‘22 Recruiting: Deone Walker
Per Alan Trish on wtka this morning, Deone Walker trending to UK. He didn’t visit UM last weekend and will be making his final OV to UK next week. What is it about Kentucky plucking top shelf DT’s out of the state of Michigan, especially those highly sought after by UM? Marquan McCall, Justin Rogers and now possibly Walker.
December 2nd, 2021 at 11:05 AM ^
first, thank you for answering. second, and accepting what you wrote here as gospel, on the scale of SEC/ohio this seems like small potatoes - like i have maintained, small arms fire vs. nuclear weapons. i did take some tests and/or make my tests easily visible for some of my teammates while at U of M, but that wasn't anything a school or coach would know about, just what you did for your team.
and for other schools just google away the scandals - you don't need me to help you research on the internet. friends kids played at SEC schools such as georgia and just laugh at the money that is thrown around. it is an open not-so-secret. and in my time at michigan we didn't have anything like that with our guys. they/we drove crummy cars, nobody had fancy clothes, nobody was throwing money around for drinks or dinner, no fancy jewelry, etc.
December 2nd, 2021 at 12:33 PM ^
You’re the worst!!! What kinda person “if” they were a true fan would say yeah I know we cheated oops I mean gave out impermissible benefits. You are a SNITCH! Period. Among other great attributes. I’m so glad I’d never be around you in any capacity. I thought your attitude on Mgoblog was the pinnacle. However, after a better look on the inside you aren’t just miserable you’d be happy to make sure that other people’s lives were,”just like yours!”
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:45 AM ^
You clearly didn’t go to UM. USC and UNC are bad examples because they’ve truly proven with their respective scandals that academics don’t apply to their sports teams. Also US News Rankings are only cared about by high school kids. No one in the real world actually thinks USC > UM. Florida is a good school but not comparable to UM. Texas is literally in the most fertile recruiting ground in the country. ND is the true comparison for UM: They have the same academic restrictions as us but also are at a geographic disadvantage being in the Midwest. They also essentially recruit at the exact same level as us aside from this year’s 5th ranked class (which will likely fall closer to 10th as they have some decommits post Kelly and I doubt they’ll close on high targets with Brian Kelly gone)
December 2nd, 2021 at 11:32 AM ^
USC is ranked higher and is a recruiting powerhouse, UNC is currently out recruiting Michigan, Florida is a top 5 public school in the country and out recruiting Michigan, Texas historically out recruits Michigan, ND is about to bring in back to back top 10 classes
And all of those schools besides Notre Dame are in much better recruiting grounds than Michigan. Notre Dame doesn't play anyone so they have a clear path to the CFP annually and is Chirstianity's equivalent to BYU so not exactly comparing apples to oranges
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:28 AM ^
This is the truth. I took one Grad class and I thought I was studying to become a Rocket Scientist. The classes are extremely hard.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:49 AM ^
rocket surgeon.
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:33 AM ^
It's not Taboo, It's just true, and it's not just the SEC. Other programs don't value the whole college experience as much as UM, ND, NW, and even Wisconsin and Iowa. Some schools (nowadays) offer a full online schedule and never require kids to leave their apartments. You really can't compete with that if you are requiring kids to actuallly live on campus and go to class.
December 2nd, 2021 at 8:49 AM ^
I thought he was at the game? He was just there for the basketball game. This recruiting cycle is frustrating.
December 2nd, 2021 at 8:53 AM ^
not every fit is a good fit.....
some will go elsewhere. It'll be ok.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:00 AM ^
That's what she said.
December 2nd, 2021 at 8:53 AM ^
He got really upset when Mario Eugenio left. But that seemed like a mutual agreement. Coaches were supposed to have an in-home visit with him this week.
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:34 AM ^
This sounds like an excuse, kind of like Domani saying he wanted to compete for championships, but when Michigan actually does, he no longer has that as an excuse.
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:44 AM ^
I’m with you on this.
December 2nd, 2021 at 8:54 AM ^
??. Do folks think after 1 game recruits would drop on a dime for us? Recruiting is relationships. 1 game does not make up for it.
December 2nd, 2021 at 8:58 AM ^
Oh and here I thought it was about McDonald’s bags.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:07 AM ^
They've been recruiting Walker for over a year bud.
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:01 AM ^
I do not think we can say McCall was highly sought after and Roger's was pretty much always destined for the south.
