It's a bad start to the week:
- Firstly, Shaq Thompson has named a top three of ASU, Cal and Washington, and is unlikely to visit Michigan. This is a shame, but if Michigan does want another DB, Yuri Wright is a more realistic option anyway, and just as talented.
- Secondly, Jordan Payton visited Arizona State this last weekend, so that's another 'stay near home' option for him to take over moving to the Midwest. The longer his recruitment goes on, the lower my confidence gets.
- Now for the big news, Michigan has lost a commitment. Last week I mentioned that Pharaoh Brown would visit Oregon, but I said it probably isn't a big deal because he would have told Hoke in advance etc. Well word is that Michigan didn't know much about this, and no longer consider him a commitment. Scout.com no longer lists him as a commit, which is a pretty good indicator of where things lie.
Whilst I doubt the door is completely closed on Brown, I doubt either sides are too happy with each other right now, so Hoke and Co will definitely start to look elsewhere. If we assume A.J Williams will play OL at Michigan, then I personally think they really need another good TE in this class; one just isn't enough.
Perhaps they could take another look at Ron Thompson, now a Syracuse commit, or even Sam Grant, the teammate of Kyle Kalis. Maybe a new TE target will emerge now that Michigan are having such a good season.
- Scholarship numbers: Michigan will probably go to 27-28 in this class, if they feel like they can get some real talent in those final spots. If we consider Brown as just another recruit, then we have 23 commits, leaving 4-5 spaces. If I could choose my perfect ending to the class, I'd go for Brionte Dunn, Jordan Payton, Stefon Diggs, randomly good Tight End, and if a 5th space is available, Yuri Wright.
Note: A lot of people might take Amara Darboh over Payton because of Darboh's speed, but Payton is rated higher on recruiting sites for a reason, and if I were picking the commits, I'd already have a speed guy in Stefon Diggs.
Also, just to clarify, those 5 names above are my ideal scenario, in fact it's very unlikely that it will finish that way.
damn. not happy about brown. I don't really blame him for going to a game, but if he didn't tell Hoke and the staff about it than it seems the kid thought it was shady to go, in which case, it must have been. My parents always told me growing up if you had to lie about what you were going to do, then you probably shouldn't be doing it.
ReplyDeleteIts a shame to see a guy go, but hey...Do what you do buddy. No one's gonna be calling you up and begging you to come back. Now that we have that cleared up, I think we are in great positions with Diggs, Wright, and Dunn. I would love to see UM blow out Ohio and watch these guys fall right in line for Hoke. Then he'll get that call from Brown trying to commit again. Hoke and his staff are building something special at UM and recruits see that, I cant wait to see who is playing in AA next fall. On a side note, how about how good UM's linebackers are getting? I love watching them fly to the ball, and I was a huge fan of Cam Gordon, but now with Jake Ryan's success, I don't know who I'd rather have out there, but I'm leaning towards Ryan! The Defense as a whole is outstanding and I am excited to see them play against anyone in the country!
ReplyDeleteIve read they are going to keep williams at TE. I think they will take another OL to replace brown. I'd love to see Diggs, Powe, Garnett, Wright and Dunn to finish off. Thats a top three class if not #1!
ReplyDeleteIn a way I do hope they keep Williams as a blocking TE, because we already have 2-3 OTs in this class with Magnuson, Kalis and Braden
ReplyDeleteI know this comment isn't about recruiting, but I'm just wondering how people all of a sudden are saying Nebraska is overrated? Beacuse they lost BIG to UM? This is the same team that beat MSU BIG. Same thing with ND. UM wins and they're overrated, they beat MSU and they're a great team that had a crappy start?
ReplyDeleteThere are many still not giving UM credit. Honestly, their loss to MSU was really a one score game, as was the loss to Iowa, both on the road. Blown call against Iowa could've changed the game.
Right now, UM has 10 bowl eligible teams on their schedule, need Purdue to beat Indiana to make that number 11. 75-56 overall opponents record, 29-25 non-conference/crossover games.
MSU, no more than 7 bowl eligible teams, 65-67 overall opponents record and 19-36 non-conference/crossover record. And that's because Wisconsin has 9 of those 19 wins. MSU could easily lose this weekend, lose the championship game and lose their bowl game to finish 9-5.
