//

Big Ten 2009 Recruiting Class Rankings 10-11-08

Action since last rankings:
10-5-08 Iowa gains commitment from Scott Covert.
10-6-08 Wisconsin gains commitment from Conor O’Neill. Purdue gains commitment from Eric McDaniel.
10-7-08 Michigan State gains commitment from Denicos Allen 3*LB
10-9-08 Notre Dame gains commitment from Zeke Motta.

New Rankings:

#1 Ohio State – 25 commits
LB ***** Dorian Bell
RB **** Jaamal Berry
DT **** Johnny Simon
DE **** Melvin Fellows
CB **** CJ Barnett
WR **** James Jackson
MLB **** Storm Klein
MLB **** Jordan Whiting
RB **** Jordan Hall
OG **** Corey Linsley
OT **** Jack Mewhort
S **** Jamie Wood
WR **** Justin Green
RB **** Carlos Hyde
CB **** Corey Brown
S **** Bradley McDougald
WR **** Chris Fields
CB **** Dominic Clarke
WR *** Duron Carter
DE *** Jonathan Newsome
TE *** Reid Fragel
DT *** Adam Bellamy
FB *** Adam Homan
LB *** Zach Boren
OL *** Sam Longo
#2 Michigan – 19 commits
CB **** Justin Turner
QB **** Tate Forcier
QB **** Shavodrick Beaver
WR **** Bryce McNeal
RB **** Fitzgerald Toussaint
WR **** Jeremy Gallon
OL **** Michael Schofield
DT **** DeQuinta Jones
DE **** Anthony LaLota
DE **** Craig Roh
S *** Isaiah Bell
WR *** DeWayne Peace
RB *
**
Teric Jones
LB *** Jordan Barnes
S *** Mike Jones
K *** Anthony Fera
LB *** Brandin Hawthorne
RB *** Vincent Smith
S *** Thomas Gordon
#3 Notre Dame – 15 commits
RB ***** Cierre Wood
OL **** Chris Watt
RB **** Theo Riddick
DT **** Tyler Stockton
OL **** Alex Bullard
CB **** Marlon Pollard
LB **** Dan Fox
OL **** Zach Martin
LB **** Zeke Motta
S *** Nyshier Oliver
S *** EJ Banks
TE *** Tyler Eifert
MLB *** Carlo Calabrese
P *** Ben Turk
K ** Nicholas Tausch
TE ** Jake Golic
#4 Michigan State – 15 commits
RB **** Edwin Baker
RB **** Larry Caper
SLB **** Chris Norman
OL **** David Barrent
WR **** Donald Spencer
DT **** Blake Treadwell
QB **** Andrew Maxwell
OL **** Nate Klatt
WR *** Dana Dixon
LB *** Tyquan Hammock
OL *** Micajah Reynolds
WR *** Patrick White
DE *** Dan France
LB *** Denicos Allen
WR ** Bennie Fowler
TE ** Derek Hoebing
#5 Penn State – 18 commits
OT **** Eric Shrive
CB **** Darrell Givens
DE **** Sean Stanley
S *** Stephen Obeng-Agyapong
S *** Malcolm Willis
S *** Derrick Thomas
C *** Ty Howle
CB *** Stephon Morris
WR *** Brandon Felder
OT *** Adam Gress
OL *** Nate Cadogan
RB *** Curtis Dukes
LB *** Glenn Carson
ATH *** Devon Smith
QB ** Curtis Drake
OG ** Frank Figueroa
WR ** Christian Kuntz
OT ** Mark Arcidiacono
#6 Illinois – 14 commits
DT **** Lendell Buckner
OT **** Leon Hill
QB **** Nathan Scheelhaase
RB **** Bud Golden
WR **** Terry Hawthorne
OL *** Andrew Carter
FB *** Greg Fuller
OL *** Hugh Thornton
WR ** Steve Hull
S ** Tommie Hopkins
CB ** Joelil Thrash
OL ** Jake Feldmeyer
LB ** Darryl Lee
#7 Wisconsin – 15 commits
DT **** Jared Kohout
DE **** Shelby Harris
DE **** David Gilbert
LB *** Conor O’Neill
DE *** Tyler Dippel
OG *** Ryan Groy
QB *** Jon Budmayr
OT *** Zac Matthias
RB *** Montee Ball
TE *** Brian Wozniak
MLB *** Chris Borland
OL *** Travis Frederick
LB *** AJ Fenton
WR *** Jeff Duckworth
OL ** Casey Dehn
S ** Jason Peprah
#8 Minnesota – 9 commits
RB **** Hasan Lipscomb
RB **** Eric Stephens
QB *** Moses Alipate
C *** Ed Olsen
OT *** Josh Campion
WR *** Victor Keise
OL *** Brooks Michel
DE ** Nick Rengel
K ** Dan Orseske
#9 Indiana – 17 commits
LB *** Jeremy Gainer
QB *** Edward Wright-Baker
DT *** Adam Replogle
WR *** Jamonne Chester
WR *** Duwyce Wilson
OL *** Charles Chapman
QB *** Dustin Kiel
OL *** Colin Rodkey
CB *** Lawrence Barnett
K *** Mitch Ewald
S *** Nick Zachery
S *** Demetrius Carr
S *** Ted Bolser
OL *** Pat McShane
S ** Kenny Watkins
DE ** Javon Cornley
#10 Iowa – 6 commits
WR **** Keenan Davis
RB **** Brandon Wegher
WR *** Jordan Cotton
FB *** Brad Rogers
OL ** Drew Clark
DT ** Scott Covert
OL ** Brett Van Sloten

