dj foster

Or: Wednesday Recruitin' Wasn't Particularly Subtle About This Yesterday

Matt Godin Goes Blue

MI DE/DT Matt Godin committed to Michigan on WTKA this morning, and though the podcasts are not available quite yet, it was apparently a good one. Here's another quote Godin gave to Tom:

"We have one goal, a National Championship. I've already been talking about it with my future teammates. We are going to be a defense with a nasty streak."

Aside from The Wolverine Blog:

After reading a lot of commitment posts, one tends to see two patterns emerge to rationalize a lowly three-star... The other subset would be the prototypical ‘Oh, Iowa and Wisconsin make championship contenders out of these types of kids every year’, but what does that mean? It means that the kids may not have the same explosive potential as others, but are high effort, smart, and (for the most part) pretty technically sound. I think it’d be hard to put Godin anywhere but the latter category

...There are no further breakdowns of his game - yet - so for now, enjoy the Hello: Matt Godin post. And (since I forgot to add it this morning) a hearty thanks to MGoUser Six Zero for the image.

Happy Trails

NC OLs Clayton and Brock Stadnik committed to South Carolina. Michigan had been interested in Brock only, and when it became clear that the twins insisted on attending school together, the recruitment cooled quickly.

IL WR Jordan Westerkamp committed to Nebraska. Michigan wasn't a serious player for him, but he's a (new) teammate of IL DT Jaleel Johnson, a recent recipient of a Michigan offer, who seems to really like Michigan.

CO TE Evan Baylis has committed to Oregon. Something tells me Brady Hoke's staff isn't sweating the loss of a tight end.

He's not off the board yet, but GA WR Jaquay Williams is making a commitment soon, and I for one would be shocked if he picked Michigan.

The Interview Portion of Our Programming

FL QB Bennie Coney is still including Michigan among his top 5, and certain reports have indicated that's a final list. He's also turned his act around after being kicked off Plant City's team last year, according to Coach Wayne Ward:

When you’ve made a mistake, the only thing that people remember was that mistake, no matter what you do. For me, he’s been doing good. He has a 3.0 (GPA) in the classroom, he just scored an 18 on the ACT so he’s qualified already. That just lets you know that he’s making the proper steps in becoming a collegiate athlete. …He’s been doing everything the right way, we just want to make sure we stay on that path.

Bennie himself also talks about his maturation process. Coney has been nominated to the US Army All-American Game.

Tom talked to former Wolverine Ricky Powers, the high school coach of OH S Jarrod Wilson:

Jarrod is a smart kid, and I know he's planning on narrowing it down soon here. I don't know who it will all be narrowed down to, of course Michigan will be on the list. I think he'll have schools like Michigan, Stanford, and Notre Dame which shows you his intelligence...

I think he has a timeline, but I try not to talk to him about it too much. He's quiet, but he's a great kid and he really will break down different things to make a decision. He'll make the right choice.

There's plenty more on Jarrod in the interview, but sounds like Michigan is not heavily recruiting his teammate, OH WR Corey Smith, who is deciding soon ($, info in header).

OH RB Bri'onte Dunn, currently an Ohio State commit, visited Michigan over the weekend ($, info in header). Tom caught up with him after the visit:

It was better than I expected. They showed us around a lot and explained all the schooling stuff to us. They were good people, they seem like I could build a relationship with them. I'm just looking around right now, I'm still committed to Ohio State.

Though he says he's firmly committed to the Buckeyes, we'll see what happens with their infractions case.

CA WR Malik Gilmore talked to Tom about his recruitment:

I'm still taking everything in right now. I want to get out and take my visits and then I will start to narrow down the schools. I've been hearing from Cal, UCLA, and Northwestern lately, so we'll see. I'm not sure what I want to do yet, but I will be seriously considering Michigan in all this.

His commitment is still a long way out, but Michigan is definitely a school he's considering.

MO DT Ondre Pipkins was the subject of the latest Sam Webb column in the Detroit News. Michigan seems to be in strong position. Allen Trieu on Pipkins's game:

"Pipkins is a big-bodied space-eater that can command double teams, but he's quick enough and light enough on his feet to penetrate and disrupt," said Trieu. "Once he learns to really use his hands and consistently play under people, he's going to be an even tougher guy to move and block... Big kids like him that are 320 pounds and move the way he does are very rare."

And his high school coach Greg Reynolds:

"Ondre is strong and quick off the ball, and when he can latch onto an opponent and stay low, he can take care of some gaps for sure," Reynolds told Scout.com. "He gets double-, sometimes triple-teamed, which allows our linebackers to flow freely. He plays with a good motor. His job is to draw the double- and triple-team, but he is very disruptive in the backfield. We're going to do some things next year to try to open things up for him."

