Terrelle Pryor (never heard of him) has set up his official visit to the University of Michigan. Originally, he had intended to visit the weekend of February 2, but now it appears as though the visit is taking place this weekend. The reasoning behind this switch is unknown. Some claim it is because of a conflict with Jeannette’s basketball schedule, though others perceive it with cautious optimism that an in-school visit by assistant coaches went well. Michigan is Pryor’s only visit currently set up. Michigan fans are chomping at the bit to welcome Pryor, imploring their fellow Wolverines to attend the basketball game against Iowa (undoubtedly a part of any official visit weekend), and even setting up a Welcome Pryor Block Party.

Conventional wisdom has Pryor choosing between Michigan and Ohio State, with Duke and Oregon also finalists. However, also mentioned in the article is Pryor’s addition of LSU as a team under consideration. Terrelle is currently unsure which other schools he will visit.

Posted under Recruiting

Several Michigan fans have expressed concern with Rich Rodriguez’s recruiting prowess, based on the classes he was able to pull at West Virginia, and the prospects he is in on now at Michigan. Is Rich Rodriguez a bad recruiter? Are players who would fit Rodriguez’s system simply not as highly-rated?

First, Coach Rodriguez’s recruiting situation at West Virginia is not at all similar to what it is (and will be) at Michigan. WVU’s recruiting class for the current year is ranked 53rd. However, this includes the decommit of 5-star Josh Jenkins (at least partially because of Rod’s departure), and some recruits who were likely to commit to West Virginia following Rodriguez to Michigan (which includes LB Taylor Hill, and is expected to include D.J. Woods in the near future). West Virginia’s 2007 class was ranked 18th, and 2006’s class was tied for 56th. This was all despite top-ten finishes during that span.

Moving to Michigan, the in-state talent pool will be greater, as will national recruiting prowess. West Virginia was able to recruit primarily in the East, mostly northern, but with a few Floridians and a couple pulled from the South, along with some players from Ohio. Michigan regular gets commitments from players in Texas, California, the east coast, and all over the Midwest. In this case, the prestigious name of Michigan can only help in recruiting, despite the fact that West Virginia has been more successful (or at least as successful) in the past 3 years.

Another concern among fans is the current caliber of recruit that Rich Rodriguez is working, even with the added advantages of being at Michigan. 3 to 4-stars such as Taylor Hill, D.J. Woods, and Terrance Robinson have become the hot names of late in Wolverine recruiting circles. There are several factors to take into account here. First, Rodriguez must fill a need for slot receivers in his offensive scheme, as Michigan is almost utterly lacking in that category. These slot-types are not as desired nationally, as their use is not important to all offensive styles. Secondly, it is late in the recruiting process. This has a two-fold effect: Rodriguez must play catch-up with most recruits, who he hasn’t had an opportunity to be in contact with as Michigan’s coach (which puts him more than a year behind on most kids). Also, this late in the recruiting process, many highly-rated players are already committed. Despite this, Rodriguez was able to secure the commitment of high-4-star S Brandon Smith. Only 8 5-stars on Scout remain uncommitted (Michigan already has a commitment from a 5-star in Boubacar Cissoko):

• Terrelle Pryor had eliminated Michigan before they hired Rodriguez. Now they are considered to be in his top 2.
• Julio Jones and Deandre Brown are big (6-4 and 6-6.5(!), respectively) wide receivers. There is not much need for them on Michigan’s roster.
• Omar Hunter had Michigan as his leader at one point, but then committed to Notre Dame. After reopening his commitment, he is considered a Florida lock.
• Rahim Moore would be a nice player to have, but he has not considered Michigan since last summer.
• Jamie Harper is expected to stay within the state of Florida, and Michigan already has 2 RB commitments (plus a fullback if you consider Christian Wilson still committed).
• Josh Jenkins felt betrayed by Rodriguez when he left WVU.
• Brandon Harris never considered either Michigan or West Virginia.