< br />

#11 Northwestern – 8 commits
OL **** Patrick Ward
QB *** Evan Watkins
RB *** Mike Trumpy
DE *** Anthony Battle
LB *** Will Studlien
WR ** Drew Moulton
OL ** Brian Smith
OL ** Taylor Paxton
LB * Tim Riley
#12 Purdue – 6 commits
DT *** Eric McDaniel
QB ** Rob Henry
DE ** Trevor Foy
S ** Ishmael Aristide
WR ** Gary Bush
DE ** Shayon Green
WR ** Josh Johnson

Posted under Recruiting

2009 Recruiting Update 10-10-08

The Board lives here. Going against the requests of commenters, I’m going to split up 2009 and 2010 updates for now. I think the main fear was that I would be giving less information as a result, but I think it will allow me to give more information on each class.

New Information:
MD RB Tavon Austin. Sets the state rushing record.
MN WR Commit Bryce McNeal. Planning to take visits elsewhere. This includes Florida (info in headers). His commitment appears to be soft, so keep an eye on him.
OH OL Marcus Hall. Selected for the Army Game. Michigan is likely on the outside looking in at his recruitment, however.
MD DE Jason Ankrah. Enjoyed Michigan visit.
MD LB Jelani Jenkins. Fluff relating to the ESPN2 game last week.
GA S/QB Donavan Tate. Plans on officially visiting Michigan. Odds of his choosing football over baseball are still pretty slim.
MD CB Travis Hawkins. Standard post-visit positivity towards Michigan (info in header). Similar vibes here (link same as above).
FL CB Angelo Hadley. Michigan is in his final four.

Removed:
VA DE Will Hill. He is down to a final group that does not include Michigan, after canceling a UM visit last weekend.

Etc.:
Is that a potential walk-on I’m sensing?

Analysis:
Very Maryland-centric update today. Hawkins and Ankrah both seemed to really dig the Ann Arbor experience. Bryce McNeal’s softening of commit status is somewhat troubling, though I still expect that he ends up in blue.

Posted under Recruiting

The Grand Unveiling: 2010 Recruiting Board

As I’ve mentioned before, I wasn’t planning on debuting the 2010 recruiting board until after the 2008 season, so I could focus on both this season and the 2009 recruiting class before I started worrying about recruiting for next year. However, with two commits already dropping, and a third likely to drop soon (I won’t say who, but it should be pretty obvious), I thought it might be about time to release our mewling babe into the wild.
The 2010 class if off to a great start, with two players already committed who project to 4-stars-plus, and at least one of whom (Ricardo Miller) has thrown himself headfirst into assisting with the recruiting effort for 2010. Another top recruit is expected to drop soon (I won’t say names, but it should be obvious), which means great things for the future of Michigan football.
On to the board. This started as an accumulation of names that I thought might be likely Michigan targets, continued with a very early top 100 for the class of 2010, and was expanded with the help of Allen Trieu of GoBlueWolverine, the always-exceptional Jim Stefani, and Luke Stampini of SoFlaFootball. As more potential recruits emerged, they were added to the board.
In case you aren’t familiar with how the Varsity Blue recruiting boards operate, let me spell it out for you. Once you reach the board, I encourage everyone to register for a login at the bottom of the page (if you’ve already made one for the 2009 recruiting board, you can use the same information), and you can comment on prospects, and even share articles about certain players in that individual’s comments section. Users who prove themselves to be reliable are eligible to be promoted to moderator status, in which they can add videos and information to the main body of a recruit’s page.
In case you were wondering how expansive the effort was, this board started with slightly more than 100 names, and has gone through several expansions. Its recent peak was a grand total of 274 prospects. Using my judgment and the information that has been available thus far, the board has been trimmed to 202 juniors of interest. It is these juniors that currently grace the board, though additions and subtractions are undoubtedly on the way.
Without further ado, I present the Varsity Blue 2010 Recruiting Board.
Stay tuned to Varsity Blue for updates on the 2010 recruiting class, and remember that you can always check back for the 2009 recruiting class as well. Thanks, and Go Blue!

