dionte sykes

Today's recruiting roundup was done a while ago, then I derped and deleted the post. Friday! Pardon my brevity as I discuss updated MaxPreps rankings, Leon McQuay III, and a slew of new 2014 offers.

Alabama Ruins Everything

If you don't get this, watch Shutdown Fullback. All of them.

First, Alabama ruined the sanctity of the BCS (ha!), then defeated Michigan in the first game of their softball super regional last night, and now the Tide goes and passes the Wolverines for the top spot in the MaxPreps team recruiting rankings. Michigan still has the edge in overall commits (18 to 14), but Alabama's eight top 100 commits tops Michigan's five. MaxPreps's Tom Lemming updated that top 100 list this week, and here's where you can find Michigan's commits:

• QB Shane Morris, #16 (5*)
• OL Logan Tuley-Tillman, #50 (4*)
• LB Mike McCray, #63 (4*)
• OL David Dawson, #78 (4*)
• OL Kyle Bosch, #89 (4*)

Other notables include Su'a Cravens at #5, Henry Poggi at #25, and Laquon Treadwell at #30—all those players earned five-star ratings.

Mike McCray, by the way, finally got his Ohio State offer today. If this bromantic text conversation with Shane Morris is any indication, however, he's not going anywhere. If you remember, McCray's father was a captain at OSU. Unless McCray takes a visit to Columbus, there's little reason to be concerned.

One more recruit to get five stars from Lemming is FL DB Leon McQuay III, who's still talking about Michigan after his visit last week. McQuay talked to Tremendous about making beats—he wants to study audio engineering—with walk-on QB Jack Kennedy and also named Michigan to his top five:

"Michigan definitely made a move on this visit. They are in my top five along with USC, Florida, Notre Dame and Vanderbilt". This is a top five for now and is subject to change.

Just as importantly, McQuay expressed a desire to visit Ann Arbor again; Michigan won't have much of a chance unless that happens. McQuay also talked to 247's Josh Newberg and named a top ten($) that includes the five schools above plus Florida State, Miami, Clemson, Oregon, and UCLA.

McQuay's visit could pay dividends that go beyond his recruitment, as he got in the ear of Seffner (FL) Armwood teammate Alvin Bailey, a four-star receiver who also holds a Michigan offer. According to 247's Todd Worly, Bailey now plans on visiting Ann Arbor this summer, likely by the end of next month ($).

Recently offered TX DT Hardreck Walker "can't wait" to see Michigan, per 247's Clint Brewster, and he's planning to use one of his official visits to check out Ann Arbor ($). Walker also holds offers from West Virginia, Arkansas, Texas A&M, Auburn, Texas Tech, and Northwestern.

AZ WR Devon Allen is still very, very fast:

Allen says he's definitely looking to compete in track at the college level and that the school he picks will likely have a strong presence in track and field. To give you an idea of the caliber of track athlete Allen is, here are his PR's from this season:

100m: 10.49
200m: 20.75
110 hurdles: 13.52
300 hurdles: 36.39
400: 48.45

Yowza. The downside to this is that if Allen is serious about attending a school with a top-flight track program, Michigan could be at a serious disadvantage when going up against Pac-12 and SEC schools. Allen did mention, however, that Michigan is in contact with him the most along with Arizona State and Arkansas.

Quickly: 247 breaks down film on CA S Su'a Cravens. They also, like everyone else, predict him to go to USC. NC WR Uriah LeMay will announce his decision on June 1st, and he'll likely join his brother Christian at Georgia. TTB gives a scouting report on TN RB Jordan Wilkins. Happy trails to VA LB Matt Rolin, who committed to South Carolina.

The Rain In Spain Never Mind I'll Stop Now

Sam Webb's latest offering at the Detroit News profiles 2014 NC OT Bentley Spain, who holds 12 offers, including one from Michigan. Spain's team didn't perform so well last year, but that problem didn't extend to Spain, who told Webb that he didn't give up a sack and recorded "about 60 pancakes." Spain also gave his thoughts on Michigan and mentioned a possible time for a visit:

"They're moving toward a pro-style offense, which I think is very good for me," Spain said. "That's the kind of offense I'd like to play in, ideally. I love what they're doing up there. I think they're really on the rise and they had a great season last year. I think I just need to keep developing relationships with all the coaches and get up there for a visit.

"I'm planning on coming out in early June, but I don't have anything set in stone yet."

Spain currently maintains no favorites and plans to wait on a decision until at least this time next year.

