2012 recruiting

[b-diddy]

most years i promise myself i wont pay attention to recruiting, but it never works out that way.

michigan got a couple of nice recruits this weekend, both linebackers. one is javon ringers' nephew, and depending on who you talk to, the top lb from ohio. the other is a line backer from cass tech.

from what i gather, both are high ceiling type players.

howevs, wednesday at 2:15, the country's top pro style qb, zach pike, is set to announce. he just attended auburn's spring game so it'd seem like he's headed south, but michigan probably feels as confident as anyone else.

also, there supposedly was a 3rd committ this weekend. he's silent, but is a highly ranked defensive player.

it'll be fun seeing what mattison can do as a recruiter. his former boss urban said he's the best recruiter in the country, and he did well for is w/ what time he had in 2011.

[b-diddy]

pike set to announce in under an hour, not gonna hold my breath on him going blue.

but, if he does not, all is not lost.



shane morris is a year behind pike (gonna be a jr next year), but some people have him as the better prospect, and he was born and raised blue. with gardner getting his redshirt last yaer (think he got it/ is going to get it), the timing might be better with morris. both will be highly touted recruits and im sure michigan would love to have either, but pike is sort of a big body that looks in the john navarre mold. thats an era im not eager to see again.

[b-diddy]

pike set to announce in under an hour, not gonna hold my breath on him going blue.

but, if he does not, all is not lost.



shane morris is a year behind pike (gonna be a jr next year), but some people have him as the better prospect, and he was born and raised blue. with gardner getting his redshirt last yaer (think he got it/ is going to get it), the timing might be better with morris. both will be highly touted recruits and im sure michigan would love to have either, but pike is sort of a big body that looks in the john navarre mold. thats an era im not eager to see again.

morris just committed. im no expert, but i like what i saw from his highlight's better than pike's. and i'd rather have a guy who grew up a wolverine fan than a guy who seems a little wishy washy-- all else being equal. um was in on another big qb (gunner kiel, currently rivals 19th best prospect in 2012), not sure if this affects that. probably yes and no.

also, i believe sparty was recruiting this kid pretty hard as well. sparty should have known that good qbs dont go to msu.

[b-diddy]

matthew godin just committed today. not the biggest get of all time (believe he's viewed as the 40th or so best DE in the country) but we wanted him, and so did sparty.

there was an article in the freep a week or so ago about sparty becoming more of a national recruiter and not limmitting itself just to michigan any more.

that may be true but maybe not. or, to borrow from moe greene:

Yeah, let's talk business, Mark. First of all, you're all done. Michigan State football don't even have that kind of muscle anymore. The Dantonio's sick, right? You're getting chased out of Michigan by Hoke and the other football teams. What do you think is going on here?

i was making my bones while bukdow was still going out with football players.

[Train Wreck]

Michigan Football Recruiting Class Of 2012

1.OT Ben Braden (Rockford, MI) - 6'6", 285 lbs., NR
2.OG Caleb Stacey (Cincinnati, OH) - 6'4", 275 lbs., NR
3.MLB Kaleb Ringer (Clayton, OH) - 6'0", 219 lbs., NR
4.OLB Royce Jenkins-Stone (Detroit, MI) - 6'2", 215 lbs., NR
5.TE Devin Funchess (Farmington Hills, MI) - 6'5", 205 lbs., NR
6.TE A.J. Williams (Cincinnati, OH) - 6'6", 260 lbs., NR


Williams is listed as a TE but will likely play Tackle his senior year. It's the start of a very good class. These transfers that have occurred recently will obviously hurt our depth next year but will likely help us longterm with all the talent in Michigan and Ohio this year. I believe that Michigan was only going to have 15 or so scholarships this year but at this rate, it might be 20 when all is said and done. Going to be a blessing in disguise, IMO.

[b-diddy]

friday m got a very highly touted lb commit, joebolden.

http://notredame.scout.com/a.z?s=109...=1&nid=4577277

this week is supposed to be even better, though. apparently, we're getting 1, maybe 2 commits, and the first one is going to be a big deal and going to make waves. its speculated that zeke pike, who committed to auburn recently, is coming to ann arbor instead.

[Glenn]

I love a good heel turn.

[b-diddy]

its probably not zeke.

michigan is also in play for brionte dunn http://scoutcombines.scout.com/a.z?s...=1&nid=4237881 who is osu's top recruit but is supposedly a little weary with tatgate. but its probably not him either.

gunner kiel, scouts top qb http://hsindiana.scout.com/a.z?s=389...=1&nid=4358413, just visited michigan, but its not likely its him.

the kid is supposed to announce first thing tomorrow.

if its not one of the 3 above, most likely "big national news that will make waves" is probably a bit hyperbolic, which is hardly unusual for recruiting. but regardless, this class is shaping up to be far better than anything RR ever put together.

[lospistones]

I'm loving this. Most 2012 recruits in the Big Ten (and top two, so far, without a five star!) when we BARELY put together a 2011 class.

[b-diddy]

the player in question was james ross http://recruiting.scout.com/a.z?s=73...=1&nid=4393336

you look at his offer sheet to see how good he is. we beat out osu, nd, psu, usc, some other schools, and alabama and lsu were looking at him as well.

he's our 4th lb this class, and 7th in the last 2. but he appears to be the kind of guy you take no matter what. samm webb says he's a better prospect than state of's in several years, including willy gholstein, campbel, and the thomas kid for the spartans.

i think in the near future, the bad lb play we had under RR will not be a problem.