MSU coaches deny Funchess/Ojemudia access to game.
Apparently Funchess and Ojemudia wanted to go to the game with Burbidge and Vento on Saturday, but the Sparty coaches said they couldn't come. I'm not gonna knock them for their recruiting style, but it seems to have definitely rubbed Funchess and Ojemudia, and may have an affect on Burbidge if he comes back into play. I don't know how our staff would have reacted to the same scenario, but I can't see them denying a chance to get a couple more kids on campus.
From Funchess: "Mario [Ojemudia, also a Michigan commit] asked Jake if we could go to the game, and one of the Michigan State coaches said we weren't allowed to go with them to the game. I would just say it's disrespectful to our teammates and to us."
October 18th, 2011 at 11:29 PM ^
Stay classy, Sparty!
October 19th, 2011 at 12:08 AM ^
Going to happen.
October 19th, 2011 at 12:25 PM ^
I mean, who wants to witness MSU intentionally trying to hurt people on the field? I can see why Dicktonio is taking this approach. At least they aren't calling them "Tom".
October 19th, 2011 at 12:51 PM ^
Please keep the juvenile shit like "dicktonio" off mgoblog. This is not the RCMB.
October 18th, 2011 at 11:33 PM ^
that nothing is set in stone til they sign. guess MSU isn't keeping any hope.
October 19th, 2011 at 8:46 AM ^
MSU doesn't recruit players that are already orally committed elsewhere. His high morals don't let him do such a thing.
October 19th, 2011 at 9:06 AM ^
"orally committed"? ewwwwww
October 19th, 2011 at 10:14 AM ^
Query: Does this rule apply to out-of-state M commits? If so, it puts a dent in Dantonio's statement that he recruits nationally . . .
October 19th, 2011 at 10:35 AM ^
It definitely puts a dent in the whole ""recruting nationally" garbage. So does the fact that nobody from outside of the midwest wants anything to do with that school.
October 19th, 2011 at 2:17 PM ^
Especially when the come from a traditional Sparty feeder High School. This also has the potential to influence future FHH kids that come out. Perhaps Dantonio's line of thinking is that if he addresses kids who by all rights should be Sparties, he hopes prevent future early commitements to the school he hates beyond all others. I think this is more a positive for Michigan, in that it almost completely shuts the door for MSU on two of the nations finest players. Especially Mario, who I think Mattison is going to mold into a future NFL 1st round pick.
October 18th, 2011 at 11:36 PM ^
Good, I hope it rubbed Burbridge the wrong way too. We'll gladly take Burbridge. Imagine him, Payton, and Morris together down the road.
October 19th, 2011 at 10:32 AM ^
I thought I had heard that we had cooled off on Burbridge because of admissions concerns, BEFORE he committed to MSU...is that not true?
October 18th, 2011 at 11:41 PM ^
For real? We allow this all the time, even when guys aren't coming.
October 18th, 2011 at 11:48 PM ^
Funchess and Ojemudia both attend Farmington Hills Harrison, a program that has been very good to Sparty over the years. The decision to treat two FHH players this way puzzles me, as it would seem like a likely way to alienate the players and coaches at a feeder program.
October 18th, 2011 at 11:50 PM ^
by a minute. Well played.
October 18th, 2011 at 11:50 PM ^
John Herrington will feel resentment about MSU in the same way the Detroit Ren coach felt when he said UM disrepected Carson Butler.
October 19th, 2011 at 12:02 AM ^
quite the opposite.
October 19th, 2011 at 12:07 AM ^
but his HS coach thought so. Perception means a lot, whether it's true or not.
October 19th, 2011 at 7:47 AM ^
Perception is reality. If someone perceives a certain action in a certain way, then that is thier reality.
October 19th, 2011 at 8:20 AM ^
I attend Renaissance now and my sister told me that Lawrence Thomas (Sparty's top recruit from last year) had Michigan as his first choice. Maybe Coach Watts turned him on MSU. It wouldn't suprise me because he is a terrible coach.
October 19th, 2011 at 12:08 PM ^
Thanks for the definition of "perception is reality." Up to now I was unclear on that. If someone perceives a certain thing to be unclear, then a lack of clarity is their reality.
October 19th, 2011 at 1:13 AM ^
Remember, they recruit nationally now.
October 18th, 2011 at 11:48 PM ^
WHY IS MICHIGAN STATE IGNORING IN-STATE RECRUITS!! WHO DO THEY THINK THEY ARE RICH ROD?! RABBLE RABBLE NATIONAL RECRUITING RABBLE
October 18th, 2011 at 11:56 PM ^
Don't you know they recruit nationally now?
October 18th, 2011 at 11:58 PM ^
part of my incoherent all caps rambling
October 19th, 2011 at 12:04 AM ^
Ahh there it is. I missed it. Hats off to you then.
October 19th, 2011 at 12:08 AM ^
sneak it in there lol
October 19th, 2011 at 2:18 PM ^
Do you realize you just said "hats off" to a Woodson jersey?
October 19th, 2011 at 8:24 AM ^
I know you are serious when you decided to use capslock. *clap clap*
October 18th, 2011 at 11:49 PM ^
the staff at Harrison too. Close that pipe for good!
