Jim Stefani has a few QBs of interest to add to the recruiting board:

Barry Brunetti QB 6′1 206 4.65 Memphis University School Tennessee
Anthony Gonzalez QB/DB 6′2 193 Bethlehem Liberty Pennsylvania
Ricardo Young QB/ATH 6′0 155 4.78 Washington Woodson D.C.
Kain Colter QB/WR/DB 6′1 185 4.60 Greenwood Village Cherry Creek Colorado
Gavin Webster QB/DB 6′0 200 4.45 Lutcher Louisiana
Santez Emory QB 6′3 200 4.57 Franklin Heard County Georgia

…and also some good information on a few guys who are already there, so check out the article.

GA QB Barry Bostic has been offered by Georgia Tech, and they are his new leader (info in header).

Fluff on 2009 WR Commit Cameron Gordon, which also mentions his class of 2010 teammate, QB Devin Gardner:

Next year it will be Devin Gardner’s turn to celebrate his college choice with the Inkster faithful. The Vikings’ star quarterback could be throwing passes to Gordon at U-M or be the opposition if Gardner chooses to attend Ohio State, a school so high on him that head coach Jim Tressel visited recently and watched Gardner play in Inkster’s basketball game against Wyandotte Roosevelt…

“I was pretty excited at first,” said the 6-foot-5, 200-pound Gardner of the Tressel visit. “My heart was beating really fast, but as the game went on I just settled down and played within the team. I like basketball, but football is my first love.

Despite Tressel’s visit, Gardner is still not sporting an Ohio State offer.

The “other” instate QB, OLSM’s Robert Bolden, was recently the feature of an article by Sam Webb in the Detroit News. It’s pretty clear that Gardner is probably a higher priority for the staff (and with good reason), but Bolden might be a good fallback guy in the class.

The Free Press has an early in-state top-10 for next recruiting year, and The Sporting News had a national top-10 like substance. Gardner is on both lists, and Bolden is on the former while FL WR Commit Ricardo Miller is on the latter. From the former, I’ve added MI RB Chris Robinson from Ovid-Elsie to the Recruiting Board.

While we’re on the topic of early top-X lists, how about top-30 offerings from two of the biggest football counties in south Florida. Broward top-30, and Miami-Dade top-30.

Some Rivals fluff on VA QB Phillip Sims, who is still not mentioning Michigan (though he does talk about West Virginia). With his insistence on playing in a pro-style scheme, and no mention of the Wolverines yet, his tenure on the board may be close to coming to an end.

Posted under Football, Recruiting

Michigan 2009 WR/LB commit Cameron Gordon and 2010 QB prospect Devin Gardner in the MHSAA Division 3 championship game.

 

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Posted under Recruiting, Video

Moved to Committed: 2009 MI DT William Campbell. Relief, joy, etc.
Removed: 2009 MN WR Bryce McNeal Clemson commit, 2009 MS DT Pernell McPhee, who signed his LOI with Mississippi State, and 2010 IL OL Christian Lombard, who committed to Notre Dame.

This weekend is expected to be a big one for recruiting. The Freep says:

West Monroe, La., defensive end Barkevious Mingo, an Army All-American; Greenwood, S.C., defensive end Sam Montgomery, an UnderArmour All-American; and Denard Robinson of Deerfield Beach, Fla., who Michigan is looking at for the quarterback…

Inkster wide receiver Cameron Gordon and offensive tackle Michael Schofield of Orland Park, Ill., are the only two Michigan commitments scheduled to officially visit for the Jan. 9 weekend. Three-star defensive end Bennie Logan of Coushatta, La., and three-star cornerback Demontre Hurst of Lancaster, Texas, are also scheduled to officially visit at that time…

Leesville, La., wide receiver Travante Stallworth (Auburn) and Lafayette, La., wide receiver Ricky Johnson (Arkansas) have scheduled official visits in Ann Arbor for the Jan. 9 weekend.

According to SoFlaFootball, Adrian Witty will also be in town:

“I’m going to Michigan on the 9th, Kansas State on the 16th, 17th, Florida on the 23rd, Middle Tennessee and FIU the following week,” said Witty.