The Saginaw expatriate is on track for a late summer decision, or he may let his recruitment drag on a bit longer.

NY QB Chad Kelly visited Ann Arbor last week, and talked to Tom about his impressions:

My impression was that it was a great program and they're turning it around from the past few years. I think it compared pretty well and overall it was a good time... In the process I'm just checking everything out, trying to find the pros and cons of all these schools. I will make my decision before the season though.

He'll have to camp to earn an offer, but Michigan might be in good position if they show interest.

Tom interviewed AZ CB/ATH DJ Foster following his Michigan offer last week:

As of now I kind of have a top five, but schools keep offering so it keeps changing. Right now it's USC, ASU, Oregon, Stanford, and Cal. That changes all the time though, like when schools like Michigan offer...

I plan on taking all five of my official visits. I'm definitely going to try to use them on schools that I can't really see on unofficials. I would love to use one of them on Michigan.

If the Wolverines can get him on campus, they have a chance to land him, but we'll see if such a visit actually happens. Since it sounds like Michigan wants him on defense, here's his highlight from that side of the ball:

Etc.

The MSR Ohio Blog compliments OH OL Commit Caleb Stacey:

Some colleges are looking for that "hard-nosed tough guy," and two that come to mind are Caleb Stacey(Oak Hills) and Benny McGowan(Centerville). Both need to improve pass blocking techniques. Both need to work on balance. Both do bring that toughness and nastiness that Zach Born [sic] brought to Ohio State.

Despite the frequent misspellings, apparently this guy is legit. Plus he's complimenting a Michigan commit, so I'll trust him.

Other Offensive Linemen: WA OL Zach Banner is one of the top offensive linemen in the nation, and stands at a massive 6-9, 300. he has guaranteed that he will visit Ann Arbor ($, info in header). TX OL Michael Starts wants to visit Michigan this summer. CA OL Kyle Murphy is interested in Michigan ($, info in header). TX OL Trey Keenan has a Michigan connection ($, info in header).CA OL Jordan Simmons was expecting a visit from Michigan last week. Michigan visited MN OL Jonah Pirsig earlier this spring ($, info in header). Michigan is "up there" with CO OL Paul Thurston, who visited over the weekend ($, info in header).

Defensive Linemen: GA DT Jordan Watkins may be receiving a Michigan offer this week. NY DT Jarron Jones is a soft commit to Penn State, and he'll visit Ann Arbor in June. Michigan has offered VA DE Ken Ekanem.

Defensive Backs: TX S Will Hines had Michigan coaches visit last week, no word on an offer yet. NJ S Elijah Shumate is "high on Michigan" ($, info in header). A Michigan offer has piqued the interest of GA CB Geno Smith ($, info in header). Michigan has offered FL RB/DB Nelson Agholor. He's one of Rivals's new 5-star prospects.

Army All-American nominations have started to drop, and include some Michigan commitments.

Hopefully there is a (brief) break in commitments this week, so we can take a step back and take a look at the recruiting class as a whole in the next edition of Wednesday Recruitin'.

2013

OH RB Dymonte Thomas recently visited Ann Arbor with his cousin, 2012 RB Bri'onte Dunn.

IL WR Laquon Treadwell should be on your radar . He's a teammate of 2012 prospect Anthony Standifer.

OH OL Mark Donnal, the younger brother of Michigan State Spartan Andrew Donnal, plans to visit Ann Arbor ($, info in header). He seems to be mostly a hoops prospect, however.

MI DE/FB Wyatt Shallman has picked up a Michigan offer, but the coaches told him they want him at... tailback? He's 6-3, 250 as a high school sophomore, so uh... yeah...

The 2011 Michigan Football Recruiting Board lives here. Remember, you may need to log in and/or refresh a few times for the latest updates because the technology has been pretty mischievous lately.

Giving Offers Out Like Candy

The spring evaluation period started a couple weeks ago, and that's seen Michigan's coaching staff hand out a number of new scholarship offers lately.

Fred Jackson (walking boot and all?) was recently in Louisiana, where he honored LA DT Mickey Johnson with a scholarship offer.

Johnson has over 26 offers now, and said that he might have to use an official visit if he wants to see Michigan in person. "If my dad isn't home, then I would probably use an official. If he's home, then I think we'd be able to make the drive," Mickey told me.

Johnson is a very, very strong tackle, with a state-record 450-lb bench press, and a 700-lb(!) mark on the squat rack. Tom's diary has both weight-lifting and football highlights.

OH LB Sean Duggan has received a Michigan offer. Tom speculates that he might make it to campus for the BBQ at the Big House, and shares his junior year highlight video:

Duggan has good size (6-4, 215), and MIchigan is in need of linebackers, so it could be a good fit.