Posted under Recruiting

Recruiting Update

The board holds all the info. There should be another recruiting update later this week.

Moved to Committed:

2010 WR Jeremy Jackson, on the invisible (for now) 2010 board. The board should go live within the next couple days.
New Information:
SC OL Quinton Washington. He seemed to really enjoy his Michigan visit, and felt wanted. Said similar stuff to Sam Webb.
GA TE Terrell Mitchell. Some stuff on official visit scheduling. Should he be teetering close to removal?
SC DE Chris Bonds. Michigan may be on the outside looking in for his 5th visit.
MD LB Jelani Jenkins. Bill Kurelic words his article in a weird way:
Although Jenkins prefers not to name any particular schools of interest, some thought to be in the running include: Penn State, USC, Stanford, Miami, Notre Dame, Florida, LSU and Virginia. However when asked about the Big Ten, Jenkins also mentioned Michigan and Michigan State — and Illinois can’t be ruled out.

He is making it sound like Michigan, Michigan State, and Illinois are afterthoughts. Is he being intentionally misleading (he is a Buckeye, after all), or just stupid (he is a Buckeye, after all)? Fluff regarding his family support in the recruiting process. We have video from his ESPN2 game, but we’ll save it for the next recruiting update.
Removed:
OK RB David Oku. Apparently, he has committed to Tennessee. With our RB numbers filling up, we weren’t likely to land him anyway.
NJ DB Nyshier Oliver. Notre Dame commit.
FL TE Orson Charles. Enjoyed a Georgia visit so much, they are now his co-leader with Miami. Florida and Florida State are his second tier. It appears as though those are his final group, so he is removed.
Etc.:
Allen Trieu/Sam Webb bring a new set of instate 2009 rankings. Big Will #1, Teric #6. State QB commit Andrew Maxwell is somehow #4, though I’ve seen him play this year and he was terrible.
Other 2010 News:
FL S Marvin Robinson. Michigan is the favorite (perhaps prohibitive?) for the bigtime safety. Duh.
A question for all: once the 2010 board debuts, should 2010 recruiting updates be rolled in with the standard 2009 updates, or have their own dedicated posts?

Posted under Recruiting

Friday Night Lights 2009: October 5

If you know of an article that can help out, let me know. I’ll fill in the remaining game articles/stats as I find the articles. The 2010 commits will not be included in FNL (unless there is substantial demand for it), but I will include a junior season wrap at the end of this year.

UPDATE: Monday, 11:00 AM Article linked for Apopka-Edgewater game, added a pre-game video fluff deal on Gallon and Jones.

CA QB Tate Forcier
This Week: Scripps Ranch v. Serra. Scripps wins 42-35.

Season Totals: Scripps Ranch 3-1.
Tate Forcier 2008
Game Comp Att % Yds TD Int Yds/Att Rush Yds Yds/Att TD
Poway 19 32 59.38 269 1 0 8.41 8 81 10.13 2
West Hills 16 29 55.17 234 1 0 8.07 0
Morse 10 12 83.33 267 5 0 22.25 0
Serra 15 20 75.00 228 2 2 11.40 4 28 7.00 2
Totals 45 73 61.64 770 7 0 10.55 12 109 9.08 4

TX QB Shavodrick Beaver

This Week: Rider v. Denton Guyer. Rider wins, 31-28. Beaver injures his non-throwing shoulder, will miss a few weeks.
Beaver was injured on a hit by Denton Guyer linebacker Blake Terry in the first quarter Thursday night in Denton. His shoulder was wrapped and he came back early in the second quarter and directed the Raiders’ 31-28 win over the Wildcats.

