recruting roundup

[Patrick Barron]

A quick update on things as I run out the door. Will tag later.

Last Week’s Visitors

We’ll have to do this weekly. Here are last weekend’s people.

QB: We’ll cover Justyn Martin below.

TE: KS 3* ATH Jaren Kanak was told he’d get a legit chance to play two ways($), just like Ron Kramer, and Michigan in his ear again($, info in title) on Monday. Unfortunately Kanak got a Clemson offer at a Clemson camp during the week, and crystal balls are going in for the Tigers($, info in title) as we speak, hence the red arrow. He visits Bama, who’s also looking at him as a hybrid OLB, next weekend.

DT: Sorry to get everyone’s hopes up on 2021 CA 4* NT Jay Toia . Sam Webb told us during the taping of WTKA yesterday that Toia had UCLA ahead all along but the family was convinced USC was going to block that, and since he was about to share that on air I figure it’s not a secret. Michigan truthfully informed them that wasn’t the case, and they went “Oh,” and he went to UCLA. At least USC still hates us for it. We also checked a lot of boxes($, info in title) for FL 3* build-a-bear Hayden Schwartz , who added a trip to Nebraska($, info in title) next weekend and still has a trip planned to Northwestern. I’m kind of grateful to those for giving me time to procrastinate on a Hello post, if you’re wondering how we’re feeling about this recruitment now.

Edge/OLB: FL 3* Micah Pollard spoke to Steve Wiltfong($) after his visit, sharing “The way the defense is set up is the exact way I want to play in college.” I take that to mean “in a winged helmet” but we first have to survive the biggest recruiting weekend in UCF history.

LB: So outta nowhere (okay, Hawaii) we had 2023 HI 4* Tausili Akana, who’s the #1 LB to 247 next year and not ranked anywhere else yet. It’s 2023 but sounds good.

[After THE JUMP: These bandages cover more than scrapes]

Name a better duo, I'll wait [via Instagram]

I'm not usually your recruiting guy, and there are many on our message board who follow this stuff more closely than I. But since we're down our football recruiting guy during all of this, I found myself trying to play catch-up in the process of writing various Hello posts. While I'm at it, I figured I might as well try to catch you up too. If you're a heavy recruitnik, I recommend you subscribe to one of the paid networks. If you're like me and just want an idea of what they're talking about, this post is for you. If you see something or someone I left out, please say so in the comments.

The Board:

I might as well get this old thing out of the garage.

Icon Name Meaning
Sad Josh The genre of player with unrequited interest in Michigan. Unlikely to receive offers; most will eventually fade off the list and go to Duke or Michigan State or something.
Nefarious Eduardo Player is a longshot. Either they've declared someone else a leader publicly or popular opinion holds that they're likely to go to another school.
Data Either no opinion or Michigan is one of a fairly even group of chasing schools. Players in this category maintain no leader or change their leader frequently. The default category for players that we don't know much about yet.
Happy Teeth Players who have Michigan in a small leading group or have Michigan as a tenuous favorite. Should be regarded as a good shot, not a slam dunk.
Mr. Blue Player is either a verbal or is expected to be one sooner or later. Players with this designation are 65%+ to be Michigan commits.

The order is my interpretation of how likely they are to commit and how many recruiting points are being expended.

A Note on "Stars": These are a general (not exact) average of a player's status among the recruiting services.

A Note on Premium Info: No illicit sharing of said material will appear on this site. Players are listed with interested schools in their profiles; this information is public. Commitments are by definition public. Any assertions as to schools in the mix, decision dates, or leaders I will back up with links to the source of the information.

Quarterback

Commit
Player State Stars Schools Y/N Previously
JJ McCarthy IL ****.5 Michigan Hello.

Needs: High. Michigan took just Cade McNamara and Dan Villari in the last two classes after longtime 2020 commit JD Johnson had to give up football for health reasons. The way quarterbacks transfer these days they could lose whoever loses the McCaffrey/Milton battle.