I don't think we know all the details but it seemed Walker was put off by how we handled Mario Eugenio and Tawfig Thomas and recruiting is much more about relationships than location, academics, et cetera.
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:01 AM ^
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:17 AM ^
I think that regarding this class Zeke Berry is the only guy left that we can feel very confident about. Everyone else has some varying degree of uncertainty.
Deone Walker- see above
Amarion Walker- We've been hearing about this flip for a while but he's still hesitant to pull the trigger so far.
Kaleb Webb- Recent crystal ballz to Tennessee.
Josh Conerly- We have seemingly been in the lead but no commitment and word is he will not decide until past early signing period. Rule of thumb is the longer a kid doesn't make a decision the more likely they stay home. Washington is starting to stabilize with a new coach and potentially poaching our west coast connection in Courtney Morgan. Also he visited Oregon instead of The Game and USC just got a lot of kids' attention again with the Riley hiring.
Keon Sabb- This rekindling of his recruitment really depends on a factor out of our control and that's if Venables goes to Oklahoma. It's in a holding pattern.
Austin Ausberry- This kid has been radio silent for a while. We are just one of 5 hats on a table now and are the only one not from the South.
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:33 AM ^
Shit I thought Conerly was confirmed going to the game on saturday. Yeah he's not coming if he skipped that.
I will say that once we get past the early signing period some names we aren't hearing about at all will pop up
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:39 AM ^
I don't know how it will end up, but Conerly was gonna official at Oregon, so the difference with that or paying for a flight last minute to Michigan are totally different.
Sabb has been committed to Clemson since the summer.
Austin Ausberry is no longer a priority, and Amorian Walker, lets face it, if the shoe were on the other foot, we (as fans) would have told that kid to kick rocks. I'm like you with this one, I'll believe it on Dec 16 after his papaerwork has been received and filed.
December 2nd, 2021 at 12:08 PM ^
Conerly has only take one official visit and that was Michigan. This past weekend he went to the Washington game on Friday and then went to Oregon on Saturday. He still has 4 OV's left. Sounds like Oregon will get an OV down the road.
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:28 AM ^
He's been going that way since Mario was processed out of the class.
Also Kentucky just straight up has a better recruiting class than Michigan right now. Harbaugh neglected recruiting in terms of his hires for a few years, the hope is the new staff will be better but it isn't showing up yet
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:40 AM ^
They haven't been here a year yet.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:17 AM ^
Sure I'm not suggesting panic but elite recruiters are generally pretty obvious right away. Like Partridge was for example. Or if you look at Marcus Freeman at ND who was at Cincinnati this time last year and is the primary driver of ND having a top 5 class this year and had guys like Burnham advocating to have him be the head coach choice after less than a year of recruiting.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:11 AM ^
I think people are underrating our 2022 class. I think Michigan's 2022 class will outplay its ranking.
Something to consider...
The bedrock of the 2021 team turned out to be the 2018 class which was ranked #22 by 247sports.
Look at the names:
4 stars: Aidan Hutchinson, Ryan Hayes,
3 stars: Ronnie Bell, Hassan Haskins, Taylor Upshaw, Julius Welschof, Vincent Gray, Michael Barrett, Luke Schoonmaker, Jake Moody.
That class also had some other quality players like 4 stars Cameron McGrone and Jalen Mayfield who should have returned for another season - especially McGrone.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:34 AM ^
How do YOU know who has the better recruiting class??? Some of the ratings aren’t even sure of who is who. But whatever. Out of all of the players we have now people were saying our recruiting sucked. So yeah one game away from the playoffs and in your own words,”Harbaugh has neglected top recruiting!” Whew!
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:53 AM ^
UM had a pretty unexpectedly good run on DTs at the end of the last cycle...and given the on fiend results of late...I'm def in the 'trust the coaches' mode.
I wouldn't be surprised by a ton of late flips, transfers, etc this year.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:02 AM ^
trust the coaches might be the most overstated phrase I see but what choice is there. Nobody going into Schemy Hall, Jim, I just don't like that recruit, you're going to drop him and go get ...
I agree, I wouldn't be surprised to see more from the Transfer Portal this year to fill out this class.
As for last years haul at DT, well we still don't know how that will pan out as we have only seen Jenkins play as a RS FR and I don't even recall a tr fr dt getting a snap this season. More likely they have spent this season in the weight room and practice squad bulking up changing the body and learning how to play DT.
