Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Recruiting Update: January 4, 2012

Louisville (KY) Trinity DE Jason Hatcher
(image via Voice-Tribune)


ADDED TO THE BOARDS (2012, 2013, 2014)
Miami (OH) Norland inside linebacker Keith Brown de-committed from Illinois.  He had previously been committed to Miami, flipped to Illinois before Ron Zook was fired, and now will announce his commitment during the U.S. Army All-American Bowl this weekend.  He is expected to choose between Illinois, Louisville, and Miami, so Michigan is still out of the running.

Louisville (KY) Trinity defensive end Jason Hatcher, a 2013 prospect, received an offer from the Wolverines last week.  He's a 6'1", 231 lb. athlete with offers from Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisville, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.  247 Sports ranks him at #140 overall for 2013 and the #7 weakside end.  Hatcher had 40 tackles and 12 sacks as a junior.


Salt Lake City (UT) Highland defensive tackle Bryan Mone, a 2014 prospect, was offered by Michigan.  Mone is the first 2014 prospect to be offered by the Wolverines and is the teammate of incoming fullback Sione Houma.  The 6'3", 255 lb. Mone also has offers from Utah and Utah State.  The 2014 Offer Board has been unveiled!

Louisville (KY) Trinity wide receiver James Quick, a 2013 prospect, has been offered by Michigan.  He's the teammate of Hatcher, obviously.  Quick is a 6'1", 180-pounder with a reported 4.41 forty time.  He has offers from Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisville, and others.  This past season he had 82 receptions, 1434 yards, and 21 touchdowns, which was good enough to earn him the #42 overall spot for 247 Sports' 2013 rankings.  He's also their #3 wide receiver and the top player in Kentucky.




OFF THE BOARD
Lyndhurst (OH) Brush tight end Pharaoh Brown committed to Oregon.  This was not a surprise, since he went out to Oregon while he was committed to Michigan . . . without telling Michigan's coaches.  Michigan promptly dropped him from their recruiting board.  I was not impressed with Brown's attitude at various points throughout the recruiting process, so perhaps this is for the best.

Erie (PA) McDowell running back Greg Garmon committed to Iowa during the Semper Fidelis All American Bowl.  Garmon is a 6'2", 195 lb. runner with good speed and physicality who will likely present a problem for Michigan in the coming years.  Outside of starter Marcus Coker, there is a huge void at running back for the Hawkeyes (backup Mika'il McCall announced on Tuesday that he was leaving the program), so Garmon's choice makes sense.  He will likely be able to play immediately as a freshman in 2012.

Columbus (IN) East quarterback Gunner Kiel committed to LSU.  Kiel is widely considered to be the #1 quarterback prospect in the nation.  There was a time back in the spring when people thought he might end up at Michigan, but that flirtation ended a long time ago.  At one point Kiel had committed to Indiana, but the fact that the Hoosiers went 1-11 might have had something to do with him changing his mind.

San Diego (CA) Westview tight end Taylor McNamara committed to Oklahoma.  This is clearly a better option than the school he was previously committed to, which was Arizona.  The new Arizona coach is Rich Rodriguez, obviously, and Rodriguez doesn't get the ball to his tight ends very much.  Meanwhile, Oklahoma traditionally has a strong passing attack, and McNamara should fit in well there.

Olney (MD) Good Counsel defensive end Ryan Watson committed to Purdue.  The 6'3", 270-pounder is the former teammate of Blake Countess and the current teammate of Wes Brown (2012), Stefon Diggs (2012), Kendall Fuller (2013), and Dorian O'Daniel (2013), all of whom have Michigan offers.  As one might expect from a kid with his size, the Boilermakers want him to play defensive tackle.

6 comments:

  1. Isn't the GC defensive back Kendall Fuller?

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  2. @ Jeremy 10:24 a.m.

    Yeah, it's Kendall. Devin is the 2012 QB from Jersey. Thanks for the correction.

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  3. Magnus,

    I am sure you have discussed this at some other point, but how do you see the class finishing out? And how do you feel about our chances with Yuri Wright? Seems like nd thinks he is going there. Thanks

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  4. @ Anonymous 11:09 a.m.

    I don't know how the class will finish out. Unlike some other recent seasons, we have lots of big-time prospects still considering us...and still considering other big-time teams. It will be an interesting finish.

    I think our chances are solid with Yuri Wright, especially if he makes it through this coming weekend without committing to Notre Dame. I think he was awestruck with his visit to ND, but there's no reason he won't have the same feeling about Ann Arbor if/when he visits, which he's supposed to do next weekend.

    I also think we'll get one of Alex Kozan, Joshua Garnett, or Jordan Diamond. Garnett seems the most likely.

    There are always a couple surprises at the end of the recruiting cycle, too. Guys either decommit because they're uncomfortable with certain situations, or they commit because they get a late offer from a better school. I'm guessing we'll get at least one commitment from a guy who isn't really on our radar yet.

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  5. Speaking of surprises, and not that he was ever coming here anyway, but the one I can't figure out is Kiel to LSU.

    Has Les Miles ever developed a QB anywhere he's ever been?

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  6. @ Roanman 8:31 p.m.

    I don't understand Kiel to LSU, either. I think that's a mistake for Kiel and he's getting some bad advice if he wants to make it to the NFL. There are lots of places that are better suited to preparing him for the NFL. No clue how that happened.

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