Hello: Kingston Davis
Michgan just received a pledge from this 3 star RB from Alabama. 6'1" 225lb out of the class of 2016.
According to his high school coach, 2016 RB Kingston Davis (@_King_LD) has committed to Michigan.
— Tim Sullivan (@TimS_Wolverine) April 6, 2015
I AM NOW COMMITTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN!! 〽️
But he may have had plenty of attention from the recruiting sites, and just ranked lower by them, and may not have received many offers because the schools don't value him highly.
If you said he was hurt last year, or didn't camp, or only played one year of football, those would all be examples of reasons why he would be under the radar, despite attending a high level program in AL.
OK, thanks for explaining. But I'd say that's not really what under the radar means.
How do you know how much attention he has received? Maybe he has plenty of attention and that was the evaluation.
I love the rationalization. Unless you work in the south region for rivals or scout you'd have no idea how much attention he has.
Per Rivals, the primary recruiter was none other than Tyrone Wheatley, and among his other competing offers were Georgia Southern, Lousiville, Mississippi, Mississippi State, South Alabama and a couple others.
Welcome to Michigan, Kingston Davis!
Sounds good. Got to keep building that southern pipeline. This is all a process. When the team starts winning, the relationships to go right into those areas for top prospects will already be there.
Additionally, I doubt that a pipeline is all that this is about. I have not seen his highlights (I never played football, and unless you showed me an Adrian Peterson type of kid, I wouldn't know the difference between a good RB and a great RB), but I'm sure he'll be a valuable asset in Harbaugh's offense, whether he's a bruiser, speedster, or if we're lucky, some combo of both.
So our mistake was we recruited too many guys who were highly rated and not enough guys that are "football players". I was under the impression our current roster consisted of "football players" but if they are not and are indeed players from another sport that would explain some problems
Recruiting picked up a lot at Stanford during and after Harbaugh's tenure. Thye just had far better coaching in the last 7 years than we have
"He's Toby Gerhart, but slower."
Seriously, though, looks like the kind of guy who may not have a Heisman-level ceiling, but has a pretty high floor. I'd be surprised if there wasn't at least a couple of highly-productive years as a split-time back. I am excited.
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
I don't think they'll take Toks Akinribade now as the second back will be more of a speed back.
However, taking Toks could help their position with his H.S. teammate Hunter Johnson, the 2017 #1 Pro Style QB.
I think Akinribade could be a speed guy. He's not Carlos Brown, but I think that would be a good one-two punch. The truth is that we're not recruiting a ton of speed demons in this class, for whatever reason. Harbaugh is pretty much continuing the trend of bringing in/recruiting big-bodied running backs like Brady Hoke did.
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
This board spent a year ranting about talent evaluation and development being the key to success. So much so that I got tired of hearing the words "develop" and "talent" used in the same sentence. We get a coach who can do just that, yet we're back worrying about star rankings/offer sheets?
We added an intriguing prospect from a place where we dont usually expect to be able to but because he's missing one silly star, half the board isn't sure how to feel about him yet.
"That shit is unseemly" -- Cheese Wagstaff
It's not often that fullbacks have great offer lists. If they were that great of athletes, they would be recruited at other positions.
I love how this kid runs. A perfect fit for what Harbaugh wants to do with his running game!
But is anyone else concerned about the lack of speed on offense? Harbaugh and Hoke both put an emphasis on power and size... and we have looked extremely slow the last couple of years on offense. It sure would be nice to have a RB with some big time speed.
I think Hoke and Harbaugh have an ideal vision of what a RB should look like. I also think Harbaugh knows he has to get more speed at the position. But I don't think you do that by recruiting 2-3 speed RBs in a single cycle. That's "over-correcting" the roster, and leaves you without the ideal type back you prefer. Davis likely will have a role either way, and Harbaugh will pursue some other guys with a bit more speed to play RB/slot in the offense.
At least that's my 2 cents. This is a single commit, not the whole group.
I should probably just trust HARBAUGH anyways - he went 12-1 with a guy named Stephan Taylor at his RB and also made a guy named Toby Gerhardt a Heisman candidate and NFL draft pick.
Maybe he's going to be a full back in this offense?
And Ole Miss and Miss. St., two speedy teams, offered him.
But is anyone else concerned about the lack of speed on offense? Harbaugh and Hoke both put an emphasis on power and size... and we have looked extremely slow the last couple of years on offense. It sure would be nice to have a RB with some big time speed.
Yeah, but what you have to keep in mind is that a successful offense takes all kinds of personnel. There's still time to pick up speed and between Drake Harris and Brian Cole there's speed potential at receiver, and if Drake Johnson gets back and Ty Isaac pans out, there's speed potential at RB as well. I'll stick with SpaceCoyote's point about recruiting for the future and not over-correcting to address a perceived need.
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
Leroy Hoard but with more 'Bama! I like his film, not a burner but big, good balance, north/south type with a little wiggle. He appears to have nice hands too. Exciting! Go Blue!
Agree. Excellent back that is very much like our esteemed Leroy Hoard.
Kinda concerning
Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad
Yes we need to develop talent as well as get the 5 star studs but neither Alabama or Auburn offered him. LSU, Georgia, and Tennessee didn't offer either. All of these schools are in his backyard. Malzahn and Saban are excellent RB evaluators. Every time we get an under the radar player, he's the next Mark Ingram or Jake Ryan. He could just as easily turn into Allen Gant or Russell Bellomy. It's alright to be a little skeptical.
This is OT, but anyone know if the hoodie he's wearing in the pic linked below is MI gear and where I can get it? Did a search on MDen and wasn't sure the Carhartt they have is this one. I really like the look and fit of it. I'm built exactly like Mr. Davis except I'm fat and out of shape. Otherwise, I'm sure the hoodie would look as great on me as it does him.
http://247sports.com/Player/76488/ProfilePhotos/2015-Michigan-Spring-Ga…
Sorry in advance for not knowing how to embed links or whatever. Internet hard!
Paging WD....
Back on-topic. Just checked out his tape. I like this kid . . . a lot. He hits the hole hard, has nice burst, and sets up his blockers well. He look like a bigger, stronger, faster Mike Hart especially when he runs outside zone. The offensive line he's running behind is exceptional. I could be a three star recruit behind that line. Still, I think Kingston Davis is a great pick-up and should be a 4 star.