2016 Recruiting Update: January 20, 2015

Farmington Hills (MI) Harrison defensive end Khalid Kareem with former Michigan defensive line coach Mark Smith

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2016
Houston (TX) Alief Elsik linebacker Dontavious Jackson was offered by Michigan. Jackson is a 6'2", 237 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona State, Louisville, Michigan State, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, and Texas Tech, among others. He's a 247 Composite 4-star, the #4 inside linebacker, and #142 overall. As a junior this past fall, he made 165 tackles, 27 tackles for loss, 1 interception, 4 forced fumbles, and 2 pass breakups. He claims a 4.69 forty, a 30" vertical, a 275 lb. bench press, and a 535 lb. squat. Jackson is a big hitter and an intense player, but he lacks technique and mostly plays on instinct and natural skills. Elsik has over 4,100 students and is the alma mater of Beyonce Knowles. You're welcome.

Farmington Hills (MI) Harrison defensive end Khalid Kareem was offered by Michigan. He's a 6'4", 240 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan State, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee, and several others. He's a 247 Composite 3-star, the #24 strongside end, and #411 overall. He claims a 4.8 forty, a 30" vertical, a 300 lb. bench, and a 335 lb. squat. Kareem's recruitment has blown up over the last couple months, so I was wondering when Michigan would throw their hat in the ring. Kareem is a little bit stiff and lacks some explosion, so I think he's somewhat limited in his position flexibility. He's the seventh in-state player to receive an offer from Michigan in the 2016 recruiting class. While Michigan State appears to be the early leader, Kareem has visited Ann Arbor more often. Michigan senior defensive end Mario Ojemudia is also from Harrison, and so is early NFL entrant Devin Funchess.

Fresno (CA) Clovis West linebacker Caleb Kelly was offered by Michigan. He's a 6'3", 215 lb. prospect with offers from Alabama, Florida State, Notre Dame, Oregon, UCLA, and USC, among others. He's a 247 Composite 5-star, the #3 outside linebacker, and #12 overall. Kelly is a long, lean linebacker who has a lot of athletic talent, but he plays a little soft. I'm somewhat surprised that he's the #12 player in the nation, although he does have that potential.

Hit the jump for a few more new offers and a couple tidbits.

Houston (TX) Aldine Davis linebacker Jeffrey McCulloch was offered by Michigan. He's a 6'2", 225 lb. prospect with offers from Baylor, Oklahoma, Texas, Texas A&M, and Texas Tech, among others. He's a 247 Composite 3-star, the #25 outside linebacker, and #349 overall. McCulloch claims a 4.76 forty, a 32" vertical, a 280 lb. bench press, and a 505 lb. squat. Somewhat like Jackson, he's another heavy hitter but a guy who has a little more technique.

Phoenix (AZ) Brophy Prep defensive end Connor Murphy was offered by Michigan. Murphy is a 6'7", 250 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona, Arizona State, Oregon State, and Stanford, among others. He's a 247 Composite 3-star, the #19 weakside end, and #354 overall. As a junior this past season, he made 70 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 3 sacks, and 2 fumble recoveries. Murphy is the younger brother of Trent Murphy, who was recruited by Jim Harbaugh while at Stanford, committed to the Cardinal, became an All-American (under David Shaw), and became a 2nd round draft pick of the San Francisco 49ers. Connor told a quick story that while recruiting Trent, his mother went into labor, and Harbaugh ended up babysitting Connor for a while, playing chess and drinking milk. The Wolverines as a program tried to reel in Brophy Prep wide receiver Devon Allen in the 2014 class, but Allen ended up choosing Oregon instead. As for Connor himself, he's not a great athlete but has some similarities to the likes of former Michigan defensive end Craig Roh.

Houston (TX) Westfield defensive tackle Ed Oliver was offered by Michigan. He's a 6'2", 285 lb. prospect with offers from Alabama, Baylor, LSU, Oklahoma, TCU, Texas, and Texas A&M, among others. He's a 247 Composite 5-star, the #5 defensive tackle, and #31 overall. As a junior in 2014, he made 84 tackles and 7 sacks. He claims a 4.87 forty, a 315 lb. bench press, and a 465 lb. squat. The first clip of the following highlight film is Oliver overrunning a play, hustling to get back in it, then picking up a fumble and returning it 100 yards for a touchdown. Enjoy:



MISCELLANEOUS
Detroit (MI) King wide receiver Donnie Corley visited Michigan this past weekend for the basketball game. Corley picked up a Michigan offer in recent months, and he's a 4-star, the #27 wide receiver, and #121 overall in the 247 Composite rankings.

Detroit (MI) King cornerback Lavert Hill visited Michigan with Corley. The two are now teammates after Hill transferred to King following the football season. Hill is the younger brother of Michigan safety Delano Hill. The younger Hill is a 247 Composite 4-star, the #20 athlete, and #196 overall.

On Recruiting Season  in the past week, I've updated the profiles of:

• Traverse City West's Jacob Cerny
• Chippewa Valley's Stefan Claiborne
• Plymouth's Michael Jordan
• Ann Arbor Skyline's Daelin Hayes
• Cass Tech's Tim Walton
• Cass Tech's Demetric Vance