And Sam Webb filled in a bit more a while back (caution: this is the oldest source, so it may be a bit out of date). He said on WTKA that Je’Ron Stokes will be in town as well, along with maybe Josh Hunter.

And that’s one full recruiting weekend. With no basketball game until Sunday morning, I’m curious as to what the recruits will spend their time doing. I wouldn’t be surprised if they went to a hockey game over the weekend, so if you’re interested in helping with the recruiting effort, get out and support the reigning CCHA champs, as well. Also of note: I’d assume the early-enrolling commits will be on hand for the recruiting visit, and it’s more likely that some of these guys have built up relationships with fellow members of the class of 2009. Will Tate Forcier, Big Will, and the gang be a valuable recruiting force for the rest of this class?

Look for another recruiting update later this week.

Posted under Football, Recruiting

Yeah, so obviously this one was supposed to be published before the one that came out earlier this week, but oh well. On to the information.
Recruiting Boards:
2009 & 2010. These are also always available if you look directly to the left.

Moved to Committed:
2009 MI WR Cameron Gordon. Commit article.
2009 AZ OL Taylor Lewan.

Moved from Committed:
2009 IN LB Jordan Barnes. From the sounds of it, he isn’t going to give Michigan a ton of consideration going forward after his decommit. He has been removed from the board.

Also removed from the board: 2009 VA QB Kevin Newsome, who has committed to Penn State.

Added to the 2010 recruiting board: AL WR BJ Chitty, a recent Auburn decommit (audio)

Might 2010 FL RB Corvin Lamb be favoring FIU?:

The kid you’re thinking about, Northwestern High’s Corvin Lamb, a junior, who has not committed to FIU just yet.

Uh, what? If FIU were to land this kid (likely a top-100 type), it would be something of a major coup. I guess stranger things have happened, so be on the lookout. However, other sources indicate he’s a big Florida fan. That makes a little more sense, considering it’s not crazy.

2009 OH S Commit Isaiah Bell will likely end up at linebacker at Michigan (info in header). Obviously, this stems from what the coaches have told him is his likely position here, though I guess that could theoretically mean a bandit-type position if there is indeed a coordinator change.

Among those visiting Florida last weekend was 2009 MD LB Jelani Jenkins. Michigan is in the mix to get one of his remaining official visits. Word on the street, however, is that he’s all but committed to the Gators, with Penn State as the only likely challenger remaining.

2009 JC DE Pernell McPhee enjoyed his official visit. So much, that he has now proclaimed he favors UM over Miss State. Oddly for a kid from Florida (via Mississippi), he likes the cold and snow, and he also enjoyed himself at the hoops game. He’s still nominally committed to Mississippi State, so he remains off the board for now, but UM might be right in this one. The JC signing period started yesterday, and he has not signed an LOI anywhere.

New offers? New offers:

“Michigan assistant coach Jay Hopson was in Coushatta, La., recently to check out one of the Bayou State’s top rising prospects – Red River defensive end Bennie Logan. After U-M’s evaluation, Logan had an offer from Michigan. Assistant coaches also extended offers to Tallahassee (Fla.) FAMU defensive end Alex Williams and Lancaster, Texas, cornerback Demontre Hurst on recent visits to their schools.”

Logan had already been added to the board. Williams will be added, and Hurst re-added after he was on it briefly earlier this year.

2010 FL LB Anthony Hamm really, really likes Florida. He’s now teetering on the edge of removal, and it sounds like he’ll commit to the Gators soon anyway.

Want to know who else sounds like a lost cause? 2010 Pahokee DT Doral Willis. When an article is entitled “I Would Commit to Miami on the Spot,” he’s pretty much a done deal, assuming the ‘Canes offer. I’ll leave him on the board for now, in case they don’t.

Posted under Recruiting

Wide receiver Cameron Gordon of Inkster, Michigan has given his word to sign with Michigan in February. Gordon is a 6-3, 210-lb player who has been measured at 4.6 in the 40-yard dash. He is Michigan’s 21st commit in the class of 2009.

