Since I haven’t had the chance yet, I’ll take this opportunity to promote the MGoBlog/VB tailgate before the spring game that Brian mentioned yesterday. The details are: 9AM near the bus stop outside Crisler Saturday morning. For more info, check out the planning thread on MGoBoard.

The 2010 Recruiting Board can be found here. There’s still plenty more info to get out this week, so Friday’s Spring Game Edition of the Recruiting Update may include some non-weekend-related items as well.

As has been widely speculated, Michigan leads for LA QB Munchie LeGaux. With Blake Sims committing to Alabama, LeGaux might be the best option for a 2nd QB in the class at this time. LeGaux photo by Matthew Hinton (not that Matt Hinton?) of the Times-Picayune.

The author of this article seems to think that TX RB Lache Seastrunk has narrowed his list of choices to just 4 schools: Texas, Oklahoma, Auburn, and LSU. I’m skeptical for several reasons: 1) That’s the first I’ve heard of that, and 2) That article was so poorly written as to reduce its credibility to near-zero levels. Take it with a grain of salt.

OH RB Erick Howard has stated in no uncertain terms that he would like to play for Ohio State. This would appear to mean bad things for Michigan’s chances. Of course, he doesn’t boast an impressive offer list yet (despite being Ohio’s Mr. Football last year), and in the past, Michigan has made a living off Ohio players that didn’t end up with Buckeye offers. If he is deemed to be worthy of a Michigan offer, that tradition may continue.

To piggyback off the previous note, Michigan may be trying to develop something of a pipeline throughout the various high shcools of Canton, Ohio (even traditional Michigan feeder school Massillon Washington is in a Canton suburb). Jerald Robinson (Canton South) is already committed for the class of 2009, Jewone Snow (McKinley) is the son of former Michigan great Garland Rivers, and Howard is a prospect. This area is a strong one for Ohio high school football, and if we’ve seen one definite trend in this staff’s recruiting, it’s trying to develop pipelines (Pahokee, Apopka, Cass Tech, Liberty). And recruiting little guys. If we’ve seen two definite trends in this staff’s…

Fluff on FL WRs DeJoshua Johnson and Fred Pickett. Johnson will likely play QB for Pahokee this year, but may play WR alongside Pickett.

Buried in an article on Jay Cutler is the following (not particularly enlightening) information on FL OL Brent Benedict:

As Bolles School offensive tackle Brent Benedict, one of the nation’s top prospects, spent his spring break last week making unofficial visits to six out-of-state schools, Florida coach Urban Meyer sent him a bunch of text messages. On Friday, while competing as a shot-putter at the Florida Relays, Benedict planned to attend a Gators practice and have dinner with Meyer. Memo to Tennessee coach Lane Kiffin: Such contact is legal as long as Benedict remains on UF’s campus. …

As of now, it doesn’t sound like he’s strongly considering Michigan, particularly because his big visit swing didn’t include any schools in the North, much less a trip to Ann Arbor.

A few notes on MN OL Seantrel Henderson. He has his trips in mind (remember, he said Michigan was likely to be his only lock for an official visit at this time). A local Minneapolis columnist said Seantrel’s ready to start taking visits, obviously ignoring the fact that he’s already been to Michigan and Michigan State.

NC OL Robert Crisp has committed to NC State, and he’s been removed from the board.

AL DE Martaze Jackson has been nominated to participate in the Army All-American game. This is a phase of the process of which I had been previously unaware:

Of the 400 nominees, 90 will ultimately be selected and invited to this year’s 10th anniversary game. 

OH LB Jordan Hicks has been selected to play in the ESPNU/Under Armour All American Game. He reports a Michigan offer, and will whittle his list of possibilities down to 10 by his spring break, which one must assume is coming right up.

MI LB Austin Gray, who was considered to be a possible Michigan lean if he ever got an offer, took an unofficial visit to Iowa last weekend and committed. I’ll leave him on the board for now, because if Michigan ever decides to offer, they might be able to hop back into the race for him.

