UM Football Recruiting - by WM Wolverine

[Prime2]

We will not hear officially from JH and his staff until after NSD, if ever. There's been full fantasy disclosure from Swenson and leaked tidbits from Michigan via surrogates. I hope Jimmy Ballgame never bothers to correct the record, we are embroiled in a national title hunt at present.

Come to think of it, my grandmother isn't busy for the next 3 to 4 years, she is as committed as ever to the maize and blue and she too has never met JH or his staff but expect her faxed LOI on the 3rd too.

[drok]

Whether or not Swenson was lazy, hit ceiling, or just not good enough, this could have been handled better. He should have been told earlier. It's a failure on the coaches' parts to properly identify whether he was a fit and how many spots they were going to need. It's a fluid situation, but more transparency was possible. And it's really shitty for Swenson, there's not doubt about that. But from a program point of view, it's not going to matter. It won't affect recruiting going forward. I'm fine with this as a one off situation as long as it doesn't become habit. The other decommitments have all seemed above board to me.

Let's move on.

[iam416]

Exactly.

[Prime2]

Here's something worth owning, curtesy of MgoBlog:

Finally, reports from CA TE Devin Asiasi and CA DT Boss Tagaloa and people close to them were highly positive, as they usually are. ESPN's Erik McKinney caught up with them. Tagaloa:
"It was much more than I expected. This visit was by far one of the best I've taken. They are really high on my offer list right now and there's a good possibility I could be going there, too."
Asiasi had similarly positive but not definitive statements. UCLA, Washington, and USC are all in play for both. The duo took trips together to the former two and have USC set for next weekend; Asiasi cancelled a midweek visit to Alabama. Lorenz reports that Michigan believes this is one package deal with a high chance of coming to fruition. I believe it. When you're taking all your officials as a pair, that means something.
Whether that's good or bad is in the eye of the beholder. West Coast folk tend to think Asiasi is much more open to departing than Tagaloa. Scout's Greg Biggins:
"…with Boss, it would still be a surprise if he left the state but not as much with Devin, he's very open to everyone right now and fits that Michigan offense really well."
Wiltfong also thinks Tagaloa will stay in the west, with Asiasi an option.
If this is indeed a package Michigan is hoping that Asiasi is the guy driving the bus here, as Michigan is school on his list most likely to let him play tight end for the duration of his career. At this point all of the finalists seem like they're in play.

Trick or Treat Talent, your Pals, Tagaloa & Asiasi!

[lineygoblue]

I agree with drok. I think a better way of handling the situation would have been for Harbaugh and his staff to contact all the players who committed to Hoke, and let them know that they were going to be re-evaluated by the new staff. This wouldn't necessarily mean that all offers were pulled, but it would mean that Harbaugh and his staff wanted to do their own evaluation. Then let the players know that they would each be contacted and advised of where they stood with the new staff.

Swenson is going to go to a B1G school somewhere. Pat Fitzgerald said he has a standing offer to go to NW, and that's a pretty decent program with excellent academics. So, Swenson isn't going to get stuck going to Podunk CC in Lima Ohio or something.

It does appear that it could have been handled better. Of course, we're missing one whole side of the story, so who knows ... haters are gonna jump on this, and lovers are gonna defend....

[edindetroit]

Let's move on.

Finally!

[Da Geezer]

Froot said:

Also, in that follow up he posts a tweet from a Michigan fan that he got, he said something, "whatever it takes, whatever the cost." That seems about right.

Talent probably tweeted that. If the kid told the reporter that, then he certainly isn't taking the high road. I agree with drok. Move on.

[drok]

On Onwenu, from mgoblog:

MI OL commit Michael Onwenu got an offer last week and visited; Michigan folk didn't expect much to happen there and it doesn't look like it did. Sullivan called him "fully solid" in the aftermath. People kept asking after this happened and Sullivan finally related his response to a text:

Did Michigan State change his mind?
"Lol no."

[Rocky Bleier]

From what I heard he's a lifelong Michigan fan who just wanted to take some visits.

[WM Wolverine]

Class of '16 Recruiting Board

Offense
QB: Brandon Peters
RB: Kareem Walker & Kingston Davis
WR: Dylan Crawford, Brad Hawkins, Ahmir Mitchell, Chris Evans, Eddie McDoom, Donald Stewart, Pie Young & Nate Johnson
TE: Sean McKeon, Chase Allen & Devin Asiasi
OT: Devery Hamilton
OG: Ben Bredeson, Michael Onwenu & Stephen Spanellis

Defense
DT: Michael Dwumfour, Rashan Gary & Jordan Elliott
DE: Ron Johnson, Carlo Kemp, Joshua Uche & Connor Murphy
LB: Devin Bush Jr., Devin Gil, Elysee Mbem-Bosse, Dytarious Johnson & Khaleke Hudson
CB: David Long & Lavert Hill
S: Josh Metellus
K/P: Quinn Nordin

[Da Geezer]

Raulerson commits to UCLA.

[Hannibal]

Shouldn't make much of a difference as long as the Kalis rumors are false.

[WM Wolverine]

Boss Tagaloa DT and Devin Asiasi TE are possibilities too...

Eddie McDoom is close to a lock... Hopefully Gary is, he's suddenly needed with Elliott potentially leaving to Texas. M certainly wants both Elliott and Dwumfour, the depth chart at DT/SDE gets really thin after '16 and nearly blank after '17...

Really like the talent level of the two latest additions, even if they are 3-stars. Bosse's coverage skills might cause him to end up on the defensive line or be a blitzing linebacker. It's hard in college football today to have a 2-down LB or DL...

Khaleke Hudson LB/S/ATH set to decide sometime this week (Wednesday?). Deciding between M, PSU, Pitt and UCLA... M is in very good shape but PSU/Pitt has home field advantage...

Hill is another recruit that M really needs, like everywhere else on the team, the 2-deep takes a huge hit after '16 and needs quality at defensive back. Sparty is making a push to steal him as his friends are mostly going to Sparty...

Isaiah Simmons LB/S looks like he'll make an official visit before signing day. Really like his talent level, 4-star, borderline 3-4-star at most places. If he makes it to AA, he'll certainly make the recruiting board. Nebraska is confident, but he's visiting Clemson this coming weekend. We'll know more after (and if) he visits AA.

[Rocky Bleier]

Questions:

1. Who's going to play center? Mason Cole?

2. How has Don Brown changed our defensive recruiting? Is he looking for a different type of player/athlete?

[WM Wolverine]

Mason Cole is a possibility to move to C, with Grant Newsome starting at tackle... Kugler is the other option at center...

Brown loves guys who can get to the quarterback, he blitzes a ton and the ability to rush the QB will be a higher priority for him. Not much change in defensive backs, loves long cornerbacks that can stick to their receiver in man coverage.