Purdue is officially last to the party, as Indiana picks up their first commit.

Action since last rankings:
6-8-08 Ohio State gains commitment from Dominic Clarke. Michigan State gains commitment from Patrick White.
6-9-08 Indiana gain commitment from Josh Keyt.
6-10-08 Ohio State gains commitment from Adam Bellamy. Wisconsin gains commitment from Zac Matthias.
6-11-08 Penn State gains commitment from Curtis Drake.
6-12-08 Notre Dame gains commitment from Ben Turk.

New Rankings:

Dominic Clarke is lightly-regarded at this point, but it seems like the Bucks really know what they’re doing when evaluating DBs. He’ll be in the high three-star range. Boren will be a three-star whose commitment is more celebrated for bringing in his brother.

Bell will likely end up a high 3-star or low 4-star (ESPN loves him). Gallon

Arcidiacono is underrated, Howle will end up as a high-three star, Figueroa a low three-star, and Felder somewhere in between. New commit Curtis Drake is being brought in as a QB unless the Nittany Lions get a top-notch signal caller in this calss (in which case he will likely be a WR). Penn State has a quantity-over-quality class right now.

Michigan and Ohio State didn’t seem to be pursuing Fox at all, and he wasn’t exactly a sleeper, so I doubt he is much better than a high three-star (with requisite ND-rounding to four). New punter commit! Notre Dame will rule the world!

MSU has started losing coveted in-state guys to other schools.

Keise will probably end up a mid 3-star.

Zac Matthias brings the Badgers past Illinois. His ranking is bumped in my mind by the Wisconsin seal of approval.

Illinois started fast, but has since stagnated (and lost Melvin Fellows to the Bucks).

Ferentz’s glory days in recruiting seem to be over.

At least they have some commits.

Keyt is a long snapper/DE who will greyshirt, according to IUFootball (who deserves props: writing about Indiana football has to be among the most thankless jobs out there).

12th – Purdue (0 commits)

Posted under Recruiting

The Board.

Added:
PA OL Adam Gress. Offered (info in header).
FL DE Ryne Giddins. Offered.

New Information:
NJ DE Anthony Lalota. ND is probably his favorite.
MD LB Jelani Jenkins. West coast swing.
FL DT Antwan Lowery. Miami and Florida are near the top of his list.
GA S Darren Myles. Michigan will make his next cut.
AZ DEs Craig Roh and Devon Kennard. Both will have top 10 lists out soon.
MS DT Josh Boyd. He will camp at Michigan.

Removed:
SC WR Alshon Jeffrey. Southern Cal commit.
FL OL Nick Alajajian. Not in his top 6, combined with the fact that a decision date has been set, seem to show that Michigan is not in this race.
MI OL Zac Matthias. Wisconsin commit.

Analysis:
Jeffrey and Alajajian were both considered longshots with only token inclusion on the recruiting board. Matthias is a bogger loss for MSU (the Spartans need all the good linemen they can get – especially instate and especially those who are good enough to end up at a lineman factory like Wisconsin) than it is for Michigan, who didn’t like him enough to offer before camp…. Speaking of camp, those itching for more commitments should be in luck, as summer camp (Sunday-Thursday) is usually a time when a couple guys get offers and commit.

Posted under Recruiting

The posting as currently scheduled (recruiting Mondays, Fridays, and when there are commits; Big Ten recruiting rankings Saturdays) will continue, along with the various other posts that appear throughout the week.

However, in addition, I’ll be rolling out team previews for this season starting next week. I’ll run from Utah to Ohio State, then cover the two Big Ten teams Michigan doesn’t play this year.

Get stoked.

Also, check the new banner.

Posted under Analysis, Blog News

Since a lot of people have been asking how I am doing, I’ll just start off by saying: considering the circumstances, I’m doing great. I can move around without a ton of pain, which is something most people who fall four stories can’t say (they usually can’t say anything because they die). Here is what an x-ray image of a broken spine looks like:
Pretend like I posted almost the exact same image 3 times. Now you know what my L1-L3 vertebrae look like. I am walking, talking, and (clearly) typing, so thanks to everyone for the kind words you gave earlier. And now for a couple of actually relevant things:

An anonymous commenter asks:

1. why RR would offer Cornelius Jones?

