sammy watkins

Tim •

Remember, all-time updates can be found on the 2011 Michigan Football Recruiting Board. If you have any recruiting tips or questions, you can e-mail them to me at [email protected] or tweet @varsityblue. For game updates on Wolverine commits, check out the F riday Night Lights series.

(Five) Star Search!

The Gainesville Sun's Ed Aschoff gives the latest on a few prospects of mutual interest for the Wolverines and Gators. First, FL DT Tim Jernigan (at right):

Michigan, FSU, LSU and Alabama are all ahead of Florida... For now, the chances of him ending up at Florida seem to be slipping away more and more. This could all change if Florida turns around its season, so this one is not over.

...and also FL WR Sammy Watkins (recent Army All-American Bowl selection):

His favorites remain Clemson, Michigan and Miami. I think Clemson has the advantage in this one.

Both are mostly maintaining the status quo from the past couple weeks. Grant Redhead, high school coach of FL CB Dallas Crawford and Watkins, tells Tom that Michigan has a solid lead for Crawford, and that Michigan's finish to the season may have an impact on Watkins's feelings on the maize and blue. The two will set up their official to Ann Arbor soon (both of their previous visits have been unofficials). Jernigan was officially selected to the Army All-American Bowl. At his press conference, Jernigan talked a bit of recruiting:

"I grew up watching all of them," Jernigan said. "They kind of present some unique situations as far as depth-wise and great academic schools, especially Michigan, great academic school. Those are the things that really stood out to me... It is nice up there. I got time to hang out with Coach Rod and I got a chance to hang out with Denard and got to meet some of the guys around the program. Real good people, my type of people, small town guys."

That sounds downright glowing about Ann Arbor, but there are a few visits left before Timmy makes up his mind.

Rivals has rehashed their Top 100, and FL RB Commit Demetrius Hart has moved up to #17, the top 4-star on their list. Given his stats against some of the best competition in the country, there's nothing dude can do to get 5-star status except grow.

Visits

DC RB Malcolm Crockett visited Michigan for the Illinois game, as his coach tells Tom. He projects to either side of the ball at the next level, but Michigan is looking at him as a downhill-type runner and complement to Demetrius Hart. Crockett is a teammate of 2012 DC DT Eddie Goldman, whom Scout has already pegged as a 5-star for next year.

NJ TE Jack Tabb plans to visit Michigan for the Wisconsin game in a couple weeks as long as his high school playoff schedule doesn't interfere.

IL OL Chris Bryant has been out with a knee injury this season, but was expected to return to the lineup last weekend. He'll visit both Arizona and Michigan (Big Chill) early in December ($, info in header). A bit more on his junior teammate Robert Gregory below.

AZ OL Cyrus Hobbi is regularly hearing from Rich Rodriguez. Last week, Tom told us he's planning to set up an official to Ann Arbor.

LA DT Mickey Johnson is still considering a visit to Michigan ($, info in header).

PA DE Deion Barnes will take all 5 of his official visits, even if he falls in love with one of the schools he sees early. He looks at former teammate Je'Ron Stokes (now a Michigan sophomore) as one of his inspirations, a positive sign for the Wolverines.

With his senior season over, MI LB Desmond Morgan will now focus on recruiting ($, info in header). He tells Tom that he may officially visit Michigan for the Big Chill hockey game, and with no inside information, I wouldn't be surprised if he made a decision around that time.

Michigan has "turned up the heat" ($, info in header) on MD CB Blake Countess. According to Tom, that "heat" comes in the form of an official offer. Mike Farrell of Rivals said last week that the Wolverines may lead for Countess, a consensus 4-star prospect. Countess is setting up a visit with Michigan's coaches, possibly for The Big Chill.

Etc.

NC QB Marquise Williams is solidifying his pledge to North Carolina "as of right now", but he's still taking more visits.

MI WR DeAnthony Arnett was the infamous "mystery visitor" to Ann Arbor last weekend, and he seemed to enjoy the wide-open passing game ($, info in header). Coming off the heels of his trip to Michigan, he'll be making a decision tonight... but had some fun throwing fans for a loop last night.