Michigan continues to send out offers to top-flight 2014 prospects, with four more going out this week:

• Michigan joined Baylor, Nebraska, and Virginia in extending early offers to TX S T'Kevian Rockwell, according to 247's Todd Worly ($). Rockwell is a big safety at 6'0", 202 pounds, but after being laser-timed at 10.47 in the 100-meter dash, speed is by no means a concern. He also plays outside linebacker and running back, and if he bulks up at all—probably, considering he's still just a sophomore—one of those will likely be his position in college.
• Tremendous reports that Michigan offered four-star NC TE Jeb Blazevich, who's already bringing in offers from a who's-who of top programs. Blazevich says he'll visit either this summer or, more likely, for a game in the fall. Click through to see his impressive sophomore highlights.
• AZ WR Dionte Sykes also claims an offer from Michigan($), though he tells 247's Clint Brewster that UCLA "will be hard to say no to." He does mention a desire to visit several schools, including Michigan, before he makes a decision.
• Four-star OH LB Michael Ferns already has nearly 20 scholarship offers, and Michigan joined the fray this week ($). Ferns says he'll visit Ann Arbor in June; he's already taken trips to Ohio State and Penn State.

Quickly: Canadian WR Jaylan Grandison will visit today, according to Tremendous. Michigan makes the early top five of DC CB D'Andre Payne, who will be on hand for the June one-day camp ($). Tim Sullivan with a writeup on IL CB Parrker Westphal, who has offers from Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Florida, and others. Westphal is coached by former Wolverine corner Todd Howard.

Today's recruiting roundup discusses the Elite 11 and NFTC camps in Columbus, Ty Isaac officially narrowing his field to three, new offers for 2013 and 2014, and more.

Commits Excel in Columbus

Shane Morris, equally adept at deep bombs and photobombs (via)

It was a busy weekend for Michigan commits, as Columbus hosted an Elite 11 regional on Friday followed by a Nike Football Training Camp on Saturday. Shane Morris bounced back from a lackluster performance in April's Dallas Elite 11 regional, taking home MVP honors in the Columbus edition and earning himself a spot in July's Elite 11 finals, which take place in Los Angeles. Morris beat out a field that included Notre Dame commit Malik Zaire, Ohio State commit Jalin Marshall (who will likely play receiver in college), Northwestern commit Matt Alviti, and Purdue commit Danny Etling. Here's 247's Barton Simmons on Morris's performance:

1. Shane Morris, Warren (Mich.) De La Salle – Good luck trying to pin a fear of competing on Shane Morris. Despite his lofty ranking and his early commitment to Michigan, Morris is at seemingly every event he can get to, eager to prove himself. On Friday he did just. He can put loads of velocity on the ball without digging deep, he showed great accuracy throughout the day and he has a smooth and natural composure in the pocket. Morris’ performance earned him an invite to the Elite 11 finals this summer.

Every Scout analyst on hand ranked Morris as the top performer, and they singled him out as "most accurate" as well. Rivals's Josh Helmholdt gave his take in the Freep:

“Over the past couple weeks Morris has been preparing to show he has more than just the big arm, and he proved that on Friday,” said Rivals.com Midwest Recruiting Analyst Josh Helmholdt. “The opposite of overthrowing is trying to aim the ball, but Morris showed improved accuracy and spun the ball better while varying his speeds and trajectory.”

Michigan's star quarterback recruit wasn't the only commit to earn MVP honors over the weekend, however, as David Dawson (OL MVP) and Mike McCray (LB MVP) took home hardware from the NFTC. In fact, Michigan and Ohio State pledges dominated Saturday's event—of the seven players to earn invites to The Opening in Oregon, all were either future Wolverines (Dawson, McCray, Morris, and Taco Charlton) or Buckeyes (Marshall, Cam Burrows, and Billy Price).

Dawson in particular drew rave reviews, earning top weekend performer honors from 247's Simmons...

1. David Dawson, OL, Detroit (Mich.) Cass Tech – There were Michigan commits out in droves on Saturday, all wearing their Wolverine gear and waving the flag in Ohio State country but none represented quite as well as David Dawson.

A player with good length, Dawson showed good athleticism as an edge protector in one-on-ones but really separated himself with his finisher’s mentality. Dawson really fought to win his reps in one-on-ones and many of those reps he won with authority.

...and Rivals's Helmholdt ($):

Dawson capped off his MVP performance on Saturday by stoning defensive line MVP Billy Price in the final offensive line/defensive line one-on-one. Dawson has been dominant throughout the off-season, but this may have been his best performance to date. He was moving his feet better than in events past, and he channeled his mean streak well, even if he went past the whistle on a few plays. Dawson ended up with more pancakes than any other lineman we saw in the one-on-ones and physically manhandled the majority of defenders he faced.

Dawson also made Scout's Bob Lichtenfels's top ten list($) along with Morris. You can see footage of Dawson, Logan Tuley-Tillman, and Charlton from the one-on-one blocking drills below, courtesy of Rivals:

Dawson's mean streak is on full display, as is Charlton's speed, though he also gets stuffed on one rep when the speed rush doesn't work out. You may notice that Tuley-Tillman looks a little ponderous and out of shape—he's been battling a shoulder injury that's hampered his conditioning and essentially forced him to block with one arm, so don't get too concerned.