Recruiting Notes
Gordon started the recruiting year as someone Michigan fans expected to likely end up in the Wolverines’ recruiting class. However, it certainly ended up taking significantly longer than they expected (although he had always planned to take his time with a decision). At the end of his junior year, he announced that he would be transferring from Melvindale High School to Inkster, where he would have a better opportunity to excel athletically. During the summer, he attended Michigan’s summer camp. The Wolverine coaches told him that they liked him more as a linebacker, and told him that he would receive an offer if he was willing to play at that position in college. With a noncommittal answer, Michigan’s offer took significantly longer to arrive than Gordon would have otherwise liked. When he finally received his offer in November, Gordon took a visit to Iowa, who had been on him all along. However, the allure of the Michigan offer was too much to pass up, and he committed to Michigan today.

Player Notes
Gordon is a big, physical receiver, with large measurables for the position. He lacks elite speed, but is able to beat defenders, using his body well and catching it at the highest point with his biug hands. However, Michigan fans liked the physical play he could bring to a linebacker position at the next level. It will be interesting to see whether he remains at receiver when he gets to the next level, or at least be open to a potential position switch.

Etc.
This year, Gordon was catching passes thrown by 2010 dual-threat quarterback prospect Devin Gardner, who is certainly one of the top targets on Michigan’s recruiting board. Securing a commitment from Gordon should go a long way to helping Michigan land his teammate in the next recruiting class.

Posted under Football, Recruiting

The Boards: 2009 & 2010

2009 MI WR Cameron Gordon has received his offer (Sam Webb audio). I personally would like to see him end up in Ann Arbor, though Iowa should provide tough competition.

2009 NC OL Travis Bond has been added to the North Carolina squad for the Shrine Bowl.

How’s this for a non-update from 2009 FL DB Angelo Hadley? His top 4 remains unchanged, and he will visit Michigan in January.

As has been the case for some time now, Hadley, whom Rivals.com rates as a three-star prospect, is still considering four schools: Florida, Georgia, Michigan and North Carolina… Hadley has taken an official visit to UNC and will trip to Michigan in January.

Among his favorites, Florida has not offered, and he can’t set up an official until they do.

Class of 2009 visitors this weekend, courtesy of the Free Press and Sam Webb (audio):
December 6th:
Thomas Gordon
Teric Jones
Isaiah Bell
Fitzgerald Toussaint
Justin Turner
MI DT William Campbell
FL (via a JC in Mississippi) DE Pernell McPhee. The former Pahokee Blue Devil is a Mississippi State commit.
GA WR Jamal Patterson (Stanford commit).
PA WR Je’Ron Stokes (Tennessee commit). Canceled per Webb.

A bevy of information from the Chicago Sun-Times on 2010 prospects:

Loyola defensive end Chance Carter is giving up basketball to concentrate on football… To live up to his enormous potential, he must dedicate himself to football.

C.J. Fiedorowicz of Johnsburgh, a 6-7, 240-pounder with 4.5 speed, is a high-bred tight end in high school. That will be his position in college.

Christian Lombard of Fremd, at 6-6 and 285-pounds, is one of the best offensive linemen in the country. Colleges came in to evaluate him in the fall and bragged about him. He has great feet, is fundamentally sound, very mobile and makes few mistakes. He was offered by Iowa as a freshman. At last count, he had 29 offers.

Michigan is among those offers. He is one of the top OL targets in the 2010 class.

2010 OH LB Scott McVey seems to be blowing up a bit:

McVey certainly was among the best players on display during Ohio’s showcase weekend of six state finals. His was the grand finale.

McVey was in on six sacks – four of them solo sacks – and hounded Elder quarterback Mark Miller on numerous other plays. He was credited with eight total tackles, but the numbers do not begin to tell the story of the 6-1, 220-pounder from South Euclid who spends his spring running over hurdles instead of through linemen.

His stock is on the rise. Might he be able to garner an offer soon? He now has one from the Buckeyes (info in header).

Removed:
2009 GA LB Devekeyan Lattimore. He has a final 3 sans Michigan (info in header).
2009 GA S/QB Donavan Tate. Commits to North Carolina.

Posted under Football

Matt asks:

Though no BCS title game, if the Heisman comes down to a 2-man race (which it appears with Bradford and McCoy), do you think voters will vote the “I feel bad for Colt since his team got screwed” card?