On the recruiting note, UM beats OSU this week to finish 10-2 and they WILL get a BCS at large bid. MSU will lose at some point, and a few of the other teams will lose to and UM will finish in the top 14, possibly top 10-12 depending on what the other teams do too. HUGE boost in recruiting for UM, and if someone decides to go to ASU, Cal or Washington over UM, they wouldn't have stayed long here anyway. Thigns are looking great for UM, and still rising
Everytime Michigan wins, the opponent was either "bad" or "over rated". Thats just how it goes, to many haters to acknowledge what they all fear, Michigan is back.
ReplyDeleteWISHLIST... Ranked by need and likelihood of committing
ReplyDelete1. Yuri Wright- has been high on Michigan for sometime, is a super athlete that can solidify the corner spots for the future. Also can help on special teams.
2. Stefon Diggs- he is #1 in terms of wanting him, but with our passing numbers I just don't know if he will commit. I know we have Shane Morris coming in, but Hoke says we are a running team all the time. This doesn't lend well to big time receivers. Diggs could be a great return man as well.
3. One of the O-Line considerees- Garnett, Diamond, or someone else. The cupboard is bare!
4. Brionte Dunn- with the emergence of Fitz and the stable of backs, I don't think the need is as high, but... the impact of stealing another OSU commit and his talent level are undeniable.
5. Either a WR/DT- Nobody is talking about taking another D-Tackle, but we lose both starters and need to stock this position. This position rotates in and out of games more than anybody, so being deep here is crucial. As far as a WR Darboh or Payton would be my second choice after Diggs
I agree with Mancave, I'm surprised that there's no interest/talk of a 3rd DT, but I suppose O'Brien was the only other solid DT we had a shot at. I'm worried that we'll find out next season just how valuable Martin and RVB are in the middle.
ReplyDeleteAnd btw, in lieu of what happened with Pharaoh Brown, I don't read much into Payton going to ASU. I get why the coaches don't want these guys visiting other programs, but I also understand why these kids want to do it. Payton is a big time college football fan and he wants to check out as many big time games as he can. If I were in his shoes I'd be doing the exact same thing and holding out till after the season. I obviously don't know if he's chosen Michigan, but I bet his mind has long been made up, and outside the gals, I really doubt he has any interest in ASU.
ReplyDeleteI am not sure what Pharaoh Brown way thinking when he took that visit. I read some where he did not want to be recruited as a TE and I read that he did want to be a TE so I am not sure if that had anything to do with it? But this may open the door back up for Schutt. I believed that UM needed another defencive player before this all happened.
ReplyDeleteAs for Urban Meyer I am on the fence about him. If he does take the OSU job then bring it. I am starting to think he may just hold out for the Texas job that will open in 2 weeks.
I can't wait for the game saturday. I heard they may move the game to 3:30 has anybody else heard that?
does anyone know what Michigan recruits and commitments are in the Michigan state finals? and how they will fair against their opponent?
ReplyDeleteCasimir,
ReplyDeleteGo to touch the banner.com you will need to scroll down alittle to find it.
Article on Rivals about Browns commitment status.. Behind a pay wall.. Anyone get the chance to read it?
ReplyDeleteLloyd Carr prided his team on running the football, just look at all of the RB's that came through...But at the same time, Michigan was able to put many QB's into the NFL and always had 1 or 2 stud WR's. The WR's line up to be "The Guy" for run-first teams, the run opens up the pass for big yards. Mike Hart ran for somewhere near 1600 yards his Jr year, and Mario Manningham lead the B1G in receiving yards in that same year. And one of the MAJOR points when RR was hired, and we went to the spread and away from pro-style offense, everyone was saying that a huge down side was the big time WR's were going elsewhere and not to UM. Pro-style Offense is going to bring in some major talent at WR and when the first one rolls in, the others will line up when they see that #1 jersey flying around racking up the yards. Also, Darryl Stonum is reportedly wearing that same jersey in practice. He will be a SR and if he puts up anywhere close to 1000 yrds then I see us pulling a big time WR next year
ReplyDeleteThat headline really had me freaked out, but the news wasn't nearly as bad as I thought.