Commit: Michigan locked up blue-chip J.J. McCarthy before the end of his sophomore season. The news today is he'll play his senior season (if there is one) at IMG.

image

Sometimes a move to IMG is a worrying thing, but not with McCarthy, a 100% locked commit who's been "one of the most passionate commitments the staff has reeled in within the same time frame," according to 247's Steve Lorenz. McCarthy now gets to whisper sweet maize and blue nothings to some of the most talented players in the country all fall. It's a good thing for him as a prospect too: he'll arrive with an extra year of college-level coaching, and enroll early, according to Orion Sang.

Other McCarthy things of more recent vintage include a practice video Rivals's EJ Holland put out($) in a series of embedded tweets on May 4—if you're not a subscriber you get to scroll through his timeline. Rivals's Austin Fox says McCarthy could be a 5-star if there's a senior year. Lorenz recently profiled McCarthy in his new commitment overview series.

Prospects. As far as I can tell they are not pursuing another at this time.

[After THE JUMP: Chipping away]

Bye Week Visits: A Trip To Colorado (No, Not For That)



Well played, Maison Bleue.

Last weekend's bye afforded the coaches an opportunity to hit the recruiting trail, and Michigan coaches checked in on the likes of top 2015 MN DE Jashon Cornell, 2015 four-star NC OL Mason Veal, 2015 four-star RB Nasir Bonner, 2015 NJ WR Irvin Charles, and several others.

The most interesting prospect to receive a visit, however, is 2014 ATH Kalen Ballage, as Coach Funk stopped by his school last week, per Sam Webb ($). Michigan originally recruited Ballage as a running back, and it's been long thought that the Wolverines had cooled on him—that obviously isn't the case, even if Ballage is simply a backup option, and the fact that he can also play linebacker or safety is likely fueling at least some of Michigan's renewed interest. With a few spots left in the class and only a handful of prospects under consideration, his versatility could be the key should he want to end up in Ann Arbor.

[EDIT: Per Brandon, Michigan may not have talked to Ballage at all:

Webb is pretty plugged in and I can't find any sort of retraction from him; since there are rules about contact with recruits, it's possible Funk stopped by Ballage's school but never actually was in contact with him. I'll try to clarify the situation when more information is available.

UPDATE TO THE EDIT: Per 247($), school was not in session when Michigan dropped by; the Wolverines are still recruiting Ballage but obviously didn't talk to him first-hand when they were out there.]

Another visit recipient that caught my eye: 2015 NC jumbo athlete Anthony Rush, who told 247's Steve Lorenz that Michigan is "leaning towards" extending an offer ($). Rush is listed at 6'4", 280 pounds as a junior, and the Wolverines are recruiting him as a tight end. Clearly, the coaches would like more blocking and size up front—most schools are looking at Rush as a defensive tackle.

Prepare For PANIC

(Aw, crap, it's already started.)

As you're probably well aware, Da'Shawn Hand took his official visit to Alabama over the weekend, and reports from the trip have been quite positive. Here's Hand himself:

Despite the good visit experience for Hand, Alabama insiders around the internets seem to think the Tide still have ground to make up if they're going to catch Michigan; if that's the case, the Wolverines just have to survive Hand's official to Florida—just five days before his Nov. 14th announcement—and they should be in the clear. Still, Alabama is a serious contender, and that's always a frightening opponent to face on the recruiting trail.

To keep the good times rollin', Malik McDowell took a surprise visit to Ohio State for their evisceration of Penn State; he was his usual verbose self in the aftermath:

At this point, I might be more confident in Hand ending up at Michigan than McDowell, for the sole reason that we have some idea about what Hand thinks about Michigan, while getting information out of McDowell is like breaking into Fort Knox. If I had to bet, I'd wager both land at Michigan, but there's plenty of uncertainty.

[Hit THE JUMP for commit stat updates, the newest 2015 offer recipient, and more.]