2. Rumor has it that that Jeremy Gallon has grades troubles and thats why some bigger schools passed on him. Any truth to that? Also is there any video of gallon

1. I have yet to figure out whether Jones is even a ’09 or ’10 prospect. There is precious little about him on the internet, and I think this “offer” sounds a little questionable. Where are the Scout and Rivals interviews with the kid (or even a profile on one of the two sites)?

Another thing I question on this topic is why the Free Press is writing about this offer. Michigan has offered tons of kids at this point, and this is the first one that the Freep has taken the time to write (read: plagiarize) and article about. Sounds a little questionable in terms of writer’s motives.

2. I have heard this, but it doesn’t really seem to make a ton of sense. Sure, RR isn’t afraid of recruiting a kid because of possible grades issues, but then, neither are most of the schools in the SEC. There has to be another reason why schools didn’t pursue this kid.

I think it is primarily because he is tiny (reports range from 5-6 to 5-9), and few schools have need for tiny guys like Michigan has need for tiny guys. Another factor is that he will have to change positions, and perhaps take a while to be ready to play. If Michigan was not scrambling to fill all the roster spaces for slotmen, perhaps someone like Gallon would have had to wait until later in the recruiting process for an offer.

As far as Gallon video, this is the best (free) one I’ve been able to find. If any enterprising readers find something else, drop me a line.

I’ve also gotten about 30 versions of this question:

What’s the deal with Tate Forcier?

I have no idea. It certainly seemed like Michigan was going to be done with ’09 quarterbacks with Kevin Newsome and Shavodrick Beaver committed. However, Tate Forcier still came to Ann Arbor for Michigan’s senior camp, and appears to be strongly interested in the Wolverines.

Are Rich Rodriguez and Co. just leading the kid on? Or are they keeping him in mind as an insurance policy of either of the other guys jumps ship? Maybe he just refuses to let them drop him as a prospect. It may be too early to tell at this point, but I think Michigan has its two guys, and Tate will be on the outside looking in, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

Paul:

Whatever happened to the combined recruiting board with MGoBlog?

Brian and I tried to come up with a simple solution that would be easy for both of us to access and maintain, and when nothing came up quickly, the project was sort of shelved/forgotten. In all honesty, I think it might serve a good purpose to maintain separate ones, as it leads to more information getting out overall, about a wide range of prospects. For now, don’t expect to see a combined recruiting board any time soon.

Posted under Mail Bag

While it is not news to anyone who follows the Big Ten that Penn State fans have an… uncomfortable fixation on Michigan, typically this has been restricted to fans. Nittany Lions supporters have a focus on Michigan that seems unwarranted but for the Wolverines’ dominance over PSU in recent years. Now, even those who write in the mainstream media have latched onto the obsession as a crutch for writing their terrible columns (entire relevant section quoted to avoid giving this idiot clickthroughs):

An interesting sidebar to these rankings: How much will they be different if QB Kevin Newsome winds up in a Penn State uniform? He committed to Michigan earlier, but all indications are that Penn State is still recruiting him hard. So much for the gentlemen’s agreement between Big Ten teams about not talking to verbal committments. What years of sportsmanship and living up to one’s word built up, Rich Rodriguez and Michael Shaw tore down.

While I don’t need to point how how dumb the bolded portion of this quote is (nor do I need to point out that Donnie Collins doesn’t know how to spell “gentleman’s” or “commitment”), I will anyway.

Of course, due to a highly-publicized quote from Joe Tiller, suddenly Rich Rodriguez is to blame for Penn State’s recruiting tactics. Umm… what? If he wants to try to hold Penn State up as a bastion of sportsmanship, maybe he shouldn’t do so in reference to an incident where they are doing something he deems to be “unsporting.” If Penn State was as virtuous as Collins intends to imply, they wouldn’t be recruiting Newsome, regardless of what Michigan did last year.

In addition, it’s great to see him trying to slam an 18-year-old kid for picking a school that he liked more than Penn State. If Penn State was worth going to, Shaw would have ended up there. Rich Rodriguez is not some sort of hypnotist. Of course, Shaw wasn’t even the recruit that caused the “controversy” in the first place (that would be Roy Roundtree).