ReplyDeleteFor Payton if he wants to stay closer to home good for him, but ASU is collapsing and Erickson is probably going to lose his job, I don't understand why he would want to go there.
As for Brown, its never good to lose a recruit, but losing him doesn't really strike me as a big lose. Also, if he is going to play TE, is Oregon's super spread really the best choice? Oh well, maybe I just don't understand the mind of an 18 year old good.
Either way, lets just kick the crap out of Ohio, win a BCS bowl game and let everything else fall into place.
Shaq picks ASU, Washington, and Cal? what!?!? that is the silliest top three for a 5 star recruit I have ever seen. All that tells me is that he doesnt want to leave the west coast. Cal is a dump, Washington has been irrelevant for years, which means the allure of Dennis Erickson is strong. I must admit even though there isnt a great deal of tradition at ASU, the campus is very nice. Travel must have been a factor here.
ReplyDeleteWhy would one of the top prospects in the nation want to go to any of those 3 schools? I guess he's a Pac12 kind of guy but those schools are among the suckiest in the Pac12. Not really sure what the rationale is with that top 3. Reminds me of Jarron Jones weighing his Penn State options with visits to Louisville, Rutgers, and UNC, lol. ASU, Washington, and Cal aren't even good basketball schools! Is this a decoy list or something? Shaq really needs to take his official to Michigan. MOAR DREDS IN 2A SHAQ!
ReplyDeleteMaybe opens a spot for Schutt, if he decides to reconsider PSU?
ReplyDeleteDunn says that his visit for The Game is an unofficial and that he will take his official to UM in December. Looks pregood for us. Perfect for our pro style offense. Which is not just running. Up until'08, UM had 8 straight years with a 1,000-yard receiver, which is a NCAA record. Diggs, Payton, Darboh, Powe, Madaris - 2 of those guys will be part of a new streak.
Benji, or anybody, who do you think will see playing time their freshman year out of the 2012 recruits
ReplyDeleteA bit off topic but did anybody see that RR is the new arizona coach...what do you guys think about that
ReplyDeleteRich rod will excell at Zona. Warm weather for a speed offense, and he should be able to recruit there.
ReplyDeleteIf Diggs comes I see him making an instant impact at both reciever and as a returner. Kid is lightning in a bottle.
Tj i think its a great fit... RR offense will work anywhere... His defense just wasnt going to work in big ten... I think he willbring in good California talent and have arizona doing good. Best of luck to him...
ReplyDeleteC-Note - I totally agree about Diggs, he could be like another Steve Breaston.
ReplyDeleteAs far as RR I hope he does get Arizona turned around, to the Rose Bowl, and gets Stomped by UM and a great D.
If I were to make any comparisons to former wolverine talent, I would place his shifty speed like running style to a Desmond Howard or a Anthony Carter. Not the biggest reciever out there, but straight nasty after the catch and in space.
ReplyDeleteUM would be lucky if he turned out to be like any of the 3 of them. I just want a true threat to take it all the way after the catch, or on PR/KR's
ReplyDeleteFor the record. I want Stefon Diggs in a bad way, but Yuri sounds more likely. He is ranked top 3 in his position by 4 out of 5 major recruiting services. This probably would be the best recruit in a few years. I know Kalis is a five star on scout, but wright is a consensus top 3 corner. Having him, countess, and t rich will have receivers on lock.
ReplyDeleteHoping for Diggs, but not holdingy breath. Predicting a stellar 2013 skill position rankings after filling up 2012 with big uglies
For the record. I want Stefon Diggs in a bad way, but Yuri sounds more likely. He is ranked top 3 in his position by 4 out of 5 major recruiting services. This probably would be the best recruit in a few years. I know Kalis is a five star on scout, but wright is a consensus top 3 corner. Having him, countess, and t rich will have receivers on lock.