Also likely that both Mazi Smith and Chris Hinton return that 2022 DT is a loaded position but 2023 is quite open!
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:07 AM ^
I hear you but the problem for me is when the coaches are identifying a player, offering early and prioritizing. Then showing stability and success on the field. Then losing out to the Kentucky, Tennessee if the world. I’m not sure what that’s about maybe they’re behind on NIL strategies or something. Worth noting is many of the commits in this class, and I’ll preface this with they may very well turn out to be the next Haskins or Glasgow or Bell, we seem to be their most prestigious offer. My belief is that we should be recruiting with oHio, PSU and other top 10 programs. I do remember this board finding it comical the ranks of some of the state commits the past few years so I find it a bit hypocritical now. I’m trying to keep faith that this cycles rankings are all off because of the lake of scouting but I’m just not sure.
December 2nd, 2021 at 9:56 AM ^
"Marquan McCall, Justin Rogers and now possibly Walker."
----
I wasn't upset about McCall and Rogers not picking Michigan. I watched their HS tapes and was VERY underwhelmed. Neither seemed like 4 star caliber players to me or Michigan caliber players to me.
Compare them to someone like Rod Moore who was rated a 3 star but looked damn good on tape. Is it a surprise now that Moore plays on a much improved defense as a true freshman?
Michigan's priority should be to get NFL players whether they are ranked 2, 3, 4, or 5 stars. They are the true difference makers.
Sometimes the NFL guys are ranked 4 stars like Aidan Hutchinson (who should've been a 5 star in retrospect). Other times, it's someone like Kwity Paye who was rated a 3 star but clearly looked like a 4 star on tape.
Speaking of 3 stars, Cincinnati's best corner is 6'3" Ahmad Gardner from Detroit, Michigan. He was rated as low 3 star. These are the kinds of players we can't miss out on.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:01 AM ^
McCall and Rogers have been big contributors at UK. McCall got hurt mid season but was having a good year.
The Moore reference makes no sense. 320+ lb DT's are much harder to find than DB's.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:22 AM ^
My point about Rod Moore is that we need all-conference level players who will go on to be NFL caliber players regardless of ranking.
Moore playing as a true freshman on a much improved defense is a big sign of his quality.
Would McCall and Rogers have played at Michigan over Hinton, Mazi Smith, Mike Morris, etc? I doubt it.
Would Michigan fans care if they had not been ranked 4 stars?
You know who Michigan fans SHOULD care about more than McCall and Rogers? Ahmad Gardner. A 6'3" corner from Detroit, Michigan who is Cincinnati's best corner and is a surefire top 3 round player.
But I don't see any mention of Gardner...why is that? Was it because Gardner was a 3 star? Probably.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:42 AM ^
Don’t use facts around here because,“ONLY” stars matter even when they don’t. And lastly, every single recruiting miss or mention turns into the Harbaugh sucks at finding a Courtney Morgan high profile mixtape. We don’t like recruiting at a high level, because we have posters in here who have proof that Harbaugh doesn’t prioritize it.
December 2nd, 2021 at 11:39 AM ^
can't speak for anyone else, but in my view Walker is a focus because MacDonald's defense relies on having big dudes on the D-Line and we have one in our own backyard.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:24 AM ^
McCall was good as a senior before getting hurt and could possibly be an NFL draft pick but he hardly played until the end of his junior season.
Rogers is a sophomore who splits backup snaps - no shame in that and he could end up being very good but saying they are "big contributors" is an exaggeration.
I'll take Mazi Smith and Chris Hinton over these two guys any day of the week.
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:11 AM ^
Do not care about this kid and his recruitment anymore. This season's team has only shown us how much more important it is to have young men who want to be here and who buy in. Hope he enjoys Kentucky
December 2nd, 2021 at 11:07 AM ^
Precisely
December 2nd, 2021 at 10:57 AM ^
Its amazing how some BPONE remnants are still alive.... I don't want players who don't want to be at the Game. Take a look how good Rod Moore is...an Ohio kid... nobody here except me it seemed, thought he could really play.... and he is gonna be great...and an Ohio guy who will want it more than anyone. Praise guys like him and All, Ohio guys who have to eat an insane amount of shit back home.... than sob about a local kid who has shown no interest....
December 2nd, 2021 at 11:41 AM ^
Let him to contend for absolutely nothing at UK for four years. Stoops is doing well there but they aren’t gonna do shit with Georgia and that’s assuming Florida and Tenn don’t beat them annually. In state kid doesn’t want to be here after our biggest win in a long time, I don’t much care what he does.