Rodriguez’s primary recruiting job this year was to re-recruit the players already on Michigan’s roster that could be of use in his new offense (which didn’t necessarily mean Ryan Mallett, though he would likely have been the starter in 2008). Also, Rodriguez needed to keep Michigan’s recruiting class intact, which he has done perfectly thus far. Finishing the recruiting class with players that fit his offensive system (which Michigan’s current roster is lacking), and hopefully snagging a highly rated player along the way (Terrelle Pryor) are next in line in terms of priority. Don’t judge Rodriguez’s recruiting abilities until the first class that is all his, next year.

Posted under Coaching, Recruiting

Cardinal Mooney LB Taylor Hill has pledged to become a Michigan Wolverine. Hill had pledged to Oklahoma early in the recruiting process, then switched his commitment to West Virginia days before Rich Rodriguez left for Michigan. What does this mean for New Jersey commits Marcus Witherspoon and J.B. Fitzgerald? Time will tell. Word on the street, however, is that Fitzgerald pressured Hill to commit to Michigan on their simultaneous visits to Michigan State over the weekend.

Mario Manningham is officially going to ply his trade in the NFL next year. Good luck to him.

Posted under Personnel, Recruiting

On Saturday, you may recall that I took offense to the very poorly-written article appearing on the Free Press website, written by one James Jahnke. I e-mailed my response to Jahnke, and he was kind enough to to provide a prompt reply:

Thanks for the note, Tim.

I’m at work right now and don’t have time to read that post on the blog. (I did skim it, however. Embarrassed to be in the same state? Ouch.) But I’m guessing it says pretty much what all of my other e-mailers have been saying.

You should know that I was asked by the Freep Web editor to write that column as a counterpoint to the why-Pryor-should-go-to-Michigan column that ran on the site a few days earlier. I reckon that if the site editors properly packaged them as a point-counterpoint, the vitriol would have been reduced a little. Instead, people think I wrote that on my own initiative, which isn’t true in the least.

Anyway, I regret doing it for several reasons. First, I’m not a columnist. I’m a copy editor. In hindsight, to ask a copy editor to write a column during a 30-minute break in his “normal” shift was unfair. It prevented me from putting sufficient thought into my points and crafting them into a suitable fashion. I admit that the column, as it ran, was shallow. Oh, well. I won’t make such a mistake in the future.

Hope your blood pressure isn’t off-the-charts on account of me,
JJ

He’s mostly just making excuses (but what else can he do with such a bad article?), but fairly straightforward, and I certainly appreciate that he took the time to respond.

Posted under Recruiting

Detroit Free Press writer James Jahnke claims it is in Terrelle Pryor’s best interest to sign with Ohio State.

Jahnke makes one key assumption in his argument: The #1 priority for Terrelle Pryor is making it to the NFL. Nothing else even matters (I think we’re begin to see wherein lies the stupidity of this column). He ignores several other factors, such as immediate playing time (which he admits is in Michigan’s favor), and friendship with other commits (which he states to be in Ohio State’s favor). By the way, every other school is eliminated from contention by Jahnke (while this may be the general consensus in the recruiting world, completely omitting other options – such as Oregon and Duke – is vastly oversimplifying the problem).

Terrelle Pryor is a Vince Young-like talent, and the consensus #1 player in the country (ESPN’s consistently terrible rankings notwithstanding). Jahnke believes that Ohio State is the correct choice for Pryor, because Michigan will not be able to adequately prepare him for the NFL.

He’s a quarterback in the mold of Vince Young, tall and mobile. Given the depleted state of the Wolverines’ depth chart, the Jeannette, Pa., product would be the first-stringer the moment he signed on the dotted line…. Rich Rodriguez’s zone-read offense is tailor-made for Pryor. But what will that do for him at the next level? West Virginia quarterback Pat White – Rodriguez’s former pupil — is a terrific college player, but his best bet for an NFL future is as a cornerback or kick returner. Granted, Pryor has better physical tools than White. But NFL teams will be skeptical of a QB coming out of a zone-read offense, no matter how talented he is.