Keep in mind his passing stats would likely have been much better if he hadn’t been playing with a fairly severe injury.

Season Totals: Rider 2-3.
Shavodrick Beaver 2008
Game Comp Att % Yds TD Int Yds/Att Rush Yds Yds/Att TD
Cedar Hill 18 25 72.00 272 1 0 10.88 14 103 7.36 2
Sulphur Springs 21 33 63.64 249 2 2 7
.55
18 84 4.67 0
Tyler 13 26 50.00 105 1 0 4.04 8 55 6.88 1
Ryan 9 18 50.00 123 0 0 6.83 7 27 3.86 2
Guyer 13 24 54.17 139 2 0 5.79 2 18 9.00 0
Totals 74 126 58.73 888 6 2 7.04 49 287 5.86 5

MI RB Teric Jones
This Week: Cass v. Southeastern. Cass loses, 20-12. No stats found for the game yet.

Season Totals: Cass 5-1.

Teric Jones 2008
Game Rush Yds Yds/Att TD
Central 18 157 8.72 2
Pershing
Crockett (200+)
Denby 7 124 17.71 2
King 9 103 11.44 1
Southeastern
Totals 57 580 10.18 5

If Jones’s stats seem kinda low, it’s partially because he hasn’t seen the second half in many of Cass Tech’s blowouts so far.

OH RB Fitzgerald Toussaint
This Week: Liberty v. Lakeview. Liberty wins 20-16.

Toussaint needed plenty of internal fortitude to handle the beating he took from a defense that sent every available body at him on each of his 32 carries. It wasn’t until he rushed for 64 yards on a scoring drive in the fourth quarter to give Liberty a 20-14 lead that he was in the flow that has targeted him as the best back in the area.

Another article, featuring a fun fact:

His first 16 carries went for 85 yards. His last 14 went for 165.

Obviously a slight discrepancy in total yardage. I’ll go with the more flattering one.
Side note: a grand jury chose not to indict his dad on a couple of the charges from the stabby guy incident.

Season Totals: Liberty 7-0.

Fitzgerld Toussaint 2008
Game Rush Yds Yds/Att TD Rec Yds Yds/Rec TD
< /td>
Brookfield 19 115 6.05 1 1 48 48.00 1
Niles 15 209 13.93 4
Campbell 15 261 17.40 4
Struthers 19 258 13.58 4
Salem 13 246 18.92 4
Champion 14 282 20.14 5
Lakeview 32 253 7.91 2
Totals 127 1624 14.43 22 1 48 48.00 1

How disgusting is it that a bad week for Toussaint is 8ypc and only 2 TDs? Dude is ridiculous. He also got as many carries in one game as he had been averaging ever 2 games. He also had a game-saving goalline interception.

FL RB Vincent Smith
This Week: Pahokee v. Byrnes (SC). Pahokee loses 38-12.
Season Totals: Pahokee 4-1.

Vincent Smith 2008
Game Rush Yds Yds/Att TD
Olive Branch 17 135 7.94 2
PB Gardens 12 73 6.08 2
King’s (100+)
PB Lakes 19 241 12.68 3
Jupiter 156 2
Byrnes 65 0
Totals 48 449 9.35 9

MN WR Bryce McNeal
This Week: Breck v. Minnehaha.
Season Totals: Breck 3-2 (plus)

Bryce McNeal 2008
Game Rec Yds Yds/Rec TD KORet Yds TD
Concordia 13 81 6.23 1
Brooklyn Center 4 68 17.00 0
St. Bernard’s 2 21 10.50 0 1 85 1
Blake 4 27 6.75 0
St. Croix 1 85 1
Minnehaha
Totals 23 197 8.57 1 2 170 2

FL Slot Jeremy Gallon
This Week: Apopka v. Edgewater. Apopka wins 21-19.
Pregame fluff on Gallon and Jones:

Season Totals: Apopka 4-1.

Jeremy Gallon 2008
Passing Rushing Receiving
Game Comp Att % Yds TD Int Yds/Att Rush Yds Yds/Att TD Rec Yds Yds/Rec TD
Lake Brantley 1 1 100.00 60 1 0 60 ? 226 ? 0 1 27 27.00 1
Freedom 1 3 33.00 5 0 ? 54 ? 2 1 6 6.00 0
South Panola 5 8 62.50 132 2 0 16.5 22 160 7.27 1
Ocoee
Edgewater 2
Totals 7 12 59.38 195 3 0 8.41 63 440 6.98 3 2 33 16.50 1

Also, 1 KO return TD

IL OL Michael Schofield
This Week: Sandburg v. Joliet. Sandburg wins 35-7.
Season Totals: Sandburg 5-1.

