Monday, December 24, 2012

Recruiting Update: December 24, 2012

Tarpon Springs (FL) East Lake wide receiver George Campbell, Jr. (image via 247 Sports)
ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2013
Philadelphia (PA) West Catholic offensive tackle Jaryd Jones-Smith was offered by Michigan.  Jones-Smith is a 6'7", 300 lb. tackle with offers from North Carolina State, Pitt, Virginia, and Wisconsin.  Michigan just offered him in the last few weeks, around the same time they started pursuing Cameron Hunt, Kenny Lacy, and Dan Samuelson.  Since that time Michigan won a re-commitment from offensive guard David Dawson, but the Wolverines are looking to add another lineman, so it makes sense that they would be pursuing guys who can play tackle at this point.  Also, his nickname is "Hamburger."

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2014

Olney (MD) Good Counsel offensive guard Sam Mustipher was offered by Michigan.  He's a 6'4", 286 lb. prospect with offers from Maryland, Ohio State, Penn State, Rutgers, and others.  Good Counsel is the alma mater of sophomore cornerback Blake Countess and also the home of former Michigan targets Wes Brown (Maryland), Stefon Diggs (Maryland), Kendall Fuller (committed to Virginia Tech), Jelani Jenkins (Florida), and Dorian O'Daniel (committed to Clemson). (Highlights.)

Pickerington (OH) Central outside linebacker/defensive end Jae'Sean Tate was offered by Michigan.  Tate is a 6'6", 200 lb. prospect who is committed to Ohio State to play basketball.  The Wolverines are also pursuing him for basketball, so perhaps the coaches are hoping that the opportunity to play both sports could entice him to come north.

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2015
East Lake (FL) Tarpon Springs wide receiver George Campbell, Jr. was offered by Michigan.  Campbell is the younger teammate of a couple class of 2014 offerees, offensive tackle Mason Cole and wide receiver Artavis Scott.  He's a 6'5", 198 lb. receiver who had 30 catches for 766 yards (25.5 yards/catch) and 5 touchdowns as a sophomore in 2012.  Campbell also has offers from North Carolina State, South Florida, UCF, and Vanderbilt.  I really like this kid's film, and I think he'll be one of the top wide receiver prospects in the 2015 class.  (Highlights.)

OFF THE BOARD
Monaca (PA) Central Valley wide receiver Robert Foster committed to Alabama.  Foster is widely considered to be an elite talent, but it sounds like he'll have to spend a year at prep school before qualifying to play for the Crimson Tide.

Mesquite (TX) West Mesquite wide receiver Eldridge Massington committed to UCLA.  Massington had previously been committed to USC, but they sort of pulled the rug out from under him because of his early-season ACL tear.  He must have really wanted to be in Los Angeles, though, because he committed to their cross-town rival.

4 comments:

  1. Any thoughts on the offensive line carpet bombing that the staff is doing? Seems as though they're offering a big range of players (Finley at the bottom and to, I guess, Hunt at the top).

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    1. I think the coaches want another offensive lineman, but it seems they're willing to take the best player available, whether he's a guard or a tackle. At this point the only guys who might be able to get snatched up by a late offer from Michigan are lower rated guys who don't have a great list of offers. The coaches seem convinced that Lewan is leaving, so now they have an extra offensive line scholarship to give.

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  2. According to rivals, there are 12 uncommitted four star receivers, the majority of which are big wideouts that would fit nicely in our future offense. How come we are not in there recruiting basically any of them outside of Treadwell? Also, for the second year in a row, Cleveland Hts has produced a top 100 player both at WR and again for the second year in a row we didnt even offer him? Does Hoke find it a lost cause with Ohio likely out front? Similar situation with PA WR Tyler Boyd who doesnt hold a UM offer. It's just frustrating to see us fail to grab a blue chip receiver again and again while Notre Dame is in the top 5 for 7 of those uncommitted receivers. Any light you could shed on this would be awesome.

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    1. Of those twelve, Michigan has offered North, Quick, Cunningham, and Allen. The only who showed serious interest was Allen, who visited but looks to be headed out west somewhere. Shelton Gibson might be a kid who seems ticketed for Ohio State; I'm not sure why Hoke hasn't pursued him outside of that idea. I also don't know about Tyler Boyd, but I would not be entirely surprised if he gets an offer in the near future.

      I really can't say why Hoke hasn't offered some of these other guys, but if he can't pull in some of these midwest guys, I don't know that offering some elite guys from Florida will have much of an effect. The bottom line is that Michigan hasn't produced elite receivers since Manningham left after 2007, and receivers want to go where they'll get the ball. These 25-40 catch seasons by receivers don't inspire future greats to want to be Wolverines. Michigan might have to wait another year or two, see if a lesser known guy like Darboh/Chesson can turn in a good season, and then recruit based on that production. This is a function of having Sheridan, Threet, Forcier, and Robinson as Michigan's quarterbacks for the last several years.

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