Let’s compare the talents of Vince Young (former NFL rookie of the year at quarterback) and Pat White (future NFL kick returner), and determine which one of the two is more like Terrelle Pryor (note: even Jahnke did not say “he’s a quarterback in the mold of Pat White” – despite trying to put him on the same level as White):

• Vince Young was 6’5″, 200, with a 4.4 dash time coming out of high school. Pat White was 6’2″, 180 (both rather generous), with a 4.5 dash time. Pryor is 6’6″, 225, 4.4 dash. Which one is he more like? (I’d vote for Young)
• Vince Young was the #1 recruit in the country his senior year, a five-star quarterback. Pat White was the #53 quarterback in the country, a two-star who attended West Virginia primarily because Rich Rodriguez was the only coach who promised him he’d play QB. Terrelle Pryor is the #1 recruit in the country, a five-star quarterback. (Young? check)
• Vince Young ran the zone-read in college. Pat White ran the zone-read in college. If he attends Michigan, Terrelle Pryor will run the zone-read in college. (OK, they’re all the same)

The talent level isn’t the only area where Jahnke is way off, however, it’s offensive style, as well. He states that Pat White rarely drops back, so Pryor’s game film for NFL scouts would be lacking. While it is true that Rodriguez’s scheme operates mostly out of the shotgun, there are some misrepresentations in this point as well. Rodriguez does have his quarterback drop back occasionally. In addition, Vince Young (drafted #3 overall) rarely dropped back in college. He ran a similar offense to what Michigan will be running in the near future. The final point on offensive scheme is the lack of downfield passing by West Virginia. This can easily be explained by talent. Vince Young’s arm != Pat White’s arm. #1 Quarterback recruit != Guy who was offered as a safety by every other school. Even still, Pat White’s long in the Fiesta bowl was 79 yards. Jahnke assumes that Ohio State’s offense is adaptable to adding the zone-read, while assuming that Michigan’s offense is not adaptable to anything but the zone-read.

The other advantage for a quarterback avoiding a straight-up zone-read offense is longevity. Every time Pryor runs the ball, he risks blowing out his knee. He would, of course, also run at OSU, but not as much as at U-M. You can get hurt in the pocket, too, but it’s much safer in there than out on the edge, trying to juke safeties and linebackers diving at your legs every play.

Prove it. Give me any study, ANY empirical evidence that shows quarterbacks are hurt more often outside the pocket than in it. Pat White’s sole injuries in 3 years at WVU are a case of turf toe and a broken thumb. Vince Young went 2.5 years at Texas without getting hurt once. Chad Henne, on the other hand, who only leaves the pocket at gunpoint, managed to shred a knee and a shoulder this year. Great analysis, Jim.

Jahnke’s final point is the fact that he doesn’t believe it is in Pryor’s best interest to start right away (ignoring the fact that this is one of the things Pryor is looking for in a school). It would serve Terrelle better to play spot duty behind Todd Boeckman than to start at Michigan. Never mind that the Wolverines also have other quarterbacks. Steven Threet, incumbent or not, was a four-star player, and currently the odds-on favorite to start next year – perhaps even if Pryor comes to Ann Arbor.

Is this how far sportswriting in America has fallen? Trying to ignore the facts and influence recruits to attend the school of your choosing? I’m embarrassed to be in the same STATE as James Jahnke, let alone the same profession. It’s no coincidence that a search for “Jahnke” on freep.com asks if I meant to type “junk.”

Posted under Recruiting

Elliot Mealer’s father and girlfriend were killed. Sad day. Thoughts and prayers to the Mealer family.

Posted under Recruiting

Angelique Chengelis reports was many had suspected previously: All the Michigan assistants were fired so that some could be rehired (rather than some being fired and some being retained). Fred Jackson has been rehired, though it is unclear what position he will actually coach for the Rodriguez Wolverines. There is also some suspicion that Steve Stripling will be rehired as well, in addition to one other assistant (as-yet unknown). This would corroborate original reports that 3 Michigan assistants were likely to be retained.