And of course, Collins’s entire argument hinges on the presumption that Rodriguez was the first coach to recruit other schools’ commits, which (actually good) columnist Sam Webb pointed out to be not at all true in an unfortunately-no longer free Detroit News article.

Posted under Coaching, Recruiting

State of” in the sense that Michigan is a state, and in the sense of a condition of being. Part 5: Discussion on reader feedback and questions.

Part 1:
My first assertion, that fans in the state of Michigan are not all fans of the Wolverines, was not disputed:

I’d say Tim is correct. OSU is the only game in football crazy Ohio while Michigan is divided. M could dominate the state but has only done so in SE Michigan. MSWho has been dominate in Saginaw/Flint. But the rest of the state….

Southwest Michigan’s population has Chicago team and Notre Dame fans. Further, you cannot discount the in state MAC teams. Many of my relatives in SW Michigan are Western fans before they are M or MSWho fans. My niece attends Central and knows all about the Chips, but little about Wolverines!

– Wolverine 98284

I agree with Wolverine 98284, but would like to mention that he is perhaps overstating the SW Michigan ties to non-Big 2 schools. In Grand Rapids (where I live, and which could be considered SW Michigan), people are indeed fans of MAC schools, but Michigan and MSU have strong influence as well, along with Notre Dame. I disagree that many SW Michigan residents are Chicago team fans, however. Tigers, Lions, Red Wings, and Pistons are the overwhelming favorite almost throughout the state.

The comparison to Ohio was not a topic of debate, either:

I grew up in Ann Arbor and now live in Cincinnati. Tim is 100% correct about the Buckeyes, it’s the only game in town when it comes to college sports. OSU is even bigger then UC in Cincinnati. Ohio recruits have one choice where to play football and that’s at OSU.

– Bob

Pretty much everyone was in agreement that Ohio is a state united (behind the Buckeyes), whereas Michigan’s loyalties are spread amongst 2-3 (I didn’t account for Notre Dame in the original post, but I think it is definitely something that needs to be accounted for (i.e. eliminated from the face of the earth)).

However, some people didn’t quite see the connection between having 2 “main” schools in the state, and the Wolverines losing recruits to out-of-state schools:

I feel your argument on why Michigan recruits go to other schools (MSU/USC/otherwise) was not fully developed. Are you arguing its because they lack a central allegiance to one school? I could see this as a strong reason to support losing kids to MSU, but I feel its a rather weak argument in regards to USC/out-of-state opposition.

– kowisja

While the split loyalty does indeed mean that the Wolverines will lose some recruits to MSU, I still believe that it does help out-of-state schools with Michigan prospects as well. If a player is a lifelong fan of Michigan, then Michigan has a distinct advantage in his recruitment. However, with a state divided, he is more likely to be a casual fan of the Wolverines (or even a fan of Michigan State). When it comes time to make his decision, Michigan doesn’t have the advantage that they would have had if the Wolverines were the overwhelming choice of the entire state (see: Ohio State), and both instate schools start without as significant an advantage as a single instate school would have had. In addition, if he grew up a State fan, but wants to go to a good school/program, he might choose to go out of state, so as to not have to play for the rival of his favored Spartans.

There were also a few other explanations offered by people:

We have definitely pushed harder to get the recruits from out of state. I don’t quite have the desire to research this, but I’m interested to see how many instate recruits of high ranking and in positions Michigan needs have bolted to schools outside of UM/MSU.

– kowisja

1. Recent Coaches/Success
2. It’s warmer in other places. Hi USC, Florida, LSU.
3. Visibility/Draftability.
4. I hesitate to mention this, but based on various reports: Shadiness. OJ Mayo, Reggie Bush, Maurice Clarett, Troy Smith.

– Dave

I think kowisja’s point isn’t necessarily true, especially regarding a player that he cites as an example, Nick Perry. I don’t believe that the staff missed on Nick Perry because they were focused on out-of-state guys. On the contrary, I think they really wanted him and simply whiffed (note: I think this happened before the new staff was in the picture), mostly because they had taken him for granted. As far as the first part of kowisja’s post, I might go through and do a bit of research about instate prospects who went places other than Michigan or OSU sometime soon.

