steven parker

Today's recruiting roundup is a bit short and punchy since the MGoCar departs for Penn State early this afternoon. Also, there's just not a lot to talk about right now.

Noah Furbush Is Rather Tough



Self-reminder: Find a new stock picture of Noah Furbush.

Noah Furbush has racked up some pretty impressive tackling numbers this season, and he's done so while playing through a broken wrist. How did that happen? Well... he's not entirely sure, per Scout's Kyle Bogenschutz ($):

In true tough guy fashion, Furbush doesn’t even remember how he broke the bone.

“It happened a few months ago, I think during basketball maybe,” Furbush said. “I’m not even 100-percent sure when but we got it diagnosed after the second scrimmage and I’ve been easing up on it since.”

"Negatives: use of hands, ability to feel pain."

Talk About The Hand

Jabrill Peppers discusses his thoughts on Da'Shawn Hand in his latest blog for USA Today:

OK I know you guys want to know about me trying to bring my boy D Hand (DaShawn Hand) over to Michigan with me, and I'm still feeling really good about doing that.

His announcement date is Nov. 14 and it's getting closer and closer. I feel like we've got the upper hand because he visited us during the Notre Dame game and that was the perfect game for him to be at. The atmosphere was crazy and we got the win.

I hit him up every once in a while to see how he's doing so I know he's doing his thing in his last year like me. I'm feeling like we'll probably be doing our thing on the field together next year too.

But, at the end of the day, that's my dude; wherever he goes he's got a fan in me.

Over at Rivals, Mike Farrell broke the five-stars into high-, medium-, and low-risk categories based on their skill set and how likely they are to hit their potential at the next level. The first two players in the coveted low-risk category are, you guessed it, Jabrill Peppers and Da'Shawn Hand ($):

DE Da'Shawn Hand: Hand is an elite pass rusher with great balance and agility and an amazing work ethic. While he's also a guy who could stand up or play down like Carter, he's not a high-risk guy because he can do it all and could even hold his own inside if needed.

DB Jabrill Peppers: Peppers could play cornerback or safety in college, and he will be successful at either. Heck, he could even play running back, although that would make his risk factor much higher. It's hard to see him failing on defense.

We'll take both, please.

[Hit THE JUMP for a few quick-hitting recruiting notes, including high early interest from the son of the former heavyweight champion of the world.]

Catching Up, Three Commits Later

Michigan hauled in three 2014 commits in the last three days in Freddy Canteen, Brandon Watson, and Noah Furbush — if you missed any of their Hello posts, simply click on their name. While I initially couldn't find any film of Canteen in game action, a poster helpfully noted (though I forget where and can't find the link) that he shows up plenty in ECA quarterback David Sills' highlight tape. The focus of the video is obviously on Sills, so we don't get to see Canteen's vaunted route-running; he does, however, make several impressive grabs — look for him in the #19 jersey:

That's a solid body of work for just three games, and is evidence that Canteen has the hands and ball skills to complement his footwork.

In a post-commitment interview with Sam Webb, Watson revealed that despite talking about committing together, he and Canteen actually decided to pull the trigger independently; he also threw out a juicy morsel about another offer ($):

“We’ve been talking about (committing to Michigan) since we got the offer,” said Watson.  “Freddy was looking at a couple of schools, and I was kind of leaning toward USC and Michigan.  I just wanted to go out to SC and see what that felt like.  When I came back I talked to coach I just said, ‘I want to go to Michigan.’  Freddy called about two minutes after and said, ‘yo, are you committing tomorrow?’  I said, ‘yeah.’  He said, ‘oh yeah? Me too!’  We basically told Coach Hoke ten minutes apart.”

It’s funny I just got the Tennessee offer this morning,” Watson later added.  “I told him ,’it’s a little too late… I’ve already made up my mind to go to Michigan.

Watson's coach had previously mentioned that a USC offer was forthcoming until he committed to Michigan, adding to the growing pile of evidence that he and Canteen are better prospects than their rankings would indicate.

Landing two prospects from Eastern Christian Academy gives the Wolverines a potential edge with 2016 ECA LB De'le Harding, whose coach said he earned rave reviews at camp, per Sam Webb ($):

He is the best rising sophomore in the country,” ECA coach Dwayne Thomas said.  “I took him to Tennessee’s camp he was dominant and he got an offer.  I took him to Michigan’s camp and no one would have even known he was 14 years old unless I told them.  They’re going to offer him.  Brady told me, ‘coach, we love that dude.’  The defensive coordinator told me, ‘we love that dude.’  I’ve been doing this a long time.  I coached in college for 17 years and I don’t blow smoke.  He will be the best player I’ve ever had.  I’ve coached a lot of great ones.  I’ve got two at USC and one already committed; I’ve got them at Auburn… I’ve got a lot of kids over the last three years at a lot of places, and he will be the best one, no doubt.”

