Steven Threet has pledged to become a Michigan Wolverine, after attending Georgia Tech for a semester and realizing that Chan Gailey is a mediocre (perpetually 7-5) coach.

Threet would have been a huge Michigan target last year, but with Ryan Mallett on the radar, he was not offered, and Michigan recruiting fans forgot about him. Thuogh Michigan fans paid him little mind, he is probably the best HS QB in the state since Drew Henson. Experts peg him on approximately the same level as this year’s Dayne Crist (ND).

Threet will have to redshirt next year, then have four years to play. An interesting factor in his commitment is the fact that Michigan promised Ryan Mallett they would only take one quarterback in the 2007 class, when they have now taken two.

Depth and Eligibility Charts updated accordingly.

Posted under Personnel, Recruiting

John Wienke… What do we know about him? I found this video on youtube, and the username posting it was “mgoblog” but I found nothing about it posted on mgoblog itself, so pardon me if it’s a repost of Brian.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcM81DaAEBI]

He is a left-handed quarterback who chose Michigan over Illinois and Iowa, with other offers including Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico, Kentucky, Iowa State, and MAC teams.

He is a 6’6″ lefty, and was the MVP amongst the quarterbacks at Michigan’s summer camp, as well as the Nike camp at Colorado.

With his size and (presumed) mobility, he is a prototypical Michigan quarterback, aside from the whole lefty thing.

Wienke is ranked as low as he is (not at all! ZING!) mainly due to exposure, rather than because of his skills. I assum he’ll be a strong three or low four in the final rankings. He seems capable of serving as a capable backup for Mallett for a couple years, and likely won’t be the project that Cone was/is. With Mallett and Cone in the same class, Wienke will probably redshirt to get a year of separation, and be ready to start being the primary backup in ’09 (jesus, are we seriously talking about kids who won’t see the field for more than two years?). Wienke is more developed than the Navarre-esque Cone, but Cone will also have two years in the system before Wienke is actually a Wolverine.

The main issue with the kid is probably going to be the fact that he is left-handed. This changes a lot of things on the field, including the snap, the dropback, play action, even the spiral on the ball as wide receivers go to catch it (see: Lloyd bragging about Zoltan’s lefty spin on punts being harder to catch).

Posted under Recruiting

The Stonum commitment was expected, and he is gladly welcomed. The Weinke commitment wasn’t expected, but was certainly not a surprise, and he is welcomed as well.

Stonum is a high four-star player, and I’d be surprised if he doesn’t become a five-star player by the time the final Scout rankings come out. He is a tall(ish) receiver, around 6’2″, and speedy as well, with a 4.4 forty-yard time. The main area that it seems as though Stonum could improve is his strength, which will undoubtedly increase with some time in a college weight-training program. Stonum was in Michigan’s top tier of WR targets for the ’08 class, along with Jon Baldwin, so he was the guy the coaches want. With Baldwin reportedly favoring Notre Dame, Stonum’s commitment is huge for this recruiting class.

Weinke is a high-three or a four-star qurterback. He has been invited to this summer’s Elite 11 competition, so while his name may be a little unknown, his skills are nothing to sneeze at. He only recently appeared on the radar, but this was more likely due to exposure than the caliber of player that he is. Weinke was the best week-long camper at the quarterback position, and while he may not be the super that some fans want every year, he is not a sleeper, either. Weinke will probably redshirt his freshman year, putting him two classes behind Ryan Mallett. While he is more highly rated than David Cone (who will likely be Mallett’s backup), Cone will have spent two years under the tutelage of Scot Loeffler by the time he is serving as second-in-command.

Both of these players are quality pickups on the offensive side of the ball, leaving Michigan with only a couple more meeds there (RB (McGuffie?) HB(?) (C. Wilson?), maybe one more OT and TE). The rest of the recruiting efforts for the year will likely be spent on the defense, looking for an elite DE, maybe another DT, a couple more linebackers, and a host (hopefully 3-4) of defensive backs.

Posted under Recruiting

I fell asleep before the announcement. Without futher delay…

WR Daryl Stonum (6’2″+, 180, 4.40) from Sugarland, TX Dulles (alma mater of incoming freshmen Brandon Herron and Troy Woolfolk) has committed to the Michigan Wolverines. Scout ranks him as the #15 Wide Receiver in the country, but his ranking is likely to improve over time. He picked the Maize and Blue over USC and Florida.

This commitment is Michigan’s fourth from Texas over the last two recruiting classes, and the Wolverines are perhaps opening a pipeline in the Lonestar State. This is especially true if RB Sam McGuffie (he of Youtube fame) commits to Michigan as well.

Bill Martin has mentioned playing games in regions with large alumni bases or to help recruiting, so maybe we’ll see a home and home with a Texas team at some point in the future.

Posted under Recruiting

This is usually Tim’s territory, but he’s currently up North, so he left me to monitor the commitments over this weekend. He sent me an e-mail letting me know that Daryl Stonum was going to announce this Sunday as well as be on the look out for a commit from Sam McGuffie. So I did my homework on those two guys so I won’t sound completely like a fish out of water.

So I get home from work around 10pm and check Scout for any Stonum news. I see an article that says “Michigan Gets Commit #9!” So I’m getting ready to throw the stuff up about Stonum or McGuffie when I click the link and see John Wienke’s kind of smiling picture staring back at me.