LA DT DeQuinta Jones
This Week: Bastrop v. Rayville. Bastrop wins 60-31.

Season Totals: Bastrop 5-0.
Jones: 6 tackles against RichWood

NJ DE Anthony LaLota
This Week: Hun v. Lawrenceville. Hun wins 34-6.
Season Totals: Hun 3-1.

Anthony LaLota 2008
Defense Offense
Game Tackle Sack Team Rush
Wyoming Seminary
Mercersburg 5 2 406
Penn Charter
Lawrenceville 252
Totals 19 32 658

AZ DE Craig Roh
This Week: Chaparral v. McClintock. Chaparral wins 52-14. Y más. The defensive line alone scored 7 sacks, but there was no mention of Roh in either article.
Season Totals: Chaparral 6-0.

Craig Roh 2008
Game Tackle Sack Safety Int Yds Def TD Rec Yds 2Pt
Marana 13 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 3 1
Cienega 13 2.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Prescott 6 2.5 1 0 0 0 1 3 1
Copper Canyon 7 2 0 1 60 1 0 0 0
Apache Junction
McClintock
Totals 39 5.5 1 1 60 1 2 6 2

IN LB Jordan Barnes
This Week: Homestead v. Carroll. Homestead wins 25-8. Very strong defensive effort from the Spartans, and particularly Barnes.

“We knew that under pressure he would just throw it up,” said senior linebacker Jordan Barnes, who has committed to Michigan and who had an interception. “We knew we had to get off the edge and get some pressure on him so we did that tonight, and it obviously worked for us… We were coming off the edge really hard and were blitzing hard at him. He would roll out and just sometimes he would make good decisions and sometimes he wouldn’t.”

Barnes also forced a fumble, which his team recovered. This moment immortalized here, with photo credit giong to Chris Keller of the Journal-Gazette. Barnes is number 9 in white.
Season Totals: Homestead 6-1.

FL LB Mike Jones
This Week: Edgewater v. Apopka. Edgewater loses 21-19.
Season Totals: Edgewater 1-3.
Jones: 5 tackles, 1 sack, 1 blocked FG.

FL LB Brandin Hawthorne
This Week: Pahokee v. Byrnes (SC). Pahokee loses 38-12.
Season Totals: Pahokee 4-1.

OH S Isaiah Bell
This Week: Liberty v. Lakeview. Liberty wins 20-16. Article 2.

Liberty quarterback Anthony Cleveland threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Bell to open the scoring.

Season Totals: Liberty 7-0.

MI S Thomas Gordon
This Week: Cass v. Southeastern. Cass loses, 20-12. Gordon was injured during the game, and may be out a week or two.
Season Totals: Cass 5-1.

Thomas Gordon 2008
Game Comp Att % Yds TD Int Yds/Att Rush Yds Yds/Att TD
Central
Pershing
Crockett
Denby 10 16 62.50 163 3 0 10.19
King 1 1 100 3 (2pt) 0 3.00 14 98 7.00 0
Southeastern 1
Totals

OH CB/S Justin Turner
This Week: Washington v. Brantford. Massillon wins 69-7. Turner was suspended for the game (team rules).
Season Totals: Washington 4-3.


Justin Turner 2008
Game Rush Yds Yds/Att TD Rec Yds Yds/Rec TD Int Yds TD
Buchtel 22 140 6.36 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Jordan 23 128 5.57 1
Normandy ? 156 3
Ursuline 1 13 13.00 1
Garfield 22 192 8.73 2 1 41 1
St. Ignatius 1 1
Brantford DNP (violation of team rules).
Totals 69 460 6.67 6 1 13 13.00 1 2 41 2

TX CB/WR DeWayne Peace
This Week: South Grand Prairie v. Cedar Hill. SGP loses 14-0. Highlights (no Peace).

Season Totals: SGP 4-2.