The Wolverines have also offered a more highly-regarded linebacker, FL LB AJ Johnson. His offer list looks like a who's-who of bigtime programs, including most of the SEC and the USC Trojans. He has decommitted from Tennessee. It might be tough for the Wolverines to lure him north.

Michigan apparently has an offer out to FL LB Jermaine McKinney. He's not in the Rivals database, so Michigan is in on him early. His high school, Seffner Armwood, is the home of 2012 RB Matt Jones, who isexpected to be a top prospect.

Michigan has offered PA WR/LB Armstead Williams.

OH WR Darius Patton has received a Michigan offer, which he found "exciting ($, info in header).

KY LB Lamar Dawson has received a Michigan offer, which he found "surprising" ($, info in header). He told Tom that Michigan is in the mix.

FL S Jonathan Aiken has received a Michigan offer. Touch The Banner has a scouting report:

Strengths: Great acceleration. Good mirroring instincts. High energy player. Seems to be one of team's emotional leaders. Solid tackler despite small stature. Squares up and wraps up ballcarrier. Great special teams player, Fearless in kick coverage. Has knack for blocking kicks and punts. Good running skills once ball is in his hands. Ability to change directions quickly. Excellent blitzer off the edge

Weaknesses: Does not run legs on contact. Leaves feet too often when making contact. Can be too aggressive at times without breaking down to tackle, leaving him open to missing tackles. Lacks ideal height. Good but not great speed, despite superb acceleration. Average ball skills when ball is in the air.

You can watch him block a bunch of kicks and get his blitz on here. His older brother plays for Central Florida, and the Knights have offered Jonathan.

This Is How You Eat A Rib

The ongoing saga of FL RB Dee Hart may just keep on going after the BBQ at the Big House, as Hart tells the Orlando Sentinel:

"I was thinking May 22, but that might not work out … so we'll just see where it goes. I'm not in any rush anyway. I'm graduating early, but I'm really not in a rush."

Is it just keeping the suspense up, or is there a chance he doesn't commit on the visit? I guess we'll find out in a couple weeks. Great graphic design by the Sentinel, by the way.

From Old Virginia speculates that it's likely VA DE Corey Marshall will visit for the Barbecue at the Big House, and could even be on commitment watch. Michigan and Virginia Tech lead a group of four. Marshall's in Rivals' initial 250 to watch and would give Michigan an excellent pair of bookends with the previous commitment of MI DE Brennen Beyer.

Michigan Sports Zone catches up with PA CB Dondi Kirby, who says he will visit for the BBQ at the Big House.

One thing that is for sure is Dondi is set on waiting until signing day to announce his decision. However, if signing day were to be in the next month there are some schools that stand out.

"Well definitely Michigan, Michigan, Maryland, Ohio State, Illinois and Iowa."

Dondi further narrowed his list down to three schools which are Michigan, Maryland and Ohio State and not in any particular order.

PennLive.com talks about not only Kirby, but a couple of his teammates at Gateway High School, a former Michigan stomping ground.

The Combine Circuit

OH QB Cardale Jones is the subject of this week's Detroit News profile by Sam Webb. First, what he's like on the field:

The 6-foot-5, 215-pound Jones turned a lot of heads last season, using his rifle arm to account for more than 2,500 yards and 23 touchdowns through the air. Meanwhile, he used his 4.55 40 speed to accumulate more than 500 yards and six touchdowns on the ground...

"I know I got a lot better over the past year, and I need to continue to get better. I want to work on my speed and I need to keep working on learning the game through film study. I need to get the ball out quicker and that will come through maturity and playing the position more. I think my accuracy during the offseason has gotten way better. I can remember this time last year, and the throws that I'm making now I couldn't make until the end of last season."

Since we've been following Jones for a while now, that info should come as no surprise, but it's nice to be able to put actual numbers to it. A now, for the recruiting information:

Jones hopes to make his way back to East Lansing in the summer months. The same goes for others on his offer list like West Virginia and Iowa. At the moment the only scheduled visit after this week's trip to Ohio State is to Michigan's "Barbecue at the Big House" on May 22. He insists that doesn't indicate the preferred status of either the Buckeyes or Wolverines -- only that he is focused on more pressing matters at moment.

He loves Ohio State, but it's unlikely that the Buckeyes offer - at least not before they lock down OH QB Braxton Miller. [Ed: I think that conventional wisdom may be shifting. There are a lot of rumors Jones may pick up an OSU offer soon.] That leaves the door open for various schools, including Michigan, to win him over. Jones also got some love from ESPN following the Elite 11 combine:

With Miller out of the line-up, Jones got an opportunity to showcase his raw, but very impressive physical tools. He looks like a taller version of another quality QB in this class Marquise Williams (Charlotte, N.C./Mallard Creek). Jones has a big arm, great size and a lot of physical tools to mold. He too must adjust to playing from under center and developing consistent footwork so that his accuracy can become more consistent. But there is no question he is capable of making all the throws.