December 2nd, 2021 at 11:44 AM ^
I'm less and less concerned with the recruitment of HS kids. I think the transfer portal, combined with the one-time free transfer, is a game changer for how to construct a roster.
Get the best guys you can in any single recruiting class and then go and fill holes with more experienced transfers. The tape you get on a transfer (even if it is from a G5 school) should be more informative than any tape you can get from a HS kid.
I know UM has an uphill battle to admit many transfers, but I do think its an effective way to round out a roster.
December 2nd, 2021 at 11:49 AM ^
The elephant in the room is exactly who you mentioned and that is admissions. We are always playing from behind on that.
December 2nd, 2021 at 12:09 PM ^
I don't think that's true for Deone Walker. It would be weird for a King or Cass kid to have a problem getting into Michigan, unless there are severe off-field behavioral problems (like that QB who suplexed a security guard). Those are academic magnet schools in Detroit. You have to test in. And the schools themselves function like honors schools, assuming that students who are there are going to college, and counselors are directly involved with athletics. That assumption, more than actual academic ability, tends to mean more to academic outcomes.
December 2nd, 2021 at 1:49 PM ^
I should’ve clarified, that comment was more for the post about us hitting the portal. We seem to do ok with the high school kids because there is a longer process but the portal has and will be an issue for us going forward.
December 2nd, 2021 at 1:17 PM ^
That's the thing: "Round Out" a roster, Not "Build" a roster. Get your program depth through HS recruiting and then fill a hole here and there with the transfer portal. Everyone gets all starry eyed thinking it's only Kenneth Walkers coming out of the portal, but there are going to be a lot of Christian Turners there as well.
If Michigan is doing it right, grab grad transfers to fill out the depth chart here and there, but the portal will likely not end up being the game changer the people think it will be.
December 2nd, 2021 at 12:04 PM ^
I could be way off base, but I know Detroit area coaches and there's always some petty complaint going on about Michigan no matter the coach. Like there was talk last summer that those who remain at Cass Tech are (stupidly) mad that Michigan never hired Wilcher. It makes no sense: Michigan couldn't get him an on-field job and if they got him an off-field job they couldn't recruit Cass Tech for years.
Anyways even with Clink here and Bellamy here and Hart here, and Sound Mind Sound Body's prodigal son the face of this class, and Detroit Day added to the recruiting schedule, there are some people who are never going to be fair or happy with Michigan in Detroit, and Kentucky knows how to take care of them in ways Michigan doesn't believe in. That may not be what's going on here, but when Michigan's having trouble with a Detroit kid, that's where my mind goes.
December 2nd, 2021 at 12:45 PM ^
Seth there are continual pics of recruits mainly in the $eC that somehow end up driving sports cars their final year in high school just before heading to college. Now the strange thing about these kids are that they are all athletes. I won’t post any pics because I’m just not that invested. I’m not into outing anyone, I actually think they deserve the extra accidental benefits. But for some of our posters to be that obtuse as to not understand how some young adults pick,”any other school except for the mighty University of Michigan” is beyond me. Without spelling it out. It’s bigger than that. I’m sure you understand it’s just that some posters just love to belittle our coaches without understanding it’s not just about where you’ll be playing on Sundays!!!! It’s the rest of the week that some kids have had to worry about, their whole lives.
December 2nd, 2021 at 1:21 PM ^
Yeah, it feels like there is a contingent of Detroit coaches who will always have a problem with Michigan and if they don't have a problem with Michigan, then they'll create one. Not sure why that is(will take your work on the "taking care" issue), but there seems to be some generalized resentment that will always be expressed. As far as Michigan having trouble with Detroit kids, how many of these guys grew up with Michigan posters in their bedrooms? I'd bet very few and so I don't think there's that same emotional connection that OSU/USC/etc. seem to benefit from and so expecting similar in-state recruiting results as those other schools feels...presumptive.
December 2nd, 2021 at 2:20 PM ^
The HS coaches should STFU and let the kids dictate where they want to be for themselves. The thought of a grown man influencing a kid on a lifelong decision do to some petty quarrel that has nothing to do with the kid themselves is putrid.
December 2nd, 2021 at 12:58 PM ^
Go spend a weekend at UK. It's very understandable why anyone would want to go there.