The Wolverines have tendered an offer for MD LB Troy Gloster (info in header). Gloster hails for Good Counsel Academy, home of 2009 prospect Jelani Jenkins, as well as 2010 Stanford decommit CB Louis Young.

LA S Ronnie Vinson doesn’t have one school atop his list, but has 6 favorites that stand out among his other offers. USC, UCLA, Alabama, Michigan, LSU, and Ole Miss are the schools he’s focusing on most at this point (info in header).

PA CB Cullen Christian, who has long held the Wolverines as his favorite, is now putting a number to that assumption: He says there’s an 85% chance he ends up playing for Rich Rodriguez (info in header).

Posted under Football

Recruiting Boards (2009 & 2010) can be found anytime in the left sidebar.

LA DT Commit DeQuinta Jones visited Arkansas last weekend, and seemingly enjoyed himself.

Jones is set to visit Michigan this weekend and plans to visit either Mississippi State or Ole Miss the following weekend. He said he isn’t certain when he’ll make a decision.

“I might wait until signing day and surprise a lot of people.” Jones said.

Given the conventional wisdom regarding his recruitment, a reaffirmation of his Michigan commitment might be the most surprising thing possible. I’m still super-leery of a guy who is (nominally) committed being unsure of when he’ll make a decision.

Michigan and Florida are likely to be the final 2 for FL QB Denard Robinson. Florida is out in the lead, but the Wolverines are making a strong push:

One interesting dynamic could be his teammate, defensive back Adrian Witty, who will visit Florida on the weekend of Jan. 23. Kansas State is offering the pair the chance to play together on the next level, and Michigan may follow suit. If that happens, especially in the case of the Wolverines, it will be interesting to se e if the temptation to play alongside his high school teammate proves too much for Robinson to pass up. That said, I still feel Florida is the team to beat here.

Michigan has indeed offered Witty (by far his biggest offer), so that could certainly help with Robinson. The two had (and enjoyed) their official visit to Ann Arbor last weekend. If Witty doesn’t get offered by Florida, that would be a very good thing for Michigan. There’s also a mini-scouting report on Denard:

One other quick note on Robinson: Photographer Tim Casey and I visited him at practice for the Dade-Broward All-Star Game this weekend, he certainly has a big-time arm. While his size isn’t the greatest (even 6-0 might be a little generous), Robinson is an incredible athlete and deserves every opportunity to play the position on the next level.

Speaking of Witty, Michigan has stopped recruiting 2009 FL CB Jayron Hosley. They apparently feel good enough about cornerback recruiting to take a pass on Hosley, which means they probably feel that they are likely to land Witty, or are likely to offer other prospects that they like their chances with.

Michigan’s last couple (realistic) offensive line recruits for the 2009 class are thick in their recruitments. NC OL Travis Bond visited ECU last weekend, and the author of that article strangely thinks it’s a foregone conclusion that Bond will eventually be committing to the Pirates. I don’t think that’s even close to the case. According to MGoBlog’s TomVH, Bond will announce next week. SC OL Quinton Washington has all sorts of visits going on, and Rich Rodriguez will visit his house next week.

2009 LA WR Travante Stallworth was an official visitor last weekend, and he offered a bit of reaction to Phil Kornblut:

“The Michigan trip went pretty well,” Stallworth said. “I liked the coaches and players. Everything was top of the line with the facilities. And the academics, I liked that, too.”

He enjoyed the visit enough that the Wolverines have pulled even with the schools at the forefront of his recruitment (info in header).

Miami of Florida is the favorite for 2009 TX CB Demontre Hurst. He’s apparently become a hot prospect of late, as several schools seem to have ratcheted up the intensity on him. I would be surprised if he ended up committing to Michigan.

2009 FL LB Mike Marry doesn’t sound like he’ll be visiting Michigan, and he is close to being crossed off the old list. He has visits to Ole Miss, USF, and Duke.