Obviously if he attends Michigan, that whole "under center" thing becomes less of an issue.

FL QB Kevin Sousa continues to impress every scout he comes across:

Once again Kevin Sousa (Lake Nona, Fla./Lake Nona) shows up to an Elite 11 regional camp and each time he gets better. In fact, this was by far his best outing and he is starting to really iron out some kinks in his delivery and become more smooth and fluid as a passer. Athletically he is ultra impressive, but there were times on Friday when he got his feet, timing and delivery to sync up and for that moment, was the best guy in the camp.

Michigan is looking at Sousa, but he doesn't have an offer. Both he and his coach, however, think he'd be a great fit at Michigan, and are hoping Rich Rodriguez extends one soon. At this point he's the most likely candidate to be Michigan's lone QB recruit of 2011

MI WR DeAnthony Arnett was the wideout MVP at the Columbus Nike Combine. He's currently favoring Michigan State, Notre Dame, and USC, but a good season by the Wolverines would put him right back near the top for him. He actually showed up to Ohio State wearing Michigan gear, but Bill Kurelic (who has an erratic track record for such things), says Michigan is out of the running (Tom says don't worry about it just yet). Arnett has been nominated for the Army All-American Bowl. His recruitment is going to be a long and winding one.

Bill Kurelic also drops a bit of info about some other Michigan targets:

As good as Daniels was, Lamar Dawson (Danville, Ky./Boyle County) might have been even better. Dawson measured in at 6-2 and 232 pounds but looked even bigger. He certainly played big. Dawson took on blockers well, was able to track down running backs on the perimeter and made plays in coverage en route to the linebackers MVP award.

As noted above, Dawson recently received a Michigan offer. Also, on commit MI CB Delonte Hollowell:

Hollowell (Detroit/Cass Tech), as previously noted, was among a talented group of defensive backs. He made one of the best plays of the day with a spectacular one-handed interception on a long pass play.

Man, if only there was vide... oh. Video:

Lookin' good, son.

Other Briefs

FL WR Sammy Watkins will be trimming his list to ten schools soon, and only Florida, Miami (Yes That Miami), and Michigan are locks to make it. That trio likely makes up a tentative top three. Watkins also excels on the track.

NJ Slot WR Miles Shuler has Michigan in his top five, and the Wolverines have offered. (H/T: Bleed Scarlet, er, now On The Banks)

Michigan and USC are the co-leaders for AZ OL Andre Yruretagoyena, according to Duck Sports Authority's Tony Di Francisco. Should Oregon offer, they'll be in the mix.

Keep an eye on FL OL Errin Joe, who attends the same high school as current Wolverine Ricky Barnum. He's noted as a fast-rising prospect, and a certain Detroit newspaper of no repute says he's gotten an offer from the Wolverines.

The Distant Future. The Year 2012.

NJ LB/S Vin Ascolese (pictured at right) visited Michigan for the Spring Game, and came away impressed:

"Michigan was great. I had a lot of fun with all the other kids and had a great experience checking out all the facilities." Vin said about his his trip to Ann Arbor."

Vin may be unsure about the next time he is going to take a trip back to Ann Arbor but he insists Michigan is defiantly in the mix for his recruitment saying, "UM ranks top 5 in my list."

Don't get too excited, however, because he also took a liking to Penn State:

Vin summed up the impression that was left by saying, "PSU is easily in my top 3." "I am going up there again to camp and am looking forward to it!"

As Michigan Sports Zone notes, there's still a lot of time before this kid's recruitment is over, and the Wolverines will have a chance to work their way to the top.

NJ LB Jazzmar Clax also tell Michigan Sports Zone that he's hearing from Michigan.

IL OL/DL Jordan Diamond recently impressed at a National Underclassmen Combine in Chicago. He was also impressive at the Michigan Football Showcase, and is a guy to keep an eye on for the future.

Michigan is soon to offer AZ CB/Slot DJ Foster, and is also showing interest in his teammate, LB Brock Haman. They play on the same team as 2011 AZ OL Cyrus Hobbi.

Etc.

Tom continues his position recruiting roundups with a look at the defensive line. Scout's Allen Trieu discusses Michigan's recruiting class with Dave Birkett of AnnArbor.com. He's higher on Beyer and Conway than the DBs. Michigan drops in on Black Righty Tebow, AR QB Kiehl Frazier. OH DT Michael Bennett has eliminated Michigan. LA OL Trai Turner is still liking Michigan. Florida has offered OH LB Trey DePriest. PA LB Quinton Alston's mom runs a blogspot page about the recruiting process, for those who are interested in the nitty-gritty.