ReplyDeleteHoping for Diggs, but not holdingy breath. Predicting a stellar 2013 skill position rankings after filling up 2012 with big uglies
@ will
ReplyDeleteStarting? Maybe none. Possibly a WR/DB or TE with seniors graduating a top WR/DB like Diggs or Wright could start as freshman or maybe Funchess. The most likely of our current commits is undoubtedly James Ross. Kid will continue to put up monster numbers. See: Lavonte David, Manti Teo, and Luke Kuechly for reference. He tackled as a high school Junior better than anyone on our team last year save Kovacs/Mouton. Kid also put up 138 tackles (including 13.5 tfl) as a senior, almost as many as RJS and Bolden combined!
Freshmen to just play, maybe in the 2 deep? Quite a few. D Tackles and Ends will get a shot, and depth linebackers, depth WRs, and DBs will get a shot too. Not bad for them, considering the true freshmen and redshirt talent playing ahead of them already.
Off topic from football, but how about UM taking down #8 Memphis. Bring on Duke.
ReplyDeleteOn recruiting, I want to see Diggs in last 4 or 5 more than anyone. Wright would probably be second.
Not to be negative, but to consider this as a possibility. What if Sighs, Payton, Wright, etc go elsewhere? We have 4 or 5 spots left... Do we settle for some less talented players or do we hold onto the scholarships until next year?
ReplyDelete@ Jaylee
ReplyDeleteI don't think we will have to worry about that. We are going after to many players and don't have that many spots left. At WR alone we are going after Diggs, Payton, Darboh, and Madaris. I think we will have no problem getting 2 out of those 4. Payton and Darboh have already listed Michigan as their leaders. Dunn Sounds like he is going to Michigan. I say this because he is enrolling early and he would not enroll early at OSU until the sanctions come out and they have a head coach. Yuri Wright has already said Michigan is his dream school and he grew up a big Michigan fan so I feel pretty good about getting him. We have options at OL too with Banner, Diamond,and Garnett. We might not get any of these guys but its very possible we could land one. There are so many options out there and all these guys are 4 or 5 start recruits and all of them are very interested in Michigan. I believe Michigan will have no problem getting 4 guys of all the players I mentioned above.
Scout just reported that Washington is signing with OSU and Stanford is signing with the ducks.
ReplyDeleteatleast the buckeyes didn't get both of them. they both said UC was their second choice.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone have a scout account? There is some updated information on dunn. Article title is "is Dunn done?".
ReplyDeleteBill green stated that dunn is no longer trending osu and he believes dunn is going to osu. Because he is going to EE and with 2 unofficials and his official visit with good friend kalis to michigan. Things point well to michigan. All good news. Sam webb also thinks dunn is going michigan in his opinion. This is not word for word but you get the idea. Go Blue!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteGoing to michigan not osu. Sorry for typo.
ReplyDeleteCrap. Sounds like Keith Marshall and possibly even John Theus may be going to ND now. Sounds like Mark Richt is stepping down at Georgia.
ReplyDeleteIts offical Urban Meyer has reached a deal to be OSU next coach. It is reported that he will be call the OSU and UM game saturday. I sure hope ESPN changes that would hate for OSU to have a recruiting advanage.
ReplyDelete@jer89 I saw that on twitter too. Where are you getting this info?
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteTwitter
ReplyDeleteMeyer is not calling the game saturday per bill king
ReplyDeleteJeremy thanks on that. Someone on twitter said Meyer was calling the game yesterday.
ReplyDeleteI just had a thought about Urban Meyers. If memory serve me right Urban Meyer is 0-3 against UM. 2 with Utah and 1 with Florida and I believe Florida had Tim Tebow at QB then. And tell me who recruited Tebow? Thats right Greg Mattison. Besides it was just stupid to think OSU was not going to get a good coach. So I welcome him to the B1G. GO BLUE
No media source is reporting that Meyer reached a deal, because he hasn't. Even the goobers running OSU aren't dumb enough to hire him until after the game.
ReplyDeleteI hope Meyer helps make them as good as they can be, so that when we routinely smash their smurf offense in November every year it will be that much sweeter.
Jer-That was the year Tebow won his heisman too...
ReplyDeleteAccording to Rivals Pharaoh Brown explained what happened with that Oregon visit on his Twitter. Anyone read his reasoning on why this all happened??