As far as Dave’s points, I hesitate to ever call #4 into play, mostly because I think it’s more of an excuse than an explanation, but it may be relevant. The first two definitely play something of a role. I think #3 is a nearly-direct result of #1, and if Michigan started winning more, the recruiting rankings, both in- and out-of-state, would improve.

On to Part 2:
Some people tried to help come up with reasons that Michigan produces so much less D-I talent (especially high D-I talent) than Ohio.

Several of our football players stopped playing football to concentrate on soccer, baseball, and particularly hockey, which played a prominant role in our town’s fandom. Are other sports as big of a deal in Ohio? I don’t know about others, but I can’t imagine hockey being as prominant.

– footymcgavin

I originally thought that this would be a significant factor. Obviously Michigan produces more hockey players, but I thought maybe there was something to Michigan’s reputation as a “basketball state” compared to Ohio’s pedigree as a “football state.” However, while Ohio does indeed produce way more football talent, the two states are about even in terms of producing basketball players. With no easy way of checking for soccer and baseball prospects, this is an issue that likely can’t be resolved statistically.

Even still, if such a difference between the two states exists, there must be some explanation why Michigan’s athletes are moving away from football whereas Ohioans stick to the gridiron.

And finally, Part 4:

Most people agreed with the rules that I would change for the MHSAA:
The all star game rule is the dumbest…i remember grady wasn’t able to play in one because of that.

– RJHOVE

There was also a question about coaching, too:

I’m somewhat curious how coaches salaries work in Michigan. Are they subjected (harsh word choice I know) to normal teaching salaries by the Teacher’s Unions, or can they make more money? The football coach at my high school was making more than everyone minus the superintendent for the entire district. Granted our coaching staff was comprised of probably 24 coaches covering 6 football teams (Varsity, JV/A, JV/B, Freshmen A,B,&C). There were at least 2 coaches (HC and OC) that didn’t teach any classes other than Football period. I highly doubt Michigan’s teacher’s union would have the same allowances.

Makes me wonder then how many of the best coaches stay in Michigan, not just the recruits.

– formerlyanonymous

Good points here. However, I’m not sure too many people go into high school coaching as a career, leaving the state for a higher salary. If coaches were moving up to the college ranks, it might make sense, but a great HS coach leaving the state of Michigan for a HS coaching gig in, say, Texas, doesn’t seem to ring true.

On the other hand, it may be the case that some high schools in Texas are able to pay competitive enough salaries to prevent coaches from making a jump to small-college coaching. This would certainly go a long way to keeping good coaches at the high school level within the state
.

Thanks for the great dialog, everyone. If you have anything else you’d like to contribute, I’m all ears.

Posted under Analysis

The board.

Added
FL LB Brandon Hawthorne. Michigan in his top two with USF (info in header).
SC S David Sims. Offered.
SC S DJ Swearinger. He has a Michigan offer.
FL CB Angelo Hadley. Offer.

New Information
SC DE Chris Bonds. Recruiting fluff with mention that one of his officials will be to Michigan.
OH OL Chris Freeman. WVU-tinted recruiting fluff.
AZ DE Craig Roh. Plans a summer visit to Michigan.
AL DB Dre Kirkpatrick. Plans to take a visit to Michigan.
NC WR Jheranie Boyd. Michigan is in his top 15.
FL OL Nick Alajajian. He plans to make a summer decision without taking a visit to Michigan. Things don’t look so good here.
SC OL Quinton Washington. Michigan doesn’t make his top 5, but is just barely on the outside.
MD Slot Tavon Austin. Georgia has distinguished itself in his recruitment by offering him as a slot. Michigan has done the same (most other schools want him to play RB), but does not garner special mention.

Removed
TN OL Alex Bullard. Notre Dame commit.

Analysis
Alex Bullard isn’t a huge loss, mostly because it was expected. It may also indirectly help out with Chris Watt (whom I believe UM covets more than Bullard) by making the Irish less appealing to him.

Posted under Recruiting

Those who follow Michigan recruiting are likely aware that top quarterback commit Kevin Newsome is an elite track athlete. Newsome was an indoor All-American in the 60m hurdles, and now he is a state champ in outdoor track as well.

