Outstanding recruits, and Michigan’s chances (desire?) to land them.

Rashad Mason probably wants to go out west, but Michigan wants him really bad. They may end up not taking him just to bank a schollie, if it doesn’t look they are going to have a really good shot at him.

Donovan Warren wants to play right away, which would hurt USC’s chances of landing him. He has a ton of teammates at both the other California schools, and is expected to go to one of them. Michigan is probably third on his list.

Kourtnei Brown wants to go somewhere warm, and his visit is coming up in the next few weeks. Ain’t gon’ happen, because it will finally be cold here.

I’m not sure Jeff Boyd is really being pursued that strongly by Michigan. He doesn’t seem like a top-top prospect, and grades will be a huge issue with him. Is he worth not taking a super next year?

Ronald Johnson still sits pretty with Michigan. The coaching staff will ride him to Signing Day, when he is set to announce.

Again, no more commits likely except for RoJo, but that’s not bad, considering the low number of scholarships starting out next year, and the amount of top talent interested in Michigan.

If Everson Griffen were to decommit from USC in the event of a hypothetical-but-unlikely Pete Carroll job change, I would cry of intense happiness, as we were the runner-up for his services. Even if Carroll were to change jobs, we would need it to happen before signing day.

Posted under Recruiting

Not a surprise being ranked behind a few other 2-loss teams, given the comparative way we ended the season.

However, I’m not sure if USC should jump as much as they did given they lost their second-to-last game, and won their last one over a team that only finished 8th.

Either way, preseason top-whatever polls are pretty much all we have to look forward to for a little while.

Posted under Misc.

Michigan star defensive tackle Alan Branch will forego his senior season of eligibility and enter the NFL draft, the Associated Press reports.

Branch was graded by the NFL’s draft service as a middle-to-late first round pick.

“Michigan took an unknown kid from Alburquerque and turned him into a Michigan Man.“

Best of luck to him in the NFL.

Posted under Personnel

Now that we have a pretty gppd grasp of the 2007 recruiting class, and with very little likely to change there, the 2008 class is moving to the forefront, especially since it is looking to start strong for the Wolverines.

The needs (and some key recruits at the positions) are as follows:
1) OL – Only a couple in the last two classes, with sleepers mixed in. Need some good OTs in this class.
Tex 5* J.B. Shugarts – likes Michigan, but OSU is way up there for Shugarts as well. Can Teas connections sway him to the Maize and Blue?
Grand Haven 4* Dann O’Neill – Instater likes Michigan, and will probably be Blue if offered.
FL 5* Mike Brewster – From Orlando Edgewater (from Greg Mathews’s school, and Lorenzo Edwards (florida)).
2) DB – Though there are a few in this class, Michigan’s cupboard has shown itself to be bare, in both the OSU game and the Rose Bowl. Some true corners are needed.
Detroit 5* CB Boubacar Cissoko – from the sounds of it he’s all but locked up (though we’ve heard that about Dionte Allen before). Fortunately, he has said he’d like to commit to the Maize nd Blue on this year’s signing day, ending his recruitment very early. He might be the top CB in the country next year.
NC 4-5* Robert Blanton – A guy who really likes Michigan, and is from Jamar Adams’s high school. He’s growing, and might become a safety rather than a CB.
PA 4-5* Jared Holley – He is a good friend of Toney Clemons, and might be one of the top players in ennsylvania next year.
PA 4* Leon Green – More of a hitter than Jared Holley, these two both are from Easton.
CA DBs Robert Bolden and Brandon Wesley – These guys, from Fresno Edison (Johnny Sears) seem like they might be more of fallback guys if UM doesn’t land some of the guys ahead of them on the list, but don’t be surprised if they eventually earn offers.
NJ 5* S Will Hill – Among the top recruits in the country, Michigan has to compete with a lot of top programs and Rutgers for this guy.
3) LB – Despite a couple in this class, some of them are moving positions, and may not pan out. The only proven quantity, Austin Panter, only has two years of eligibility.
PA 5* LB Shayne Hale – Might be the top player in Pennsylvania this upcoming year. Obviously, it will be hard to pull a Linebacker away from the in-state schools.
Muskegon LB Rickie Crosby – From Terrance Taylor and Ron Johnson’s school. Not a speedster (is that what Michigan is looking for?)
4) DT – The depth there is pretty good right now, but a couple of key players will be departed by the time these players ever see the field.
IN 3-4* Steven Barnett – From Jerimy Finch’s high school, Indianapolis Warren Central.
5) DE – The depth here is not so good, even with Brandon Graham moving down from LB. We’ll have to see if some younger guys step up.
6) RB – Time for a great one to step in for the players that will be departing soon.
Tex 5* Sam McGuffie – The human highlight reel – white edition – reportedly loves UM, and has family in the SE Michigan area. Ryan Mallett has been working him hard. Reports have him potentially commiting to the good guys early.
CA RB Darrell Scott – He might be the top RB in the nation, but Michigan seems to be focused on McGuffie, and might not want to spend too much effort on a guy that will be everyone else’s top target.
7) WR – A lot of WR’s in the ’07 class, but this is a really strong year for wide receivers, so Michigan might land a couple.
PA 4-5* Jon Baldwin – Reportedly likes UM, might make an early decision.
Ann Arbor 3-4* Daryl Gooden – From Huron High School. He is in the area, but will we want to leave? Will Michigan offer more than a couple of WRs?
8) QB – Not in any way imperative, need someone who is willing to be a (capable) career backup to Mallett.
Lake Orion QB Chris Lum – Top instate QB, more athletic than Michigan has in stock (other than Forcier)
Marine City QB Brendon Kay – Likely Mac-level or career backup in the Big Ten (which is what UM is looking for, anyway)
9) TE – With two in the last class, and Carson Butler only a redshirt freshman, there should be plenty of depth here for now. Probably won’t take one in this class.
Novi TE Tyler Hoover – Again, not a huge need, but this instater loves Michigan.