Helmholdt listed Charlton as his #5 lineman at the NFTC, saying "offensive linemen could not handle Charlton's speed, but he also surprised them with his strength, even knocking Kyle Meadows backward on one rep." Meanwhile, Tim Sullivan provides evaluations for Mike McCray ($)...

McCray's ability to cover running backs out of the backfield had previously been considered a question mark, but it's one that he answered emphatically on Saturday. He was able to go stride-for-stride with all but the quickest tailbacks there, and showed the ability to not only blanket a receiver, but make plays on the ball as well. In edge-rush drills, he showed the ability to overpower running backs and tight ends, but also a quickness to go around them that's uncommon in a player his size.

...and Khalid Hill:

Hill impressed again on Saturday, with more athleticism than he's given credit for at times, precise routes, and as always, very good hands. He developed a nice chemistry with some of the quarterbacks in attendance, and although tight ends didn't get the ball much, he made the most of the opportunities presented to him.

Overall, it was quite a weekend for the Wolverine contingent in Columbus; Morris may have locked down five-star status, while Dawson and Charlton look poised to move up when the recruiting services update their rankings.

Speaking of which, Scout unveiled their initial 2013 team rankings, and it comes as no surprise that Michigan holds down the top spot, the first time that a school other than Texas has ranked #1 in Scout's initial release. Ohio State is at #4, Notre Dame #5, Penn State #12, Nebraska #17, and Michigan State rounds out the list at #20.

Isaac Down to Three, More 2013 News

Josh Helmholdt caught up with IL RB Ty Isaac after his latest trip to USC, and while this has been presumed for a long time, Isaac has trimmed his list to three schools ($):

"Right now, it's Michigan, USC and Notre Dame," Isaac said. "Among that group some are ahead of others, but I think it's down to them. Hopefully I can get this thing knocked out soon.

"If all goes well and nothing else comes up, hopefully I can get this done before my season starts, whether that be soon or in August. If not, I've got until February 2nd. I don't see it going that long, but if circumstances warrant that then so be it."

In good news for Michigan fans, Isaac also mentioned that a pre-decision trip to Ann Arbor "could take place in the near future." Considering his statements above, it's logical to think that the Wolverines are still in a very strong position to land his commitment, with Notre Dame probably on the outside looking in right now.

CA S Su'a Cravens will announce his decision on June 6th, his mother's birthday, and according to Scout's Lindsay Thiry he's narrowed his choices to five schools ($): USC, UCLA, Michigan, Nebraska, and Ohio State. Rivals's Adam Gorney reports, however, that while Cravens will take a trip to the Midwest before his decision, he will visit just two of those Big Ten schools, though he won't say which one is out of the running ($). Regardless, USC will be the team to beat, and I have a tough time seeing him go elsewhere.

The Wolverines continue to send out wide receiver offers, with the latest going to FL WR Alvin Bailey, the high school teammate of five-star safety Leon McQuay III. Bailey tells 247 that he's feeling the time crunch of the recruiting process, and while he hopes to visit Michigan he might not get the chance ($). He seems like a player who will stay in-state, though a four-star at a position of need—not to mention a teammate of an elite prospect—is certainly worth an offer.

Quickly: MA DT Maurice Hurst Jr. will take visits to Michigan and MSU in the near future, then make his decision before the start of his senior season ($). Happy trails to TX DE Christian Lacouture, who surprised many by committing to Nebraska on Saturday.

M Leading for McDowell? Plus More 2014 Offers

2014 MI DE Malik McDowell continues to rack up the offers, with his latest coming from Notre Dame, and he also impressed at the NFTC over the weekend. The Detroit Loyola product recently named a top five of Michigan, Notre Dame, Alabama, LSU, and Ohio State, but one school might stick out above the rest ($):

The recruiting process is just getting started for Detroit (Mich.) Loyola class of 2014 defensive end Malik McDowell, with Notre Dame becoming the latest school to offer this past Friday, but Michigan may have already established itself as the school to beat.

“You could say that,” McDowell said after participating in the Ohio Nike Football Training Camp Regional at Ohio Dominican University on Saturday.

I've been hearing the same myself, though McDowell still wants to take visits—especially to the SEC programs—before coming to any sort of decision.

Michigan continues to send out offers to elite rising juniors. TX S Edward Paris, the #10 overall prospect in 247's early rankings, picked up an offer over the weekend ($). He'll be tough to pull out of the South, but says he would like to come up for a game in the fall. DC CB D'Andre Payne already has Virginia as his leader, but Michigan—amongst several other schools—threw their hat into the ring last week ($). Finally, Tremendous reports AZ WR Dionte Sykes picked up a Michigan offer a couple of weeks ago, and he'd like to take an unofficial visit over the summer.