Four star offensive guard Jordan Walsh has committed to Iowa over offers from Michigan, Nebraska, USC and others.
This is a bit of a surprise, Michigan seemed to be in a great spot for Walsh, especially with his Mom, who loved Ann Arbor. He never really named a leader, but said UM was high on his list after he visited campus last month. A decision timetable was never mentioned either, so this is certainly out of the blue.
It's unclear if he'll still take officials in the fall.
Ray Drew (Thomasville, GA), one of the top overall prospects in the nation, has named Michigan in his top eight schools. Drew is ranked #3 in the ESPN 150, so its great for Michigan to still be in with a shot.
Drew is good friends with fellow ESPN 150 recruit, Avery Walls, who has visited Ann Arbor and sung the praises of the Wolverines to Drew:
"We’ve been talking about them and he’s been talking about how Michigan is a place I need to check out, and maybe set up an official with him so we can get up there at the same time."
An official visit is the next step for Michigan, if they can secure one with both Walls and Drew, then they could have a great chance at both prospects. However, with Drew being the #3 player in the nation, the competition is fierce to say the least. Also in his top eight are....the big three Florida schools, Miami, Florida and FSU, then you have the two in state powers, GA Tech and Georgia, and add in the reigning national champs Alabama for good measure. Auburn also makes the list, and they've done great in recruiting recently.
A slow week for recruiting...
- Rich Rodriguez is accused of NCAA violations from his time at West Virginia, which can't help recruiting. The allegations are similar to the ones at Michigan, e.g graduate assistants sitting in coaches' meetings etc.
- Michigan CB prospect Valdez Showers has Michigan in his final six schools along with Florida, MSU, Iowa, Northwestern and Auburn. He always speaks highly of the SEC schools, and he definitely enjoyed himself in Gainesville.
- In-state RB Thomas Rawls will take his SAT test in the second week in September, which will be crucial for him. If he does well, offers from the likes of Michigan, Michigan State, Iowa and Wisconsin could follow. Rawls likes Michigan a lot, and will visit unofficially sometime this month to hang out with Coach Jackson and get a feel for the campus.
Michigan ideally wants to take Demetrius Hart and Rawls as a big back in this class.
Florida O-lineman Tony Posada will announce his decision at 4.30 ET on August 11th along with teammate Philip Ely. Right now, its anyone's guess who he picks.
A month ago, all seemed great with Posada, he had named Michigan as his leader after a great visit to Ann Arbor, and was on the verge of committing around mid-July. But lately, local school USF has come on strong and could even be the favorites heading into the announcement.
Detroit Southeastern's Ed Davis has committed to Michigan State, where he'll join his former teammate William Gholston in the Spartan's LB core.
When Michigan first offered Davis, he looked like a UM lean already, but after several visits to Michigan State his interest in the Wolverines faded, and by the time his commitment came around, MSU were the heavy favorites.
With the Big Ten media days this week, recruiting has been fairly quiet, although Michigan has hosted a prospect this week.
- Redbank (NJ)'s Jack Tabb visited campus earlier this week and got talking with both Calvin Magee and Greg Robinson. This is because Tabb could play either TE or DE in college. Tabb enjoyed the visit and said Michigan could well get another visit so that he can meet Coach Rodriguez. As for ratings, well he has a Florida offer.
- RB Malcolm Crockett, who once had Rutgers as his leader, has named Michigan and Cincinnati as his top two. Michigan will get a visit this fall.
- Daren Kitchen has confirmed that he does have a verbal offer from Michigan, and names the Wolverines as one of his leaders along with Texas A&M and Memphis. He's still waiting on the paperwork from Michigan.
Dr Phillips High school in Orlando (FL) has produced a lot of talent over the last few years, and Michigan has been there to harvest it. The class of 2010 produced four star WR Ricardo Miller for the Wolverines (although he did spend his senior year in Michigan, he committed whilst at Dr Phillips), and 2011 has Demetrius Hart, a big Michigan lean.
2012 may well continue the trend with QB Nick Patti, who is very on the Wolverines after visiting with Hart last month. Patti got to spend a good deal of time talking football with QB Coach Rod Smith, and then got some quality time with Coach Rodriguez. Both Nick and his dad were hugely impressed with Rich Rod, and although its probably too early to talk leaders, if there is one, its Michigan.
Other schools showing interest are Oregon, Florida State (which he's visited), UCLA and Georgia Tech. Nick could be back up in Ann Arbor if he decides to visit with Dee and some other Florida kids for a game during the fall.
