the Florida cornerback now finds himself as the #5 CB in the nation. Fulton had previously named a top five that did not include Michigan, however that could change shortly.

Fulton names Michigan and Tennessee as teams that could be thrown into his top 5 at any moment, this just shows you what winning games can do for a team. Fulton watched the Notre Dame game, and was very impressed with Tate Forcier (who wasn't?), and he also admires former Michigan legend Charles Woodson (who got 2 INT's on the weekend).

Fulton talks weekly to Coach Tony Gibson, and the two have a good rapport, which could be key to landing a visit from Fulton after October, when he plans to name the final five schools.

 

Dominque Easley commits

Four Star DE Dominque Easley chose the Penn State Nittany Lions yesterday, making him the second 4 Star DE to commit to JoePa and Co this week, along with C.J Olaniyan.

"I always liked Penn State," Easley told Staten Island Live.Com. "I didn't think I was going to commit, but being out there and talking to everybody made me feel like this was the place."

Both recent commits for Penn State, Easley and Olaniyan were targets of Michigan.

Game on for Olaniyan!

Four star OLB Aramide Olaniyan has officially decommitted from Duke this morning; "I am still very interested in Duke, but I decommitted early this morning," he said. Michigan are well and truly in the race to sign the Virginia prospect, who visited Michigan recently for the Notre Dame match.

Olaniyan will be back in Ann Arbor for an official visit in December, and he could be a wolverine soon after that trip.

I've done it again??? :D

Well this is getting spooky? I've predicted all Michigan results perfectly this fall, (I missed the Western Michigan game!) correct winners and scores. Check out today's gameday prediction below.

Tune in next week for the Indiana prediction!!

Gameday Predictions

I probably won't be able to equal last weeks perfect score prediction, but I'll give it a shot!

Eastern Michigan aren't Notre Dame, they don't have that many weapons on offense so I think this will be a much more solid performance from the Michigan secondary, who look to bounce back after a poor week. I fancy Donovan Warren to get a pick as well, to cement himself as a bit of a lockdown corner.

Michigan have an injury on the offensive line, but look for the running game to be sound as usual, Brandon Minor will have 100 yards at least. On offense, Denard Robinson will get a lot more throwing plays, presuming Michigan get off to a good start. Nick Sheridan will probably see some action in the second half as well. 

After last weeks heroics against Notre Dame, all I want to see here is a solid game of football, Michigan don't need to be flashy in this one, just get the job done. Do not underestimate Eastern Michigan that much, they came back strongly against Northwestern last week, but still, I can't see Michigan losing this one. Here are some quickfire predictions:

-Brandon Graham to get his first sack, Warren to get first INT of season.

-Brandon Minor to get 150 yards on the ground

-Denard Robinson to account for 2 TD's

Final Score: Michigan 45 - Eastern Michigan 17

Josh Furman almost ready?

Four star safety Josh Furman loved his recent visit to Ann Arbor, and despite planning to announce his decision on Dec 9th at the Crab Bowl, an October decision could be more likely.

Furman was impressed with everything at Michigan, not just the performance on the field vs Notre Dame, and I'm pretty sure Michigan are #1 on his list right now. He wants to visit a couple more schools as well, like Virginia Tech, but if they don't live up to Michigan, then expect Furman to pull the trigger in October/Early November.

Olaniyan Commits

Sorry if the title got your hopes up, Aramide Olaniyan hasn't committed to Michigan, instead C.J Olaniyan has gone to Penn State. The four star defensive end chose the Nittany Lions over Michigan and many other top schools including Notre Dame and Oklahoma. 

Michigan never really seemed that involved with C.J, even though he plays in the state of Michigan. I can't remember him ever announcing UM as a leader or anything like that. However when speaking only last month (31st August to be precise); “I haven’t started thinking about it,” Olaniyan said. “I should have my top five by the end of September, but right now I really don’t have any favorites.”

So this is surprising that he is committing to Penn State right now, but I guess things can change, and fast.

Heisman Voting!

Its time already folks! Make sure you get on ESPN's Heisman website, where you can vote for the player you think deserves to win the most prestigious award for individuals in college football!

Note that Freshman QB Tate Forcier is already 7th in the voting, and seen as he is the only Michigan player on the leaderboard....you better vote for him!!

Click this link.

Also note who is in 4th place. LB Eric Berry? I thought he was a Safety? And it also says he plays for Wake Forest? Poor show ESPN!

Gabe King back on the radar

Four Star defensive end Gabe King is hearing a lot from Michigan again, and they could get an official visit this fall, writes Sam Webb in the Detroit News. Michigan needs all the help it can get on the D-Line, and adding a prospect of King's quality would be great for the Wolverines.

Check out the full article here.

Troy Gloster ready to pull the trigger?