I can’t really think of an instance where that sort of of logic has come into play. On the contrary, it seems like the Heisman winner typically comes from one of the teams playing for the national title. Of course, the BCS mess is as big as ever this year, and I also can’t think of a time where a team that got screwed to the degree that Texas is (in the eyes of some), all the while having a viable Heisman contender.

At this point, it appears that Sam Bradford’s performance in the Big 12 Championship Game will determine whether it is McCoy or Bradford who ends up with the stiff-arm trophy. Considering the quality of the defense the Sooners face (Missouri is 91st in total defense and 80th in pass efficiency D), I imagine Bradford will get the trophy.

An Anonymous commenter:

If Will Campbell does not enroll early at Michigan, can we take that as a non-commit?

He said he would enroll early and isn’t looking like he is going to… so we can assume he is not committing correct?

This question was actually answered pretty well by WLA-er chitownblue in the same comments thread:

Anon – it would likely mean that he hasn’t made his decision soon enough to enroll early. Nothing more. He never said “I’m going to enroll early, specifically at Michigan, and late if I go somewhere else”. The two (going to Michigan/enrolling early) are two unlinked decisions.

Campbell has stated his intention to enroll early at whichever school he picks. If there is no wind of his enrollment at Michigan by the time we would expect to know about this (and it would probably have to be fairly soon, as students are already registering for Winter semester classes), it shouldn’t be a big deal. The important question is whether it comes out that he is enrolling early at another school. If not, it just means that he won’t enroll early anywhere.

RJ says:

Looking at the video of Breaston in the NFL makes me think that we didn’t use his talents well enough at U of M. On offense Breaston, was never utilized the way that the Cardinals use him now. It seemed like most of the passes he caught were short.

The old staff tried to use Breaston as a deep threat, but they never managed to get him to catch the ball over his shoulder on the go route. He was used over the middle in his time at Michigan as well. Essentially (especially in 2006, where he was one of the most underappreciated members of the team), he played a slot role (with some combination of Edwards-Avant-Manningham-Arrington outside). He would be a great fit in the slot in the new offense as well, despite not being sub-6-foot. I shudder with excitement when I think how awesome it would have been to have him at QB in the current offense.

Griffin Fraley asks in the comments:

On your recruiting board for 2010, where did you come up with the projected star ratings for the players? I’m looking at this link: http://www.fvsports.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=372&ltemid=94

Just curious if you have any other top 2010 lists i can look at.

I started with that list, then added a bunch of other prospects from other sources, assuming most of them were going to end up in the 3-star range. As I’ve heard more about particular prospects, I’ve either promoted or downgraded their rankings. I have also used the Scout.com 2010 instate rankings and Florida 2010 rankings from SoFlaFootball and the Varsity Sports Media Magazine.

For the most part other than that, they’re wild-ass guesses from me.

Bob asks:

Does Michigan have an offer on the table for [Cameron] Gordon? On either side of the ball?

It’s been reported on the premium site that Gordon got offered sometime last week. Sam Webb confirmed it to the non-paying world on today’s WTKA recruiting roundup. This information will be included in the next recruiting update. Since Gordon has been insistent that he wants to play WR, I imagine they said he’d have a chance to contribute there, and switch positions if it didn’t work out.

Posted under Football

Recruiting Boards: 2009 & 2010

Removed:
2009 FL CB Josh Robinson. Teammate of Vladimir Emilien commits to UCF.
2010 FL DT Todd Chandler. Commits to Miami of Florida.
2010 PA LB Mike Hull. Committed to Penn State a while back.

QB Devin Gardner of Inkster is likely to be one of Michigan’s top prospects in the class of 2010. His Vikings played East Grand Rapids in the state finals on Saturday, and we’ll hopefully have some video soon.

Some fluff from Sam Webb in the Detroit News:

His attendance this summer at the prestigious Elite 11 quarterback camp, sandwiched by camp visits to Michigan, Notre Dame and Michigan State, all helped to better hone his skills. “I’m stronger, faster, and my throwing motion has gotten better,” he said. “(The motion) is way higher than it used to be. Most of (the improvement) is decision-making, though.

