UM Football Recruiting - by WM Wolverine

[Jeff Buchanan]

Every year Michigan has a big recruiting weekend where they bring in a haul of 3 stars six months before signing day. The kids over at Mgoblog get excited and piss on anyone who dares to question the coaching staff, Sam Webb does his best to sell the recruits as under-the-radar with lots of potential. Eventually we see that most of them live up to their ratings, and another 9 - 10 win season with the losses being significant and revealing is put in the history books. Same old shit...

A bit harsh, Rocky but, you have a point.

There's been plenty of generic analysis, some of is specific to a particular program, that says stars matter. All the talk of "hard working walk-ons, 2 & 3 stars making it is bull-shit. That's a one in a thousand sort of occurrence. You've got a chance of being an impact player as a 4*, more certainly as a 5* and for both in that group that do have an outstanding season or two, their path to the NFL is clearer.

With regard to that there are the haves and the have nots and M is certainly now and for the foreseeable future in the have nots grouping. There's a ton of space between the haves and even the top of the have-nots groups so, you could conclude it takes a lot more luck for such a team to reach the CFBP than teams that have really good Jimmy's and Joe's along with the coaching staff to coach them well.

Michigan needs a lot of luck with all the variables going there way more often than not in 2019.

[iam416]

[Rocky Bleier]

Given Ed Warriner's track record, I am not too disappointed about 3 star o-linemen, but I expected some highly rated recruits from Gattis at this point. Don Brown will continue to mine the east coast for players to steal from Rutgers, UConn, and Syracuse.

[Jeff Buchanan]

I'm not sure this isn't my area but, I'm think that a team's recruiting class ranking (determined by number of stars and composite player rankings) and NFL draftees presents a big gap between the typical haves and the rest of the CFB teams that M may actually be at the head of the list of also-rans but not among them.

I also think you know these numbers, how they stack up over the last 5y or so and can post them. Thanks in advance..

[AlabamAlum]

M recruiting has been good. 2015 was a bad year (low numbers), but you are a top 10 or 15 team.

2019: 8th, so far.
2018: 22nd
2017: 5th
2016: 8th

https://247sports.com/Season/2019-Football/CompositeTeamRankings/

[iam416]

[Rocky Bleier]

A.J. Henning has committed to Michigan. That is something to celebrate.

[Jeff Buchanan]

M recruiting has been good. 2015 was a bad year (low numbers), but you are a top 10 or 15 team.

2019: 8th, so far.
2018: 22nd
2017: 5th
2016: 8th

https://247sports.com/Season/2019-Fo...eTeamRankings/

So where do you consider elite teams start in this ranking? #5, #10? I know this is a relative term. I think it can be made somewhat objective though. Things I would include are NFL draftees, conference championships, appearance(s) in the CFP, others?

So, let's say M is "top 10 - 15." When it comes to the current system of winning your conference and getting into the CFP on a consistent basis .... not one offs - those are the "elites" in my book. I think one can safely say M does not crack the top 10.

My point was in my original post that M is not now and for most of it's existence in the era of modern football it is NOT and elite football team. Does it have tradition, a winning record, is it among the list of "blue blood" programs? Yes, to all three of those questions but in the modern parlance, M is not "elite." Let's compare NFL draftees in the first three rounds. No, lets not. Not even close to elite. It is good but not quite good enough and that is most likely due to the reality that it does not recruit enough 5 star types that are going to be impact players either the first or second year they play and make a contribution to 11, 12 and 13 (or more) wins every season..... and that is where this conversation started.

[WM Wolverine]

Harbaugh doesn't chase four stars when he can have a three star he likes right now. Those three stars have performed above most expectations but [imo] they arent leaving room for some kids who are going to decide late and could be flipped to M...

??????Overall it's going to lead to a lower ceiling for M's championship goals, they'll be competitive in the B1G but not with Bama, Clemson, Georgia...

AJ Henning is an excellent addition, receiver position could need talent very soon with the juniors all having NFL potential.

[hack]

Some of them are going to be processed out anyways, but I agree that Harbaugh needs to recruit a little better than he has. For now, maybe less emphasis on Gary and Peppers types and more emphasis on the rest of the top 50.

[iam416]

Henning is legit. HARBAUGH!!! up to 9 in recruiting rankings.

[Hannibal]

2020 will be an okay class. Meh but not suckage like 2018 unless we have lots of decommits.

[iam416]

Blake Corum will commit on Thursday and bump M up to 8th!

Yeah, I'm not impressed by this class. There's no high end. I think they're pretty much done with top 100 players. They have 2....in the lower half. They still should add some good 100-200 type players -- mid-high 4* -- starting with Corum. But it's meh -- I think it's much closer to 2018 than 2019. And I thought this best class was 2017 -- by far.

I thought HARBAUGH!!!! would eventually amp up his game, but he's recruiting like he's still at Stanford. Maybe Gattis will kick his ass a little. Whatever. Jimmy crack corn and I don't fucking care. Every high 3* "under the radar" kid they take is music to my ears.

2021 is, in theory, set up for M to do really well -- in-state has some legit top end players that could really be a fantastic foundation. You lock down the top 5 and you have a couple 5* kids and some high 4* kids. That's a damn good start. But, it's gonna be hard for him to do that.

[Wellington_beefhouser]

Perhaps Myles Hinton is still in play.

[Hannibal]

Blake Corum will commit on Thursday and bump M up to 8th!


I thought HARBAUGH!!!! would eventually amp up his game, but he's recruiting like he's still at Stanford..

He amped up his game for a couple of years but on the field results are taking their toll. The 2017 season did huge damage to recruiting and I'm sure that 62-39 didn't help. If this class ends up at #15 on the recruiting trail then I can't really say that it is "underachieving" there.