DeWayne Peace 2008
Game Rec Yds Yds/Rec TD Rush Yds Yds/Rush TD Yds Yds/Att TD
Berkner
Martin
Summit
Northwest 5 70 14.00 2 2 65 32.5 1
Nimitz
Cedar Hill
Totals 22 363 16.5 7 1 0 8.41 8 81 10.13 2

Found some season stats (totals updated accordingly)

TX K Anthony Fera
This Week: Pius v. Kelly. Pius wins 22-21. Fera’s missed PAT was blocked.

Season Totals: Pius 2-1

Anthony Fera 2008
Game XPM XPA % FGM FGA % Long
Westbury 5 5 100 1 1 100 39
Columbia 1 1 100 0 0
Sealy 2 2 100 0 0
Kelly 1 2 50.00 1 1 100 32
Totals 9 10 90.00 1 1 100 39

Posted under Recruiting

Big Ten 2009 Recruiting Class Rankings 10-4-08

Action since last rankings:

9-27-08 Wisconsin gains commitment from David Gilbert. Wisconsin gains commitment from Tyler Dippel.
9-29-08 Northwestern gains commitment from Will Studlien. Penn State gains commitment from Glenn Carson.
9-30-08 Penn State gains commitment from Devon Smith.
10-1-08 Notre Dame gains commitment from Nyshier Oliver.
Despite a fairly eventful week in terms of commitments, no change in the team rankings.

New Rankings:

#1 Ohio State – 25 commits
LB ***** Dorian Bell
RB **** Jaamal Berry
DT **** Johnny Simon
DE **** Melvin Fellows
CB **** CJ Barnett
WR **** James Jackson
MLB **** Storm Klein
MLB **** Jordan Whiting
RB **** Jordan Hall
OG **** Corey Linsley
OT **** Jack Mewhort
S **** Jamie Wood
WR **** Justin Green
RB **** Carlos Hyde
CB **** Corey Brown
S **** Bradley McDougald
WR **** Chris Fields
CB **** Dominic Clarke
WR *** Duron Carter
DE *** Jonathan Newsome
TE *** Reid Fragel
DT *** Adam Bellamy
FB *** Adam Homan
LB *** Zach Boren
OL *** Sam Longo
#2 Michigan – 19 commits
CB **** Justin Turner
QB **** Tate Forcier
QB **** Shavodrick Beaver
WR **** Bryce McNeal
RB **** Fitzgerald Toussaint
WR **** Jeremy Gallon
OL **** Michael Schofield
DT **** DeQuinta Jones
DE **** Anthony LaLota
DE **** Craig Roh
S *** Isaiah Bell
WR *** DeWayne Peace
RB *** Teric Jones
LB *** Jordan Barnes
S *** Mike Jones
K *** Anthony Fera
LB *** Brandin Hawthorne
RB *** Vincent Smith
S *** Thomas Gordon
#3 Notre Dame – 15 commits
RB ***** Cierre Wood
OL **** Chris Watt
RB **** Theo Riddick
DT **** Tyler Stockton
OL **** Alex Bullard
CB **** Marlon Pollard
LB **** Dan Fox
OL **** Zach Martin
S *** Nyshier Oliver
S *** EJ Banks
TE *** Tyler Eifert
MLB *** Carlo Calabrese
P *** Ben Turk
K ** Nicholas Tausch
TE ** Jake Golic
#4 Michigan State – 15 commits
RB **** Edwin Baker
RB **** Larry Caper
SLB **** Chris Norman
OL **** David Barrent
WR **** Donald Spencer
DT **** Blake Treadwell
QB **** Andrew Maxwell
OL **** Nate Klatt
WR *** Dana Dixon
LB *** Tyquan Hammock
OL *** Micajah Reynolds
WR *** Patrick White
DE *** Dan France
WR ** Bennie Fowler
TE ** Derek Hoebing