There’s lots of talk about how awesome the coach at Inkster is. I’ve heard the same thing from lots of sources (many of them about 2009 WR Cameron Gordon) about Greg Carter. He seems to be a good disciplinarian and teacher of the fundamentals, and one of the best coaches in the state. More from Gardner:

“I think I can fit into Michigan real easy,” he continued. “They run the exact same offense that we run right now. I already knew the spread offense, but I’m learning (more). I’m doing everything better — way better. If I go to Michigan, I wouldn’t have to adjust that much.”

That sounds promising, but Gardner also has nice things to say about Michigan State and Ohio State, so don’t get too excited just yet.

I never really thought Michigan would have a great chance with 2010 CA RB Malcolm Jones (Michigan isn’t recruiting California as heavily anymore, the school is a traditional USC pipeline, etc.). I didn’t even realize, however, that he has an older brother at USC:

Sarkisian attended Friday night’s Oaks Christian High School playoff game. The Trojans have not yet offered a scholarship to junior tailback Malcolm Jones, the younger brother of USC safety Marshall Jones. Several Pacific-10 Conference schools already offered Malcolm Jones.

So he was already included on the board only tenuously – he’s now a candidate for removal at the next sign that he won’t be interested in Michigan.

2010 OH RB Erick Howard was going to move to Seattle but didn’t end up doing so, a factoid that, until recently, had confused the hell out of me. Well, now it’s a little more clear:

Howard’s mother, Ruth, wanted him to move to Seattle with her so he could spend time with his sister, who had just given birth to her first child. Howard resisted but followed and respected his mother’s wishes…
He missed his friends and teammates. He begged his mother to let him return… She was reluctant but eventually gave in.

…and now that makes a little bit of sense.

”Now, I always carry a pencil and I go to all of my classes trying to be as prepared as I can,” he said. ”I’m working toward stepping it up and being a better student and earning a scholarship to play football in college because my dream is to play in the NFL.”

So he’s trying to succeed through football, etc., etc. He was the district player of the year, and Michigan may get involved with his recruitment down the road.

2010 FL OL Jose Jose might be similarly unlikely to end up at Michigan (he loves the hometown Miami Hurricanes), but he is certainly a prospect that Michigan fans may find intriguing. Luke Stampini of SoFlaFootball.com brings the video:

2009 IL OL Commit Michael Schofield is playing in a high school all-star game in Hawaii. That rules.

Luk Stampini of SoFlaFootball.com on Pahokee 2010 Slot De’Joshua Johnson:

When De’Joshua told me before the game he was going to be the starting QB, I didn’t believe him. He does like to joke around a bit. After watching him play, he looks to be the best QB Pahokee has put on the field this year. Accurate passer, and when you have the athletes PK does, that’s all you really need to be as a QB. He doesn’t have the little things true QB’s have like knowing when to throw the ball away or when to tuck and run.

Verrry interesting. Might he be the type of guy Michigan tries to bring in to play slot, but giving him a chance to try his hand at QB first? It looks like some of the problems with his game at QB are a matter of inexperience at the position (aside from the fact that he’s 5-9, of course).

Ohio All-State teams:

Division 1
WR Michael Edwards (Cle. Glenville) 6-1, 180. 2009
OT Marcus Hall (Cle. Glenville) 6-6, 305. 2009
RB Erick Howard (N. Canton Hoover) 5-10, 210. 2010
LB Scott McVey (Cle. St. Ignatius) 6-1, 215. 2010
LB Jordan Hicks (Lakota W.) 6-2, 210. 2010
LB Jewone Snow (Canton McKinley) 6-2, 237. 2010
DB J.T. Turner (Massillon Washington) 6-2, 180. 2009

Division 2
OL Andrew Norwell (Cin. Anderson) 6-7, 275. 2010
DB Courtney Avery (Lexington) 5-11, 170. 2010 (QB)

Division 3
RB Fitzgerald Toussaint (Youngs. Liberty) 5-10, 195. 2009
DB Isaiah Bell (Youngs. Liberty) 6-2, 215. 2009

So, all of Michigan’s commits from Ohio were first team all-state in their divisions. Also: Fitz was the co-offensive Player of the Year in Division III.

