UM Football Recruiting - by WM Wolverine

[lineygoblue]

You have a much higher opinion of Devin Gardner than I do. He couldn't even beat out Denard Robinson.

To be fair, I don't think he was competing for the starting job at QB. He was working with the receivers.

Nobody considered putting him back at QB until the fiasco at Lincoln.

[Detroit Dan]

Imagine us, worried that Gardner leaves if he's too successful. Do I need to remind everyone that Michigan is now a second-rate football team that doesn't come close to matching up with UFM's Flagship? Will everyone please try keeping up from now on?

Amen, Brother Rob. We can only aspire to follow the flagship to the land of respectability.

Basketball is another story. Did you hear that the Buckeyes lost a B1G game by 20 points today?

[Jeff Buchanan]

Having watched some of the top QBs in the last couple of bowl games, I'd say Michigan's quality in that regard is pedestrian at best. I also don't have a lot of confidence in Borges as a QB coach. So, that leaves my assessment of the QB position as pretty weak.

What M has going for it is the Borges system Gardner is in and the time he has been in it. But Gardner isn't going to pull off the kind of heroics that Denard at his best pulled off to give M some last minute wins.

The bigger problem for M's 2013 offense is going to be the lack of a running game to compliment or supplement the weaknesses inherent in the mediocrity at the QB position. IMO Morris isn't going to be a viable option until 2015 and that's assuming he doesn't turn out to be a bust.

[hack]

Gardner isn't going to pull off the kind of heroics that Denard at his best pulled off

Northwestern game this year.

Next year will be very telling. If Gardner is still flinging stupid stuff 10 seconds after the snap...

[DennisT]

Young line is the biggest problem on offense next year.

[Da Geezer]

Read the post. I said I'd love to have the problem of Gardner being a top rated draft prospect. I understand that there is a zero chance of that happening. The young man lost basically 2.5 years of development. And the mere fact that Borges or Hoke thought Bellamy could be an effective back-up tells me all I need to know about their ability to judge QB talent.

On a happier note, Green looked like the real deal, this time not on HIS film against ordinary HS talent, but against all-star talent. Henry Poggi had a nice game, as did Dawson. Treadwell didn't make the plays that he will be expected to make at the next level. Best player I saw was Hargraves III, a DB committed to Florida.

[*JD*]

I only watched about 10 minutes of the game but I think he had an INT against Morris.

[lineygoblue]

Please remember that Morris is still recovering from mono. That takes some time. He's probably not 100% yet.

[Da Geezer]

@liney

and that is another argument in favor of a RS year for Morris if Gardner can stay healthy. No one has mentioned that Wisconsin had pretty good luck "filling a hole" at QB using grad students. For Morris' own good and the best interest of the team, UM should address their lack of a backup quarterback.

[lineygoblue]

Oh, I agree completely. M has to come up with another top QB within the next 2 classes. Injuries, departures, all sorts of things can happen.

[iam416]

Shane Morris did not play against top-rate competition in high school. He missed much of his senior year. He locks in on receivers. He needs time to develop...probably more than one redshirt year.

I don't know about the "locks on receivers" part, but otherwise I agree, Rocky. Personally, I'm unimpressed by his stats, especially against hte few good teams he played. He definitely has the arm, and he definitely showed really well in the 7v7 circuit, but I also like to see game performances, too.

As an example, there's a kid from Ohio who is going to UNC -- Mitch Trubisky. I saw him play 4 times against really high caliber competition. The kid has good arm strength, but not nearly as good as Morris', but he can run a bit and he's pure win on the field. A legendary run of games against the best Ohio had to offer. I think he's going to be really good for UNC.

Of course, then again, that's why I'm just a fan and not a recruiting analyst or whatever. At the higher level Trubisky's good skills may not be enough to get the job done while Morris' great skills will.

[Hannibal]

Morris probably isn't a legitimate 5* guy. I dunno. I tend to think that in order to take a 5* slot as a QB, you should be pretty college ready in addition to having lots of upside. I think that's true for all the positions, other than OL or D-tackle.

[iam416]

I can't say if he's a 5* or not. My impression of his on-field performance, factoring in stats/competition, etc, is not a 5* impression. But he has the skills for a really high ceiling.

I'm not sure if performance is as important for a true pro-style QB. There are lots of variables that go into that. On the other hand, you definitely want to watch a LB play. That kid you guys got from Colerain last year -- his camp circuit performances/measurables were good, but you had to watch him play. Goddamn tackling machine and huge nose for the ball. Natural LB. As opposed to someone like McCray who, IMO, isn't an elite LB and will have to move to a WDE positon to get time.

[Hannibal]

I can't say if he's a 5* or not. My impression of his on-field performance, factoring in stats/competition, etc, is not a 5* impression. But he has the skills for a really high ceiling.

High ceiling is nice, but there are hundreds of mediocre prospects entering college football with a "high ceiling". To me, a 5* skill player should be a "can't miss unless he has grades/discipline issues" guy.

[WM Wolverine]

I expect Morris to be downgraded due to his lackluster senior season, imo due to being inflicted with mono. At 7-on-7 camps, he was the best QB at almost every event.