Arnett has consistently stated that he's a Michigan fan, but that he had worries about not getting the ball in the Wolverines' offense. With that fear out of the way, Michigan may be a factor in his decision, but conventional wisdom has him picking Tennessee.

Happy Trails, MD Ath Darius Jennings, who has narrowed his list to 6 non-Michigan schools.

...In Walkon News

MI FB/LB Joey Kerridge "has future plans set" ($, info in header). His Scout profile now lists high interest in Michigan and no offers, so we can safely assume he plans to be a preferred walkon at Michigan.

2012

FL QB Bennie Coney (at right), who holds a Michigan offer but was dismissed from his high school team, talks to a couple publications about his future. He say's he'll return to Plant City for his senior season, and has nothing but good things to say about his high school coach, and vice versa:

“Me and my coach, we’re good,” Coney said. “My coach is cool. We talk every day. We’ve still got our relationship...”

His coach has been in contact with college coaches to explain what happened and it’s doubtful that even a school like Notre Dame would view the incident as an infraction that would cause them to drop Coney from its radar. Coney is still interested in the Irish and, although they haven’t offered, they lead along with Florida State.

Since his coach is willing to vouch for him to college coaches, there's a chance Michigan may still be interested.

I brought up IL QB Robert Gregory last week, but in case you needed confirmation he's a good fit for Michigan... yeah, he is. ESPNChicago has him #3 in their Player of the Year rankings.

Mike Dyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that Michigan is recruiting OH WR Dewayne Stanford.

OH OL Ryan Anderson visited Michigan a few weeks back ($, info in header).

In visit mini-news, I saw MI DT Dan O'Brien in the house with his dad at Friday's basketball exhibition against Saginaw Valley. His older brother, Patrick, hoops it up for the Cardinals.

OH LB Mason Monheim has visited Michigan already this fall, and is getting interest from a number of other Big Ten schools, including future member Nebraska. Orrville's defensive coordinator, Jason Haley, talks a bit about his game:

"Mason's right there with any we've had," Haley said. "He just has a knack for reading keys, and then getting from Point A to Point B. A lot of it is instincts, and watching film. He gets his read, then gets to the ball and makes plays... Across the board in college, you're not seeing that 6-3, 245-pound linebacker as often -- they're all looking for that hybrid guy who can run. Mason fits that mold."

At 6-1 210, Monheim could be a future bandit/spur type, or a guy who grows into a full-size linebacker.

Michigan is showing interest in NJ LB Jazzmar Clax, a lock for the all-name first team whether he ends up in Ann Arbor or not.

Wednesday Recruitin' Frets Over Decommits

Tim •

On Greg Brown

Some corners of the Michigan internet are up in arms about OH CB Commit Greg Brown taking an official visit to Syracuse over the weekend. In the aftermath, Scout has classified him as a soft commit, and nobody's quite sure whether he'll end up in Michigan's class when all is said and done.

Brown was an early offer (as in pre-junior year) who hasn't developed like experts were expecting. The reports from his games this year seem to indicate he's a decent offensive player, but all of his speed is straight-line, and he looks more like a high-end MAC recruit than a Big Ten guy.

I'm certainly not rooting for him to decommit from the class, but there's a chance that, should the decommitment come, it's a mutual decision from Greg and the coaches. With higher-level DBs (such as Dallas Crawford) now interested in the Wolverines, it's understandable.

Iowa Visitors

The Wolverines hosted a number of official visitors for the Iowa game. OH TE/LB Austin Traylor gave his opinion to Josh Helmhodt:

“I haven’t really sat down and thought through my visit,” Traylor said Sunday, “but it’s a good program, a good school and I like what I saw on my visit.”

as did NC TE Drew Owens:

"They set a pretty high bar for the other schools to compete with," Owens said. "My interest is still about the same. I just know a lot more about the program, a lot more about the staff, and a lot of questions I had were answered. I feel more comfortable about the school now."