Interesting comment from Black Shoe Diaries on Jelani Jenkins’s recruitment:

I have no concerns in this area whether we get Jenkins or not.

I’m sure it’s intended to sound so flippant, but it really comes off as though PSU fans couldn’t care one way or the other whether they land Jelani Jenkins. I’m sure Michigan fans don’t feel that way, and want Jenkins as the cornerstone of the 2009 LB class, not some cherry on top of it.

The new format for recruiting posts is still something of a work-in-progress, so feel free to comment on it.

Posted under Football

The Board.

New Information:
MD RB Tavon Austin. Has a top 3 of Michigan, North Carolina, and WVU.
MI DT William Campbell. Sam Webb still thinks Michigan ends up grabbing him (audio). Scouting reports on him and his teammates.
MI RB Teric Jones. Scouting report (same as above).
MI S Thomas Gordon. Scouting report (same as above).
MI WR Cameron Gordon. Sam Webb News fluff.
SC S Devonte Holloman. May make a commitment without getting a chance to visit Michigan. It sounds like Michigan is no longer under consideration, though different sources have said otherwise recently. He’ll stay on the board for now.
FL S Vladimir Emilien. Michigan the team to beat? (audio). He’s deciding November 23rd.
FL CB Jayron Hosley. Doesn’t sound like Michigan is really involved at all. Also, all-access video piece.
MD CB Travis Hawkins. He’s deciding today. Final four of PSU, Maryland, Oregon, and Michigan. Maryland and Oregon are the likely final two there.

Removed:
TX S Craig Loston. LSU Commit.

Etc.:
In the audio above, Sam Webb gives a little treatise on Michigan’s in-state recruiting in 2009. His feelings are essentially the same as mine, in that people are making a big to-do when there is no substance to the “allegations.”
Freep fluff on the senior recruits at the MSU game.

Analysis:
I’ve been wondering for some time if Michigan will get back in on Cameron Gordon, if only to help with his junior teammate, Devin Gardner. It appears as though he’s resigned to ending up at linebacker, though Michigan may be filling up at the position. Who knows how it’ll end up, but I wouldn’t mind seeing Michigan go after him at least a little bit more.

Posted under Football

The board can be found here. I’m still trying to decide which days/how often to post recruiting updates. Until I settle into something of a rhythm during the season, I’ll just post them as the post fills up.

New Information:
MI WR Cameron Gordon. He is in no hurry to make a decision. I wonder ig Michigan will pursue him a little stronger now that they want his 2010 teammate Devin Gardner.
TN WR/DB Marsalis Teague. He may take a Michigan visit.
MI TE Dion Sims. Still hasn’t made up his mind, but his current choice is basketball over football.
GA TE Terrell Mitchell. Michigan is outside his top 3 (SoCar, WVU, Kentucky). With the Wolverines not really planning on taking a pure TE, he may be close to removal from the board.
CA OL Michael Philipp. USC starts showing some interest.
MD LB Jelani Jenkins. Michigan will make his next cut (Sam Webb Audio). Sounds like Michigan made quite an impression on his visit.
NJ DE Anthony LaLota. No longer planning an early decision, Michigan official tentatively scheduled for Wisconsin game (Sam Webb Audio, same as above).
AZ DE Craig Roh. Sam Webb fluff from the Detroit News. Remember, Roh is officially visiting this week.
SC S David Sims. Michigan out of his top 5. It’s unclear from the article whether that is “top” or “final,” so he remains on the board for now.
Also: Vincent Smith and Brandin Hawthorne have moved up their announcement(s) from their game Saturday to tomorrow.

Removed:
KY DE Trevor Foy. He is down to a final 2 of Purdue and Louisville.
MD OL Brennan Williams. Down to a final 3 that doesn’t include Michigan.

Etc.:
MI DT commit William Campbell:Uh… yeah.
IN LB Commit Jordan Barnes. Fluff from the hometown paper.
Plantation, FL guys all plan to graduate early, take the info just in case Michigan nabs one of them.

Etc.:
If anyone manages to catch the Miami (Oh) game against Vanderbilt tonight, e-mail me your thoughts. I’s on ESPNU and I won’t be able to make it somewhere to watch.

Posted under Recruiting