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| Lake Nona, FL quarterback Kevin Sousa |
Quarterback Kevin Sousa, who had been committed to Michigan since June 2010, has decommitted in favor of the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. Sousa is 6'2", 213 lbs., and the #22 dual-threat quarterback to Rivals. Here's the commitment post I wrote for him a few months ago.
Sousa started to hint that he might be re-opening his recruitment last month when he showed a bit of disappointment that the Michigan coaches were continuing to recruit other quarterbacks, namely Marquise Williams (who was committed to North Carolina and now is a Virginia Tech commit). While Sousa didn't seem to mind the highly touted quarterbacks already on Michigan's roster, he was clearly agitated that Michigan didn't seem to be fully devoted to him as their future quarterback.
So while Michigan's coaches didn't seem convinced that Sousa was their guy, they also seem to have struck out on all or most of the quarterbacks ahead of him on their wish list (and mine). The two remaining uncommitted quarterback prospects on Michigan's board are Cardale Jones (Cleveland, OH) and Tanner McEvoy (Oradell, NJ). Jones hails from Glennville High School, a program helmed by Ohio State-loving Ted Ginn, Sr. He's a bit of a poor fit for Michigan's system, and I can't see him succeeding in an offense predicated on the zone read option. Meanwhile, McEvoy spent his high school career as a receiver before switching to quarterback prior to his senior season. He did enjoy some success this past fall (26 passing touchdowns, 11 rushing touchdowns at last count), but one can only assume that he would be a bit of a project as a quarterback.
In my opinion, Michigan needs to bring in a quarterback prospect in the 2011 class. Some fans think the Wolverines can get away with avoiding the quarterback position for 2011 and going after some players in 2012. I think that would be a mistake. It's entirely possible that the coaching situation at Michigan could cause one or more transfers. If Rich Rodriguez remains at Michigan, the chance exists that Tate Forcier might want to go elsewhere; he's good enough to start at many places in the country. If Jim Harbaugh is hired, I'm not sure how Denard Robinson fits. Meanwhile, it's unclear how Tate Forcier would feel about playing for Harbaugh. Forcier would seem a better fit for Harbaugh's system, but Tate's older brother Jason (also a Michigan Wolverine back in 2005-2006) threw a total of 13 passes under Harbaugh after transferring to Stanford. Even if each of the quarterbacks remains, that gives Michigan only three on the roster (the aforementioned Forcier and Robinson, plus freshman Devin Gardner). One or more transfers would obviously leave Michigan perilously thin at the position.
The decommitment of Sousa leaves Michigan with 13 commitments in the Class of 2011, and Michigan should have 22 to give. Approximately nine slots remain open.
I understand your concern about lack of depth at QB, but what are the chances that a 2011 QB would end up being a significant contributor down the road? The chances seem small to me
ReplyDelete@ Alex 1:06 a.m.
ReplyDeleteThe chances might be small, but they're not insignificant. Robinson and Forcier are gone after 2012. That leaves Gardner and potentially a Class of 2011 quarterback around for 2013 and beyond. Anything can happen.
Good point about Harbaugh-Forcier family history.
ReplyDeleteI agree that QB recruiting is a concern. A development/depth guy like Sousa seemed like an ideal fit in the current situation. QB is so important as a position, and is tasked with so much in this offense, I'd really like to see one player in every class.
Sousa sounded like he had nice upside, but realistically, with 3 or 4 more years of Gardner, any 3-star caliber QB who isn't a pure pocket guy will be adequate for the teams needs. Jones may not be ideal, but putting a foot into Glenville would be pretty beneficial for the program.
@ Lankownia 1:15 p.m.
ReplyDeleteI'm not really concerned with getting a foot in the door at Glenville. If it happens, it happens. I'd rather get a good player than take a mediocre player who just MIGHT lead to better things down the road. I don't like politics like that interfering with actual football.
I hear you. Just seems like the need for an impact QB in this class is relatively low. I agree that it's important they land SOMEONE, but its probably going to be a relatively meh recruit either way. Its obviously hard to project what the roster will look like in 2013, but its also very hard to project who will be better between Jones and Sousa by then.
ReplyDeleteFWIW - ESPN seems pretty high on Jones:
"looks like a pure pocket guy, but will surprise you with his feet and initial quickness... buys a lot of second-chance opportunities with his athleticism. He is a threat to take off and run. Will steamroll smaller defenders that try and tackle him. Has above-average speed and some elusiveness to make defenders miss in space... He throws the ball like Byron Leftwich in terms of style, but athletically he is much better than that."
If Tate can be successful in a zone-read system, maybe so can Jones.
My ideal recruit for this spot is someone who is patient, willing to red-shirt, and won't mind sitting behind Gardner for a couple years. A project with upside, but AWARE of it, and accepting of their role. I liked Sousa's size and athleticism, but he seemed a little needy. Attitude may be the most important attribute for this recruit, whoever it is.
@lankownia
ReplyDeletetate sounds exactly(ish) like espn's description of jones
-horn
Ha - he does in the bits I quoted, but most of it talks about his exceptional height and cannon-arm.
ReplyDelete@ Lankownia 2:03 p.m.
ReplyDeleteRemember that between Pat White's tenure and that of apparent long-term starter Geno Smith, there was fifth year senior Jarrett Brown.
Yes, things rarely work out exactly as planned. Sometimes you get John Navarre starting as a sophomore or Nick Sheridan.
ReplyDeleteTheres a good chance whoever gets recruited will end up starting some games down the line.