ReplyDeleteI guess Urban is not going to AZ....
ReplyDeleteWho really gives a flyer.
Re: Pharaoh. The guy is an absolute beast and tweener- tweener. What exactly is he, anyway? No one knows, and imaginations run rife....
When you are on top of the recruiting world, you are in on all of the special prospects. Some will come, and some will slip away. That's the new reality.....
As I have said before, I expect a LB to change horses, too...
When you are losing supreme athletes to programs like OR, and gaining same, you know you are on the top of the hill. That's the game, these days.
Michigan will close strong. Those who come, will be champions.
The rest will be cleat fodder.
It has been written. It shall be done.
Brown hasn't committed to Oregon. Kid made a mistake not telling the coaches AND broke the no visits rule that UM has and most schools have if committed, but maybe it still works out in the end. Would love to have a 6'6" TE like him in this class but at least we have Devin.
ReplyDeleteJust FYI, On his twitter Brown said he never de-committed from UM, but was told that he was no longer considered committed by the staff. Then, he said he is changing positions in college and is weighing his options. THEN in his bio on twitter he put "MICHIGAN BOUND FOLLOW ME" so, it seems to me like he needed the reality of Hoke saying what he did to get his head on straight about where he wanted to go.
ReplyDeleteEven though he was recruited as a DE he has spent the last 6 months or more focusing on being receiver. He played both sides of the ball in school, but spent the summer at football combines and 7 on 7 tournaments tearing it up catching the ball. He's probably our best offensive threat at 6'6" and more than 220 lbs, or was till he goofed, and hopefully he reaffirms his commitment. Coaches do need to know where they stand after all.
ReplyDeleteI really can't blame the kid for wanting to experience OR on game day. I'd want to see it too. His biggest problem now is getting that USC chant out of his head....
ReplyDeleteIt's a long way to signing day.
DG is looking great, and everyone knows what's in the pipeline at QB.
Hoke and Co.are building it. I trust their selection of blocks. Some blocks will be turned over and found unworthy, some will be successfully used by others. Ron Thompson comes to mind. The bottom line is that a single recruit means nothing to the team.
They will find someone with BOTH the talent, and the burning desire to be a part of the marvel that is evolving. Let those with second thoughts go elsewhere. I'll take the kids dying to get in the door.
What are Michigans chances with landing Taylor Mcnamara?
ReplyDeleteAs expected, this is one of the most anticipated weekend's for potential recruits to make it to Ann Arbor. We all know it's the best Rivalry in college sports and so do the recruits. They want to be there to see what this game is really about.
ReplyDeleteTop 2012 Guys Visiting
Brionte Dunn, RB
Josh Garnett, OL
Amara Darboh, WR
Jehu Chesson, WR
Dan Gibbs, OL (In state 6'7 320 pound OL with only a couple of MAC offers - guessing he is a walk on candidate. Talk about upside!)
There should be 14-15 commits there as well (including Pipkins, Houma, Magnuson and Standifer). Kyle Kalis is not expected to make it due to a trip with his family. The Cass Tech kids have a playoff game. There should be over 20 2013 recruits at the game as well.
Everyone go to coachoftheyear.com and vote for Brady.... last i saw he was somewhere in the teens and thats just ridiculous for the job he has done. You can vote once a day until December 3rd and as for me i plan to take full advantage of that.
ReplyDelete@Jeff Tinkler
ReplyDeleteMcNamara is apparently considering canceling an official visit to take an official to Michigan, per twitter and Tom VH as well.
He has already taken 4 visits so he will have to cancel his 5th and final visit that is for this weekend to Oklahoma. Oklahoma hasnt even offered him so this could be good news. i know McNamara is friends with Erik Magnuson.
ReplyDelete@oubobcat
ReplyDeleteAccording to ESPNs player profile of McNamara, he is set to make officials to both Cal and Okla in December. So even if he is visiting OU, we could still take over that Cal visit. Unless of course ESPN is behind on their update.
oh I read what you said about Shaq Thompson and I would really like if he could play for Michigan one day soon, I do know that some online bookmakers are crossing their fingers right now ;)
ReplyDelete