The other official visitors included FL QB commit Kevin Sousa, SC WR Hakeem Flowers, VA WR Quinta Funderburke, and FL DT Tim Jernigan.

In addition, there were a few unofficial visitors in the house, including a top Florida duo in South Fort Meyers teammates WR Sammy Watkins and CB Dallas Crawford ($, info in header). Following the visit, the Wolverines now lead for Crawford ($, info in header). Tom's weekly update had more on Crawford, and his possible effects on Watkins.

There were a few 2012 prospects as well, and they're discussed below. The next big recruiting weekend for Michigan should be Wisconsin, though there's a chance that some recruits come in for the Illinois contest in a few weeks, and FL S HaSean Clinton-Dix's on-and-off consideration of Michigan may be on-again at that time.

Other Guys

Michigan and West Virginia lead Cincinnati for FL slot Prince Holloway ($, info in header), and he plans to pick between those three schools.

IL OL Chris Bryant has "the possibility of a commitment coming soon" ($, info in header). He's previously said he doesn't plan to decide until after his senior season, but keep an eye on Bryant. Michigan, Stanford, and Illinois are his top three, with Arizona just outside that group.

PA DE Deion Barnes will officially visit Michigan, but won't start taking visits until after his senior season ($, info in header).

FL S Wayne Lyons is considering an official visit to Michigan ($, info in header).

Michigan still leads for LA CB Daren Kitchen ($, info in header). Kitchen and the rest of Vanderbilt Catholic's team returned to the field a couple weeks back after the untimely deaths of a pair of their teammates.

MI CB Raymon Taylor is committed to Indiana, but that won't stop him from visiting other schools ($, info in header). No word on if the local product will check out Ann Arbor.

Happy Trails, Ye Wisconsin-Bound

OH RB Trayion Durham committed to Wisconsin.
OH WR AJ Jordan is deciding tonight . It's been a Michigan-Wisconsin race for quite some time, and it sounds like one the Badgers will win. He cancelled a visit to Ann Arbor for the Iowa game.
OH OL Ray Ball committed to Wisconsin.

2012

Tom has film on 2012 OH QB Dimitrious Davis, a dual-threat with a number of teammates who could get a Michigan look in the class.

MI RB Drake Johnson visited Michigan a couple weeks back for the Michigan State contest. He's a local product out of Pioneer High School.

PA OL Tyler Alt has a new highlight tape of his junior season through five games:

He visited Michigan for the UConn game, and has a good relationship with Coach Frey.

OH DE Chris Wormley has received his Michigan offer, and Michigan is steadily improving their standing with him.

Wednesday Recruitin' Avoids Dee Overload

Tim •

The Inevitable

I'll try to keep the overload on this topic to a minimum, but FL RB Dee Hart makes his decision this Friday at noon between Michigan and Alabama. In last week's Sam Webb article in the Detroit News:

Chad Simmons: "I like Michigan's chances here."

Geoff Vogt: "I definitely see Dee Hart going to Michigan. I think it is where he has always been most comfortable.

Hart's teammate HaSean Clinton-Dix is changing his tune about Michigan being too cold, by the way. Still think he's a longshot, and he's claiming to be solid to Bama. Michigan is showing interest in a couple more DP guys as well, in WR Chris Gallon and S Roderick Ryles.

Keep an eye on mgoblog Friday around noon for a Demetrius Hart update.

VISITS!

Another big game at home, another group of official and unofficial visitors. This list, according to Tom:

2011

Devondrick Nealy - (5'10", 175 lbs/ Slot Receiver/ Jefferson County, FL/ 3 Star)

Marquise Williams - (6'3", 210 lbs/ Quarterback/ Mallard Creek, NC/ 3 Star)

Jack Miller - Michigan commit

Kellen Jones - Michigan commit

Jake Fisher - Michigan commit

James Elliott - (6'4", 305 lbs/ Offensive Line/ Pensacola, FL/ 3 Star) He'll be back in December as well. He's waiting for a committable offer. If he gets it, expect him to commit.