Three Star Linebacker Troy Gloster (Olney, Md) says he is almost ready to commit to a school, the big question is which one?

“It'll be sooner rather than later,” said Gloster, who strongly favors West Virginia and Michigan. “I'll probably do it sometime mid-season. It'll be a big relief of stress and pressure to get it out of the way and know where I'll be going to school for the next four to five years.” 

Gloster wasn't at the ND game on the weekend, but he was very impressed with the performance, he knows Michigan are a program on the rise again. Tradition is one of the reasons he likes Michigan, the chance to play for the most "winning-est" team of all time is a big opportunity.

Gloster has had a good start to his senior season, racking up 11 tackles, one sack and one fumble caused in two starts, where his team has gone 2-0.

Marvin Robinson Update

Marvin Robinson committed to Michigan early in the spring but over the last few months he had expressed interest in visiting other schools. However these plans have changed, and the only visits he will take, are to Ann Arbor.

Robinson will travel up north for the Ohio State game, bringing 2011 CB prospect and teammate Sam Rancy with him. Robinson may also go to the Penn State game as well.

The four star safety has been watching Michigan's progress this season, and is impressed with their start to the season. One player he keeps an eye on is senior SS/LB Stevie Brown. Coach Greg Robinson has told Marvin that he is a great fit for the hybrid position Brown currently occupies, so Marvin is already trying to learn before he enrolls early next year.

Individually Robinson has had a great start to the season, wrapping up 25 tackles, one INT and one forced fumble in two games, however his team has struggled badly on offense, and as a result they are 0-2. 

Bored?

No news so far today, but if your bored and have 9-10 minutes spare, check out this hilarious video of a Notre Dame fan before the game last Saturday. I mean it really is funny how pathetic this guy is!

Cullen Christian Update

Scout.com's #3 Cornerback in the nation has long announced Michigan at the top of his list, but he paid a visit to Ohio State on the weekend for their game against USC, who didn't? (it seems like every recruit in the country was at that game!)

Cullen was impressed by the visit, and the great atmosphere provided by the Ohio State fans, who were loud for the entire game, well perhaps not when Stafon Johnson marched in untouched for the game winning TD?

But still, Cullen has Michigan as his leader, saying "Michigan is my favorite. I grew up a Michigan fan. They show the most interest." He will visit UCLA officially in the fall, but I can't see him anywhere else but Michigan next season. 

Anthony Barr suffers injury

Anthony Barr, a five star running back will miss the rest of the season after breaking his ankle during the 2nd game of the season. Teammates and coaches had hoped it would just be a high ankle sprain, but results from tests showed a break.

This is obviously terrible news for an extremely talented player, Barr was ranked as the 5th best running back in the nation by scout.com, and the 2nd best Athlete on rivals.com. As far as his recruiting goes, this could certainly shake things up. Last year Safety Vladimir Emillen suffered a bad injury but Michigan stuck with him, and he ended up signing for UM. 

Barr has a top five of USC, ND, UCLA, Cal and UM, and I wonder whether a program like USC, who have endless amounts of NFL quality RB's at their disposal, would still go after a player in Barr's situation, missing virtually all of his senior year. Barr can play both sides of the ball though, and I believe Greg Robinson (UM D Co-ordinator) has been recruiting Barr well to maybe play defense at Michigan. 

We wish Barr a swift recovery, and I'm sure this won't hurt his prospects of playing at a top football school in the future.

Tony Grimes Update

Four star cornerback Tony Grimes will start to set some officials soon, the Florida recruit had previously named Michigan at the top of his list, but now claims no leader. He will set up visits for Michigan and Ole Miss in the next few days/weeks.

He was trying to get up to Ann Arbor for the Notre Dame match, which would have been a great one for him to watch, but unfortunately he couldn't make it. 

I'm a big fan of Grimes, he plays physical all the times, but has good ball skills, taking five interceptions last year as a junior.

WIll Hagerup Update

The only Punter to be offered by Michigan this year unfortunately was "blown away" by a visit to Ohio State on Saturday, despite the Buckeyes' 18-15 loss to USC.

Hagerup still has to visit UM and Florida, and will make his final decision shortly afterwards, but he came away very impressed with OSU, saying it couldn't of gone much better.

The big game atmosphere is something that Ohio State will get the edge on because when Hagerup visits Michigan, they will be playing Indiana, probably the worst team in the big ten?

Aramide Olaniyan Update

Aramide Olaniyan was in Ann Arbor for the game this weekend, and the visit exceeded all expectations he had. He will be coming back for an official visit in December, but the four star outside linebacker came away very pleased with Michigan.

He wants to talk things over with his parents, who will be with him for the official in December, but given Michigan's reputation for good academics and football, I doubt his parents would have many objections!

MGoBlog caught up Aramide after the game, and you can find some quotes from that talk here.