Harding already has offers from Tennessee and USC after dominant performances at their respective camps; he's poised to be one of the top players in his class, and a Michigan offer should come sooner or later. Canteen and Watson both say they'll be giving their younger teammate their best recruiting pitch.

With the commitment of Furbush, meanwhile, Michigan is looking for one more linebacker prospect, specifically an outside linebacker, to complete their 2014 recruiting of that position group. Four-star CA OLB Dwight Williams is rumored to favor Florida, though Michigan also has a good shot; he told 247 that he's locked in officials to Florida, Michigan, and Hawaii, and the Wolverines are speculated to be the Gators' biggest competition ($). Three-star MO OLB Jimmie Swain, the other most-likely target, told Rivals that he's looking to cut two schools from his top five to ensure he can take officials to each of his finalists ($). Michigan is joined in that group by TCU, Michigan State, Oregon, and Stanford; the two Pac-12 school have yet to offer, and it appears the Horned Frogs currently hold the edge:

"TCU is the only one of the top five I've visited already. When I went down there, I just enjoyed the campus and the team and the way they practice. Coach Patterson and I talk on a regular basis. I just loved what I saw when I went down there. Ever since then, I have just been all about TCU. I just loved the atmosphere and everything about that school."

Swain says he hopes to decide in September; his visit, should he make it, will obviously be of great importance if Michigan hopes to land him.

[Hit THE JUMP for the latest on a trio of five-star prospects, an overview of the 2014 running back situation, and more.]

Today's recruiting roundup covers last weekend's visitors, including #1 overall recruit Da'Shawn Hand, as well as new offers and more.

Michigan Gets Leg Up On Hand! Can They De-Feet Rest Of Country? Head-To-Toe Coverage Follows.

Sorry, everyone. Just practicing in case I ever get a job writing headlines for a tabloid. (Don't worry, I'm keeping my day job.)

Anyway, VA DE Da'Shawn Hand—the nation's top-ranked recruit—spent the weekend in Ann Arbor and posted his impressions on Twitter in the aftermath. You could say it went well:

The full weekend visit allowed Hand to take in a lot for one trip, from a spring practice to a meeting with a Sports Management professor to a one-one-one chat with Denard Robinson. What stood out the most, though, was his time spent getting to know the players and coaches, per 247's Steve Lorenz ($) [emphasis mine]:

Among the players Hand spent time with were sophomore cornerback Blake Countess, sophomore tight end AJ Williams, incoming freshmen Shane Morris and Taco Charlton and also fellow 2014 recruit Michael Ferns, who is already committed to Michigan.

"Honestly, it was like I had known these guys for years," Hand said. "We all clicked right away. The people in general are just really nice and really genuine. It's the one thing about the visit that really stood out most to me. The coaches as a whole all really stood out as people - - they are my favorite coaching staff and being around them this weekend reinforced that."

That last bit is a major, major statement, as is this: Hand told Lorenz that he's "absolutely" coming back for the Notre Dame game, and may even fit an additional summer visit into his busy schedule. Sam Webb got a few more details on why Michigan's coaches have made such a strong impression ($):

“It was the coaching staff,” Hand said, reflecting upon what stood out most.  “It was my favorite coaching staff.  A lot of charisma.  They’re just fun guys to be around.  You can tell by looking at the players.  All the players are comfortable talking to the coaches. A lot players (at different schools) say, ‘man I can’t stand this coach.’  And also when practice is done they can’t wait to leave. But the (Michigan) players… it seemed like they want to stay around.  They don’t mind being around their coaches.”

...

Coach Mattison is the man,” Hand exclaimed.  “That dude is a genius. The things he teaches his players… it’s so simple, but it amazing at the same time because it works.  His defensive scheme is real creative, it’s real tricky, and he likes the bring the house.  I respect that.  He has a lot of different blitz packages with looping and stunting, and I love that because you’ll never get bored during the game.”

Hand also gave Webb as glowing a quote as I've seen about an academic presentation, saying that to hear Sports Management professor Mark Rosentraub talk "was really amazing," and that he "just wanted to sit there in the class." Hand has made it clear that academics will play a serious role in his recruitment; it doesn't sound like he's just paying lip service to that notion, just as it appears Michigan did a great job of showing him what the school can provide.

While the Wolverines certainly strengthened their position, Hand is waiting until he sees each school in his top five before he begins to compare them, per Rivals's Adam Friedman ($):

"Well I'm not comparing schools right now," Hand explained. "I'm just experiencing each one. Once I go to all five schools then I can compare them. I'm just taking it slow again. I'm not making any sudden moves.

"I'm going to chill out, focus on school and train," he said. "The new guy I train with, Kevin Johnson is amazing. This guy is really high energy, does his research and we always have a good time. We work on a lot of core, balance and explosion stuff."

Time will tell where Michigan stands with Hand, but it's hard to imagine this visit could have gone much better. While it's far too early to call them any sort of favorite—Alabama looms, after all—it's apparent that the Wolverines will be in contention until the end.

[Hit THE JUMP for more weekend visit reactions and more.]