Gator Bowl, here we come!

It was announced on Sunday that Michigan will be playing the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the Gator Bowl.  Not only did Michigan bounce back to bowl eligibility in 2010, but they're playing in a New Year's Day game, perhaps the best day of college football.  The game will be in Jacksonville, Florida, on January 1, 2011, at 1:30 p.m. on ESPN2.

Mississippi State ended the season ranked #21 with an 8-4 record.  Their signature win was a 10-7 victory over Florida, but the Bulldogs also lost close games to Arkansas and Auburn, two good teams.

More statistics and analysis will be provided as the month goes on, but with guys recovering from injury and various other dramatic events that might unfold in the next few weeks, an in-depth preview at this point might be premature and outdated by the New Year.

Kevin Sousa, ex-Wolverine

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.

2011 Offer Board Update

Wide receiver prospect Devin Lucien (#15)

The 2011 Offer Board has been updated:

Added Darien Bryant (TE).

Added Robert Trudo (DT).

Marquise Williams (QB) changed his commitment from North Carolina to Virginia Tech.

Melvin Gordon (SB) changed his commitment from Iowa to Wisconsin.

Sammy Watkins (WR) committed to Clemson.

Added Devin Lucien (WR).

Austin Traylor (OLB) committed to Wisconsin.

Added Shane Wynn (SR).

Dallas Crawford (CB) committed to Michigan.

If I Had My Druthers . . . Wide Receivers

California wide receiver George Farmer

This is the order in which I would rank the receivers Michigan has offered.  Star rankings don't matter, the likelihood of a commit doesn't matter, etc.; these rankings are purely based on my ideal team.

1. George Farmer
Has great speed and acceleration for a good-sized kid (6'2", 192 lbs.), high points the ball, and can run after the catch.

2. Devin Lucien
Only average speed, but runs excellent routes.  Catches the ball well with his hands, has good size, and high points the ball.

3. Curt Evans
Good speed and excellent after the catch.  A bit of a showboater.

4. Darius Jennings
If you want an example of highlights that are clearly doctored and sped up to make a kid look faster, check out this kid's video.  Still, he's fast and elusive.  Could play inside or outside.

5. Hakeem Flowers
Good athleticism.  Not afraid to go over the middle.  Doesn't adjust well to the ball in the air, doesn't high point the ball, catches with his body.

6. Miles Shuler
Great speed.  Runs tentatively and isn't extremely shifty.

7. Prince Holloway
Small-ish slot receiver.  Not a need in this class.  Reminds me Roy Roundtree with body control and elusiveness, albeit smaller.

8. Darius Patton
Small-ish slot receive type, a position that Michigan doesn't need to recruit at this point.

9. Shane Wynn
Tiny, extremely shifty and elusive.  At 5'6" and with limited position versatility, not a need at this point.

Chesapeake Bowl: December 30, 2010. Anyone interested?

Running back Malcolm Crockett

On December 30, 2010, the Chesapeake Bowl will be taking place in Towson, Maryland.  There are several recruits involved who might be of interest to Michigan fans, although not many are potential commits at this point.

The North roster includes WR Damiere Byrd, S Dondi Kirby, S Sheldon Royster, DE Desimon Green, WR Bill Belton, LB Armstead Williams, LB Ben Kline, CB Kyshoen Jarrett, DE Deion Barnes, OT Paul Gaughan, OG Rob Trudo, and TE Jack Tabb.

The South roster includes WR Darius Jennings, DT Vincent Croce, RB Malcolm Crockett, DT Kevin McReynolds, DT Darian Cooper, and OT Cyrus Kouandjio.

I am considering making the trek to Towson for the game.  It's not a certainty because I might be out of town and visiting family, but if anyone else in the area is interested in meeting at the game, feel free to comment here and/or e-mail me at touchthebanner@blogspot.com.

Poll Results: What to do with Cam Gordon?

Several weeks ago, I asked the question, "What should be done with [then free safety] Cameron Gordon in 2011?"

29% said move him to Spur
22% said keep him as starting free safety
20% said move him to linebacker
15% said move him to Bandit
6% said replace him with Troy Woolfolk at free safety
3% said "Other"
1% said move him back to wide receiver

I would like to know what the idea behind "Other" is.  If anyone remembers voting or has any ideas that I didn't list, please feel free to leave a comment.  I'm curious.  I can only think of maybe moving him to tight end or defensive end as further options, but maybe there are other lines of thought.

Anyway, assuming the 3-3-5 defense continues to be run at Michigan, I think Spur is a good spot for Gordon.  For those keeping track, Gordon was moved to Spur for the Penn State game several weeks ago.  That isn't to say that Gordon will remain there next season (he played WR as a freshman, FS for half a year, and is now at Spur, so position changes are frequent), but that seems to be the train of thought right now.

Former Michigan Athlete of the Week: Tom Brady

New England Patriot Tom Brady completed 21 out of 27 passes for 341 yards and 4 touchdowns in a 45-24 victory over the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day.

Honorable mention: Zoltan Mesko, the punter for the Patriots, averaged 51 yards on three punts in that same game.  Also, New York Jets inside linebacker David Harris had 5 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tackle for loss, and 1 quarterback hurry in a 26-10 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Thanksgiving.