< td style="border:1px solid rgb(0,0,102);">****

#5 Penn State – 18 commits
OT **** Eric Shrive
CB Darrell Givens
DE **** Sean Stanley
S *** Stephen Obeng-Agyapong
S *** Malcolm Willis
S *** Derrick Thomas
C *** Ty Howle
CB *** Stephon Morris
WR *** Brandon Felder
OT *** Adam Gress
OL *** Nate Cadogan
RB *** Curtis Dukes
LB *** Glenn Carson
ATH *** Devon Smith
QB ** Curtis Drake
OG ** Frank Figueroa
WR ** Christian Kuntz
OT ** Mark Arcidiacono
#6 Illinois – 14 commits
DT **** Lendell Buckner
OT **** Leon Hill
QB **** Nathan Scheelhaase
RB **** Bud Golden
WR **** Terry Hawthorne
OL *** Andrew Carter
FB *** Greg Fuller
OL *** Hugh Thornton
WR ** Steve Hull
S ** Tommie Hopkins
CB ** Joelil Thrash
OL ** Jake Feldmeyer
LB ** Darryl Lee
#7 Wisconsin – 15 commits
DT **** Jared Kohout
DE **** Shelby Harris
DE **** David Gilbert
DE *** Tyler Dippel
OG *** Ryan Groy
QB *** Jon Budmayr
OT *** Zac Matthias
RB *** Montee Ball
TE *** Brian Wozniak
MLB *** Chris Borland
OL *** Travis Frederick
LB *** AJ Fenton
WR *** Jeff Duckworth
OL ** Casey Dehn
S ** Jason Peprah
#8 Minnesota – 9 commits
RB **** Hasan Lipscomb
RB **** Eric Stephens
QB *** Moses Alipate
C *** Ed Olsen
OT *** Josh Campion
WR *** Victor Keise
OL *** Brooks Michel
DE ** Nick Rengel
K ** Dan Orseske
#9 Indiana – 17 commits
LB *** Jeremy Gainer
QB *** Edward Wright-Baker
DT *** Adam Replogle
WR *** Jamonne Chester
WR *** Duwyce Wilson
OL *** Charles Chapman
QB *** Dustin Kiel
OL *** Colin Rodkey
CB *** Lawrence Barnett
K *** Mitch Ewald
S *** Nick Zachery
S *** Demetrius Carr
S *** Ted Bolser
OL *** Pat McShane
S ** Kenny Watkins
DE ** Javon Cornley
#10 Iowa – 6 commits
WR **** Keenan Davis
RB **** Brandon Wegher
WR *** Jordan Cotton
FB *** Brad Rogers
OL ** Drew Clark
OL ** Brett Van Sloten

Evan Watkins

#11 Northwestern – 8 commits
OL **** Patrick Ward
QB ***
RB *** Mike Trumpy
DE *** Anthony Battle
LB *** Will Studlien
WR ** Drew Moulton
OL ** Brian Smith
OL ** Taylor Paxton
LB * Tim Riley
#12 Purdue – 6 commits
QB ** Rob Henry
DE ** Trevor Foy
S ** Ishmael Aristide
WR ** Gary Bush
DE ** Shayon Green
WR ** Josh Johnson

Posted under Recruiting

Comments Off on Big Ten 2009 Recruiting Class Rankings 10-4-08

Tags: ,

Programming Update

No podcast this week, because the Sports Editor of [STUDENT MEDIA OUTLET REDACTED] is too important to answer his e-mail. This is unfortunate, because I’ve really been enjoying the podcasts, as well as the process of making them. Such is life, however, and we will move on.

Inside The Play for this week will be published this afternoon. It will focus on the Kevin Koger touchdown that helped spark the Michigan comeback against Wisconsin.
I hadn’t been planning on posting the 201o recruiting board until after the season, and even when Ricardo Miller committed, I had hoped I would be able to delay. I figured the next commitment would come over the MSU recruiting weekend (a biggie, where I also originally expected Ricardo Miller to drop), and I would still be fairly timely by waiting until December. However, with two commits already in the class, I would be remiss to not publish what I’ve already been working on. I’ll finish polishing it up this week and over the weekend, and you can expect to see the 2010 recruiting board sometime early next week. If you’re dying for info before that, head over to Genuinely Sarcastic, whom I helped a bit with adding prospects to their board.
That said, don’t expect to see 2010 recruiting updates with any frequency until after the 2008 football season ends. Once the 2009 class is signed, the assumptions (scholarship numbers, needs, etc.) for the 2010 class will be much more concrete, and the updates will come fast and furious (though at this pace, the 2010 class might be full by then).

Posted under Blog News, Recruiting

Jeremy Jackson Goes Blue

I love being right.

After Florida’s Ricardo Miller jumped on board, it didn’t take long for Michigan’s 2010 recruiting to get rolling. Fellow WR Jeremy Jackson, the son of Michigan running backs coach Fred Jackson, has also committed to sign with the Wolverines in February 2010. Jackson is a 6-3, 180-lb wideout from Ann Arbor Huron High School.