Anthony Zettel - (6'4", 250 lbs/ Defensive/Offensive Line/ Ogemaw, MI/ 4 Star)

Kishon Wilcher - (5'6", 154 lbs/ Cornerback/ Cass Tech, MI/ 3 Star)

2012

Royce Jenkins-Stone - (6'2", 215 lbs/ Linebacker/ Cass Tech, MI)

Terry Richardson - (5'9", 160 lbs/ Cornerback/ Cass Tech, MI)

Matt Godin - (6'5", 253 lbs/ Defensive End/Tackle/ Detroit Catholic Central)

Brian Blackburn - (6'5", 197 lbs/ Quarterback/ Crockett, Mi)

Danny O'Brien - (6'3", 278 lbs/ Defensive Tackle/ Flint, Mi) Will only be there for the first half, because he has homecoming.

Hunter Matt - (6'2", 187 lbs/ Linebacker/ Roosevelt, MI)

Juwan Lewis - (5'11", 200 lbs/ Running Back/ Muskegon, MI)

There are bound to be other additions to (and removals from) the list, so check back to Tom's diary for all the latest. NC WR/LB Kris Frost had to reschedule for a later date ($, info in header).

In the future, Michigan can look forward to visits from PA DE Deion Barnes ($, info in header), NC TE Drew Owens will officially visit Michigan for the Iowa game ($, info in header), and NJ TE Jack Tabb will be making a trip to Ann Arbor sometime this fall ($, info in header), this time for an official.

Sam Webb has been dropping hints on the WTKA recruiting roundup that a bigtime prospect committed to another school is planning an official visit to Ann Arbor, and most believe Florida State commit FL S Karlos Williams will take a visit to Ann Arbor.

Etc.

Sam Webb's weekly Detroit News column went roundtable last week, as Sam asked Scout.com's recruiting experts about some notable recruits.

MI DE/OL Anthony Zettel (pictured at right):

Allen Trieu: "Michigan was his first love and it's always tough to forget your first love. Michigan right now is the leader with a couple of schools following behind."

MI RB Thomas Rawls:

Trieu: "A bunch of schools have told him that once he gets his academics taken care of he will get offered... I do know that Michigan is very interested."

MLive has fluff on his quest to pick up his grades to earn college scholarships.

FL CB Dallas Crawford and FL WR/S Sammy Watkins:

Simmons: I think there are a few schools that if they treat Dallas right and they recruit him the right way, that gives them a definite leg up with Sammie Watkins."

Vogt: "I think there is a pretty good chance that Dallas Crawford ends up wearing Maize & Blue... Michigan is certainly one of the top three teams [for Watkins] (with Clemson and Miami)."

For Spartan fans, there are also updates on MI WR DeAnthony Arnett and OH CB Doran Grant, so check it out.

FL S Wayne Lyons may be re-warming to Michigan, though he'll miss 4-6 weeks with a knee injury.

Check out Tom's weekly update for the latest on OH OL Ray Ball and OH LB Sean Duggan.

Happy Trails, FL CB/S Jonathan Aiken, who committed to Rutgers.

Happy Trails, PA OL Paul Gaughan, a Boston College commit.

2012

FL QB Bennie Coney has the Wolverines in his top five, along with Florida State, Notre Dame, Michigan State, and Purdue.

For those extremely worried about the recruitment of OH DE Chris Wormley, Fox Toledo's Hardcore Recruiting Minute covers the pride of Whitmer High School.

For those unable to watch, the important section goes like this:

Chen: "But he definitely has his eyes on the team he's loved growing up: The Maize and Blue."

Wormley: "You know, they're becoming a good program now and the stuff they're doing - they're definitely still in my top. So we'll see where everthing goes... You know, it excites me that they're coming up and becoming the Michigan team that they've always been, and, you know, it's just a good thing for them."

Wormley is now holding an Ohio State offer, so he's no shoo-in to land in Michigan's class. He won't decide until during or after his senior season.

OH S Allen Gant was in the house for Michigan's victory over Bowling Green ($, info in header).