So… Michigan gets its clip-board holder for the Ryan Mallet era. Luckily John Wienke (6’5″ 205lbs) looks to be a decent back-up prospect. He was selected as an Elite 11 Quarterback and put up some decent numbers (3221 yards. 56% completion rate, and 34 TDs to only 7 INTs) his junior year at Tuscola HS.

I’ll update the recruiting chart and keep my eye on Stonum’s announcement that should on around 11:15pm EDT.

Posted under Recruiting

I apologize for the fact that this looks like crap. I’ll have Paul fix it later.

McGuffie is in town AS WE SPEAK on an unofficial visit, and Stonum’s decision is pending Sunday at 2p.m. This list is more of a best guess than all-inclusive or exclusive.

Posted under Recruiting

Darryl Stonum, Texas WR extroardinaire, has set an announcement date. Stonum, he of the first name spelled a different way in every article (Daryl? Daryll?), will choose between Michigan USC, and Florida on Sunday.

The announcement by Scout’s #15 Wide Receiver will be aired on the local NBC affiliate, KPRC (Channel 2). With Michigan’s other big WR targets reportedly looking elsewhere (Jon Baldwin to Notre Dame and Fred Smith to Michigan State), if Stonum goes blue, it will be great news for the good guys.

Posted under Recruiting

Instate O-Lineman Rocko Khoury from Traverse City has commited to become a Michigan Wolverine. Khoury is the 8th commitment of the class for Michigan, and the fourth offensive lineman. Khoury is also the third interior OL prospect (probably a future OC). Line recruiting is likely to be completed for the year, unless a good-to-great tackle prospect (Zebrie Sanders, now that Graham Pocic is off the board to Illinois) wants to become a Wolverine as well.

Khoury is far from a world-beater (likely a high 3-star, Jim Stefani’s 13th prospect in Michigan and an honorable mention national ranking), but the coaches liked his athleticism at camp (30″ vertical), and offered him, leading to his commit today. The commitment is also good because Michigan needs to build depth at the position, after small OL classes in ’06 (3, though 2 of them were 5-stars) and ’07 (1, an instate sleeper in Mark Huyge).

While the class is not as stellar as that of Ohio State, for example, it is a strong offensive line class nonetheless, and hopefully the coaches can be trusted.

Posted under Recruiting

Cobrani Mixon is gone gone gone…

He’s transferring, either to Kent State or Cincinnati. Teh Facebooxz provides this evidence: “Cobrani is done with michigan this is his last night eva….”

This opens up one more scholarship for the future, giving the 2008 recruiting class a magic number of 18 for now. See the chart here (or any time by clicking on “important posts” in the sidebar)

Posted under Recruiting

The ’08 recruiting season isn’t over yet, and the Wolverine class is far from complete, but it’s not too early to start thinking about next year. This is especially true around camp time, when junior prospects start to impress coaches and earn offers. This year, it’s even more true, as Michigan has already received their first ’09 commitment.

In-state OT/DT (6’5, 298) William Campbell, from Cass Tech, was offered a scholarship and has committed to the Wolverines. He will join his teammate Boubacar Cissoko, who is a year ahead of him, as he will suit up in Maize and Blue in just over two years (!). He is Allen Trieu’s early #11 junior in the state, and Michigan recruited him along the defensive line.

This brings us to more junior prospects who are likely Michigan targets for ’09. Of course, all of this is dependent upon the class that Michigan signs this year, so any unexpected developments in the ’08 class will send ripples into the ’09 as well.

Larry Caper (RB, Battle Creek Central) is expected to be the #1 overall player in the state. He already holds a Michigan offer. He is a speedster at 5’11”, 190, and a national top-25 type guy.

CB/WR James Jackson, a 5’11, 170-lb product of Grand Blanc is fast fast fast, and one of the few players who may be able to challengew Caper for the crown of number one in Michigan. He earned an early offer from Michigan at summer camp.

Hersey Jackson is another stellar running back from Michigan, though he is more of a bruiser than a burner. At 6’1″, 220, the pride of Allendale may bulk up and play another position in college, or be a short-yardage back.

WR/TE Dion Sims from Orchard Lake Saint Mary’s is a tall receiver or a fast tight end, in the vein of Martell Webb. At 6’5″, 230, he is a load for anyone who tries to cover him, with a size or speed mismatch likely. Sims is also a top basketball prospect, and will have to choose which to play in college.

LB/FB/DE/1B Zach Boren Justin Boren’s little bro is a die-hard UM fan, and one of the factors that convinced Boren to go blue. If he plays football in college, he could be any of a number of positions, but he is also a big-time baseball prospect.

Elite QB (unknown) With Mallett likely to be entrenched for some time, Michigan will probably not get an elite QB in ’08, and an ’09 QB wouldn’t be scared away by Mr. Mallett. Signing a good-but-not-great QB in ’08, Michigan will need someone special in ’09.

These are just a few of the players that could be a part of Michigan’s 2009 recruiting class. Obviously nothing is set in stone so early. Michigan would almost definitely takes two backs if they were to only get one commit this year (please please McGuffie please), but if they were to get two, does that leave Hersey Jackson out in the cold? Michigan is also in on a number of top wide receivers, as well as some tight ends, so the class next year may be slightly smaller, allowing the maize-and-blue to be more selective in who they offer. Only time will tell.

Posted under Recruiting