Recruiting Notes
Jackson has obviously been aware of the Wolverines for a long time. His father has been an assistant at Michigan since Jeremy was born, and Jeremy has been attending Michigan games as long as he can remember. Jeremy has attended more practices, spring games, and games than probably any other commitment in the history of recruiting, certainly at Michigan. Jeremy said early in the recruiting process that, despite his interest in and familiarity with Michigan, he would like to take several other trips, including to Florida and Texas. Despite his interest elsewhere, it was clear that he would always have a place at Michigan. At Michigan’s 2008 summer camp, he bonded with Ricardo Miller and Marvin Robinson, both of whom were also interested in Michigan. Following Miller’s commitment, Jackson decided he wanted to spend his college days with his friend in Ann Arbor, and pulled the trigger for Michigan.
Player Notes
Jackson is a tall, leaping, deep-threat type receiver, though he lacks elite speed. He has good hands, prompting some to call him “a taller Jason Avant.” Considering Jason Avant made the NFL despite slightly sub-optimal size for a possession receiver, it is easy to see why the coaches are excited about Jackson (also, one of them is his dad. Pretty easy for Fred to be excited). Being a gritty coach of a son (can we even say that about a guy who’s not white?) also means he is probably pretty polished without tons of college coaching, and the fact that Fred has coached WRs in the past (at Purdue, South Carolina, and Navy) means that his coaching probably helped Jeremy a lot.

Posted under Recruiting

Is More Good 2010 News on the Way?

After Ricardo Miller gave his pledge to Michigan a couple days ago, fans were understandably surprised that a 2010 prospect would be giving a commitment so soon. However, Ricardo is on pace to be one of the top 2010 prospects, and the great start to a recruiting class.

Allow me to disclaim that I flatly refuse to stalk prospects on social networking websites, but when a lot of people bring something to my attention, I will post about it if I find the information to be relevant.
The Myspace page for Florida’s Marvin Robinson indicates that he is soon to commit to the Michigan Wolverines. His older brother (sorry the name escapes me right now. James something? Scott maybe?), who plays for a JuCo in Iowa, has a message on his page stating that when his brother goes to Michigan, he will end up a Wolverine as well. Things look good on the Marvin Robinson front, even if they don’t happen as soon as the Myspace postings make it seem. On Buckeye Planet, unionfutura (an established OSU insider of some sort) has the following to say about Marvin:
per his request we’ve stopped recruiting him.

This is a good thing, indicating that he is soon to commit (Ohio state was among his top teams as well).
In other news, several people have let me know that Jeremy Jackson (son of Fred Jackson) has put a message on his Facebook page indicating that he has committed to the Michigan Wolverines. Again, take this for what it’s worth.
Social networking sites are not foolproof indicators of recruiting news, but there is certainly something to be said for hearing information directly from the horse’s mouth. Take this all for what it’s worth. If nothing else, it certainly means Michigan is in good shape for these guys.

Posted under Recruiting

Recruiting Update 10-1-08

Hate to note you to death on recruiting, BAM here’s some more. Check out today’s nearly-full prospectus immediately below this post.

The board lives here.

Moved to Committed:
MI S Thomas Gordon. lolspartylol.
FL WR Ricardo Miller. He’s on the invisible 2010 board.
New Information:
LA WR Rueben Randle. Freep recruiting fluff. He plans an official visit to Ann Arbor (likely with HS teammate/Michigan commit DeQuinta Jones).
CA OL Michael Philipp. He’s still feeling the Pac-10 and Cal (info in header). Michigan is neither of those things (Cal is both).
MD DE Jason Ankrah. Will visit Michigan this weekend with teammate Travis Hawkins.
MD LB Jelani Jenkins. Some recruiting fluff from the Freep. Sam Webb will see that and raise it in the News. Michigan grades out well in The Matrix (I’m not joking, click the link). By the way, Good Counsel will be on ESPN2 this Thursday.
MD CB Travis Hawkins. Visiting for Illinois (link same as above).
AL CB Dre Kirkpatrick. It appears he’s only taking visits to SEC country. Word on the street is that Georgia conceded him to Alabama Saturday night, and pretty much gave up recruiting him (though the Bama coaches were recruiting him – at their away game).
Etc.:
ESPN ruminates about home-schooled athletes, including Tate Foricer. The visitors at Saturday’s game liked the team’s conditioning and effort.
Analysis:
Requisite Gordon-Will Campbell good feelings exist. Miller’s commitment is a good way to keep recruiting mojo working when the 2009 class is mostly full. 

Posted under Recruiting