Added to the 2010 board: IL LB Rickey Simpson. He is “Hearing from several.” Hmm, that article was posted on the front page of the Michigan Scout affiliate. I wonder if the Wolverines are one of the teams in contact with him. Info, quite obviously, in header.

2010 FL WR Chris Dunkley has received an offer from Miami. Michigan offered in the fall, but the Canes at least have a hometown advantage.

2010 TX DT Jay Guy has reportedly been offered by Michigan (info in header).

Despite apparently growing up a Michigan fan, 2010 OH RB Erick Howard (the state’s Mr. Football for the 2008 season) currently favors Ohio State (info in header). Obviously, Michigan has some time to make up the gap.

2010 FL CB Lorenza Wood has received his Michigan offer, and the Wolverines have long been his established favorite. Might he pick the maize-and-blue soon?

Posted under Football, Recruiting

All-conference performers in Southeastern Conference play include 2010 WR commit Jeremy Jackson of AA Huron and 2010 RB prospect Nick Hill from Chelsea.

2010 OH TE Greg Gainey has transferred from Trotwood-Madison to Thurgood Marshall. Without the pipeline advantage, and at a position of little need, will he remain a Michigan target? He stays on the board for now, but he’s a candidate for removal.

2010 PA DE Dakota Royer was picked to his All-conference team on offense and defense. Stats? Stats.

56 catches for 1,099 yards (20 yards per grab) and five TDs. 132 tackles, 11 sacks.

He has offers from Penn State, Pitt, Stanford, and Maryland at this point.

Want some fluff on 2010 IL QB Detchauz Wray? It’s your lucky day!

Junior quarterback Detchauz Wray completed 133 of 228 passes (58.3 percent) this season for 2,564 yards and 38 touchdowns while throwing only five turnovers. The 5-foot-11, 180-pound signal caller also rushed for 260 yards and five touchdowns…

Wray’s impressive numbers have gained the attention of several Division I programs. The Flyers’ standout has already received offers from Arizona and Kansas State, Sunkett said. Illinois and Kansas have also shown Wray interest.

Sunkett said East St. Louis’ offense doesn’t call for the quarterback to run often but that Wray has the ability to be a dual threat. However, Wray’s stature may force him to change positions, possibly wide receiver or cornerback, at the next level.

For now, he’ll remain at QB on the board, but he is a definite position-change candidate down the road.

Though Minnesota recently lost their OL coach, the new hire has already hit the road to recruit a few UM prospects:

Meanwhile, new Gophers running game coordinator-offensive line coach Tim Davis, who left No. 1 Alabama last week for Minnesota, spent Monday, his first day with the Gophers, in Phoenix recruiting 6-foot-6, 265-pound Taylor Lewan [2009], a nationally sought offensive lineman. Today, Davis plans to be at Cretin-Derham Hall, which has 6-8, 296-pound junior offensive lineman Seantrel Henderson [2010], who is among the country’s elite prep players.

Lewan is heading to Ann Arbor this weekend for his official visit. Other prospects on the docket include:
NC CB Josh Hunter (North Carolina Commit).
FL S/LB Commit Mike Jones.
FL K Commit Brendan Gibbons.
Speaking of Gibbons, he’s been selected to the Army All-American Bowl. He will be headed there instead of the ESPNU game, to which he was already committed.

From yesterday’s WTKA Recruiting Roundup with Sam Webb:

• Will Campbell enjoyed his Michigan official last weekend. Both parents want Will to go to Michigan, and have mentioned that recruiters have seemed… disingenuous… at some other schools, particularly in regards to treating Will’s mother like an annoyance.
• 2010 OH RB Erick Howard grew up liking Michigan, and the Wolverines would start at an advantage if he is recruited down the road.
• 2009 MI TE Dion Sims has eliminated Michigan. I knew he was never really going to end up here, and I’ve been saying (even when he was still on the table) that he doesn’t seem like a guy who likes football or has the necessary intensity to enjoy it in Rich Rodriguez’s program. It’s sad to lose another instate guy, but c’est la vie.

Another recruiting post sometime late this week or early next week.

Posted under Football, Recruiting

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