Newsome’s Western Branch team won the state title, thanks in part to Newsome’s victory in the 100m hurdle event. If simply reading about Newsome’s track exploits isn’t gratifying enough for you, take the time to indulge yourself in video of his championship performance:

Newsome is in the 5th lane, wearing dark blue with white compression shorts. Note the fact that he’s twice the size of most of the kids he’s running against.

Newsome also gave an interview to Milestat.com, available here. He doesn’t say anything that could be considered directly relevant to football, but it’s always nice to hear from Michigan commits to get an idea of what they are like as people.

Congratulations to Kevin, and we look forward to seeing him in Ann Arbor… though if he plans to enroll early, it does mean he’ll have to forgo track his senior year.

In news on other commits…
Newsome’s QB counterpart was named City Athlete of the Year. Fitzgerald Toussaint has missed most of track season with an injury. Free update on 2008 JT Floyd from Scout’s SC site.

Posted under Recruiting, Video

Action since last rankings:
5-17-08 Michigan gains commitment from Bryce McNeal.
5-20-08 Wisconsin gains commitment from Jon Budmayr.
5-21-08 Notre Dame gains commitment from Carlo Calabrese.
5-26-08 Penn State gains commitment from Stephon Morris.
5-27-08 Ohio State gains commitment from Reid Fragel. Penn State gains commitments from Brandon Felder and Sean Stanley.
6-5-08 Michigan gains commitment from Jeremy Gallon. Notre Dame gains commitment from Dan Fox.
6-6-08 Notre Dame gains commitment from Alex Bullard.

New Rankings:

Buckeyes grab another Michigan player in Reid Fragel. It seems as though the instate schools (definitely Michigan) didn’t really want him.

Bell will likely end up a high 3-star or low 4-star (ESPN loves him). Bryce McNeal was one of Michigan’s top targets at split end. Gallon appeared on the Michigan radar about as fast as he runs. He is a top-100 player on Rivals, and will be ranked in the four-star range.

Penn State grabs a trio from Maryland. Stanley is a good prospect, the other two are underwhelming. They will be mid three-stars. Arcidiacono is underrated, Howle will end up as a high-three star, Figueroa a low three-star. Penn State has a quantity-over-quality class right now.

Calabrese is a very good prospect, not as overrated as your typical ND commit. Michigan and Ohio State didn’t seem to be pursuing Fox at all, and he wasn’t exactly a sleeper, so I doubt he is much better than a high three-star (with requisite ND-rounding to four). Bullard is an inside/outside prospect, who is a low-to-mid four-star. The Irish beat Michigan and Tennessee for his services.

Every player committed to State thus far is from Michigan. They haven’t gotten any commitments in seemingly forever, and more schools are likely to pass them as time goes on.

Keise will probably end up a mid 3-star.

Illinois started fast, but has since stagnated (and lost Melvin Fellows to the Bucks).

Wisconsin grabs their first out-of-state player, QB Jon Budmayr. Another breathing body would move them past Illinois unless the Illini start making some moves.

Ferentz’s glory days in recruiting seem to be over.

At least they have some commits. Come on, state of Indiana.

T-11th – Indiana, Purdue (0 commits)

Posted under Recruiting

Despite picking up a commitment last night, the Michigan coaching staff has no time to rest. Recruiting may be in focus again this weekend, as the Wolverines host their senior summer camp on Sunday. While the past Michigan regime would use camp as its primary pre-season recruiting effort, Rodriguez and Co. have already secured 9 commitments for 2009.

At this sort of event, there are usually several players who attend in hopes of gaining offers. Previously-offered prospects may attend such an event as a chance to take a campus visit, or get to know the coaching staff better. Committed recruits can also attend, in hopes of comparing their skills to other attendees or swaying top prospects in attendance.

Several in-state or regional prospects will likely attend seeking offers, such as Zach Matthias and Youngstown Liberty’s Julius Ferrell. Among offered prospects, Dennis Thames is a confirmed attendee (info in header).

Michigan’s summer camps won’t end this weekend, however. The Rich Rodriguez Michigan Football Camp takes place the 15th-19th, followed immediately by the 7-on-7 passing camp on the 20th and 21st. The Michigan Kicking Camp takes place June 29th-30th.

Posted under Recruiting