Jackson commits (per Rivals):
Sam McGuffie
Daryl Stonum

Stripling commits:
Rocko Khoury
Dan O’Neill

One must assume that current D-lineman commit Mike Martin has a relationship with Strip as well.

The third Michigan coach that is rumored to be retained could be:
Mike DeBord
Andy Moeller
Erik Campbell
Scot Loeffler
Ron English
Steve Szabo
Vance Bedford

Bedford is assumed to be gone, as is Moeller (a DUI will do that to you). DeBord is a possibility as OL coach, Campbell unlikely but not impossible, Loeffler possible, English a possibility but it is assumed he would move on (which I think is clearly not my choice), Szabo is assumed to retire or head back to the NFL. There is always, of course, the possibility that no others are retained.

Posted under Coaching, Recruiting

With a new coach in place, we can start to think about recruiting once more. First off, it’s uncommitted players like Terrelle Pryor, Scout’s #1 Quarterback. Pryor had considered Michigan, then dropped them, leaving him with West Virginia still on his short list. With Rodriguez now in Ann Arbor, you can bet on Pryor considering Michigan once more. Other players who have been considering both Michigan and West Virginia include Shayne Hale and Cameron Saddler, who may be reconsidering his commitment to Pitt, and instater Nick Perry, with whom it is rumored the Maize-and-Blue had recently begun to slip with.

There is also the softly-committed to West Virginia offensive guard, (#1 at his position in the country), Josh Jenkins. When Jenkins moved back from his solid verbal, two of the other teams he had been considering were Michigan and Ohio State. With Rodriguez jumping from one of his favorites to another, Jenkins is a very solid possibility for Michigan.

Of course, there are likely to be some casualties. The first is Tuscola, IL quarterback John Weinke. The uncertainty in Ann Arbor, coupled with the commitment of Steven Threet to the previous class, gave Weinke pause, and he pledged his verbal to not-Michigan Coach Kirk Ferentz of the Iowa Hawkeyes. Who else might leave? Probably some of the lesser-rated recruits will have their offers reconsidered (i.e. Longsnapper George Morales), including an O-lineman if Jenkins begins to favor Michigan.

Expect more updates in the near future, as current commits will either reaffirm their commitment to the new headman, or decommit from Michigan. Of course, which assistants stay will have an effect on this as well.

Posted under Recruiting

A new commit and a lot of changes in other areas (read: coaches) combine to necessitate a recruiting update. All previous commits who haven’t reaffirmed their commitment to Michigan are moved into the newly-renamed “near lock” category. “Presumed leans” and “longshots” are combined into one category, as few people are leans, what with the new coaching staff and all.

The new head coach will obviously have an impact on which recruits stay, and which new guys commit, etc. Threet is obviously already enrolled, O’Neill, Mealer, Koger, and Demens have reaffirmed their commitments, and Morales committed after the Carr retirement. Cissoko reaffirmed his commitment to the Detroit News, then said he would look around the next day. All the other previous commitments are currently in limbo, but don’t be surprised to see most of them recommit. State will go after the Michigan guys, is Illinois hard on Cissoko, Moore is being courted by Ohio State and a bevy of southern schools. If certain assistants leave (Szabo for the two linebackers, DeBord for some of the linemen, English for defensive guys), some commits may be lost that way.

There’s also the possibility that a new c
oach (i.e. Les Miles) will bring some recruits with him who had Michigan in their top list, but picked someone else (i.e. LSU or other southern schools).

Posted under Recruiting

George Morales, a long snapper from Las Vegas, has pledged to become a Michigan Wolverine.

It’s hard to evaluate special teams players, especially long snappers (their only job is to get the ball to the punter/holder and get downfield; they don’t have to block), but there’s a little information on Morales available here. It will be interesting to see if the new coaching regime will honor his offer.

Posted under Recruiting