This list is far from all-inclusive, as I am far from an insider. Information garnered from Jim Stefani and Scout.com.

Posted under Recruiting

California DB Michael Williams committed to Michigan during the Army All-American Bowl, upping the current number of commitments to 20. They are:

5*
QB Ryan Mallett
4*
FB Vince Helmuth
S/LB Jerimy Finch
DE Ryan Van Bergen
WR/DB Zion Babb
WR Toney Clemons
WR J.R. Hemingway
C Dave Molk
DB Michael Williams
LB Austin Panter
LB Brandon Herron
TE Steve Watson
WR/TB Martell Webb
3*
S/LB Marell Evans
RB Avery Horn
Ath Marquis Maze
WR/DB James Rogers
CB Troy Woolfolk
2*
OT Mark Huyge

Mallett, Panter (who is a Junior College transfer) and Helmuth have enrolled early, along with mixed reports of Chambers having done so as well.

Jerimy Finch is a Jonas Mouton-like Safety/Linebacker hybrid, who plays safety in high school, but could move to linebacker at the next level. Marell Evans, a high school teammate of freshman RB Brandon Minor, is in the same boat. James Rogers and Zion Babb were recruited as wideouts, but could potentially be moved to DB. Rogers was the fastest wide receiver at the Michigan summer camp (winning the smokehouse award). Babb’s film at receiver looks very impressive, so expect him to at least get a chance to prove himself there. Martell Webb is a Carson Butler clone, who will be given a chance at Wwide receiver, but ultimately move to TE unless he has the speed for the WR position.

Current remaining prospects include instate 5* CB Ronald Johnson, among a few others, including a Tennessee commitment Chris Walker at LB, Alabama commit Kourtnei Brown at DE, and sleeper WR Rashad Mason from Tennessee.

With Johnson in the fold, this class would be very successful, despite the doom-and-gloom scenarios taken by many on the internet. Anything else would just be an added bonus. If Johnson is swayed on his official visits, however, this recruiting class would end as a disappointment. With the “season” starting out with a couple great DBs in Johnson and FSU commit Dionte Allen seemingly all but locked up, losing them both would be too much.

Posted under Recruiting