October 18th, 2011 at 11:51 PM ^
It's a little arrogant of Funchess and Ojemudia to expect to be hosted by a team when they're totally committed to that school's biggest rival.
October 18th, 2011 at 11:57 PM ^
Dunn must be one arrogant guy. I like it. I'll take one.
October 18th, 2011 at 11:57 PM ^
Not that arrogant. It's not uncommon for recruits to bring their teammates on visits, and these are guys who were recruited by MSU and are from a major HS program. We've had committed guys come to our games with teammates who never had much interest.
The thing is, MSU has almost nothing to lose by letting these guys come with their teammate. In fact, there's a chance that they even could have swayed one or both of them. Instead, they did themselves no good and possibly some harm as well if Burbridge, the FHH coach or any younger FHH players were put off by it.
October 19th, 2011 at 9:03 AM ^
They likely don't sway either layer, but they could impress them enough to make them recommend Sparty to their friends/ teammates. Goodwill is very important in recruiting as eidenced by all of the coaches who think a team slighted them.
October 19th, 2011 at 8:12 AM ^
October 19th, 2011 at 12:12 PM ^
Arrogant, are they getting an early start on being Michigan Men? I say this in a positive way, because I actually think a little arrogance is a good thing around your football program.
October 18th, 2011 at 11:51 PM ^
You'd think they'd have let them come and given them a pro-MSU talk/tour/activities to try to change their minds. Getting kids on campus is a huge part of recruiting them -- even if they're committed elsewhere. We still let Dunn visit (I know he's a soft commit we're actively recruiting, but still). Clearly they've given up hope on getting Funchess and Ojemudia to switch over. It just seems calculated to piss them off and possibly put Burbridge off too -- if they were worried about our commits talking pro-UM at Burbridge, well, they can do that every day at school. We'd definitely let him visit us here (and hopefully he elects to accompany them here for OSU or something). Poor business practice, Sparty.
October 18th, 2011 at 11:56 PM ^
I think the benefits you mention are outweighed by the negatives of having a pair of Michigan commits potentially in their actual recruits' ears.
October 19th, 2011 at 12:02 AM ^
Thing is it isn't like the recruits can only talk to each other when they see each other on campus. Similar to Kalis/Thomas talking to Dunn often about Michigan. With the ease of social networking today recruits can talk to each other all the time, and blocking them to try and prevent pro Michigan talk won't really work.
I think they just want to go to show support for their teammates. I see this only being a negative really by blocking them in that it now gives the players you blocked another bit of information when say talking to all the other teammates back at school.
October 19th, 2011 at 12:10 AM ^
On campus visits are probably the most important events in a player's recruitment. This is State's coaches' best opportunity to jazz kids on their school. I can understand why they'd want to avoid tagalong potential Debby Downers.
October 19th, 2011 at 12:15 AM ^
You know how MSU players frequently play against Michigan like they have a chip on their shoulder? Maybe Funchess and Ojemudia will be extra motivated in the MSU game now. I know it's probably not a huge deal, but you never know.
October 19th, 2011 at 12:17 AM ^
That may be true, but why not try and wow our recruits while they are at it? Nothing is set in stone till NSD, and they can show off MSU and all that jazz to our recruits. If then our recruits started being rude and bad mouthing them while on the visit you can ask them to leave and then their teammates would probably understand because they were being rude.
But straight up blocking them without seeing what they would do (who knows, they could be silent angels only there to support their teammates and wouldn't say anything bad) seems like a move with a more negative public outcome.
October 19th, 2011 at 4:09 AM ^
that loudly proclaims its equal status to its instate rival, going into a game in its own stadium, still feels so nervous about a single recruit that it denies entrance to two kids who've committed to the rival? With months yet to go before signing day?
If the MSU coaches think, like you, that keeping the UM commits away from a single three-hour game is meaningfully reducing their contact with Burbridge, then none of you understand things like cell phones and social media. There is literally no upside to their decision. It just makes them look small and petty.
October 19th, 2011 at 9:01 AM ^
Imagine Brionte Dunn had a couple buddies on his team who were 100% OSU and had no interest in Michigan. Would you want them there when Michigan's coaches are pitching Dunn? This is common sense.
Dantonio doesn't want a couple of tagalongs snickering when he talks about integrity or pointing out how he looks exactly like Sam the Eagle or asking how many ski masks an MSU scholarship would entitle them to. I don't blame him.
October 19th, 2011 at 11:44 AM ^
Well, Burbridge is actually an MSU commit, and he comes from a football powerhouse.
A better example would be if Kyle Kalis wanted to visit with two of his St. Ed's teammates who were OSU commits. These are likely kids we'd welcome if their minds changed, and a school we'd like to keep happy. I think we'd be psyched if those hypothetical kids came.
Now, you made another implication. If you're implying that said recruits are going to be causing trouble, then that's another story, but not exactly a safe assumption. The same could happen with a kid who's not actually a commit to another school, so it's not enough of a reason to tell a kid he can't visit.
October 19th, 2011 at 1:16 PM ^
I believe the answer is one ski mask per scholarship year. I wonder if it specifies color, though.
October 19th, 2011 at 12:14 PM ^
Maybe they're honoring the "Gentlemen's Agreement"
October 18th, 2011 at 11:51 PM ^