Elliott Takes The Cake

Great birthday wishes from a great coaching staff pic.twitter.com/yQxJ4lmoc9

— Its Lit (@XCV____) November 24, 2015

Alright, so, um, perhaps that cake doesn't look exactly like Texas. That apparently didn't matter to top-100 TX DT Jordan Elliott, who moved up his official visit to this weekend, joining a packed list of expected weekend visitors. The Wolverine's Brandon Brown is reporting "multiple sources" have informed him that Michigan is in great position to land Elliott, whether it's during or after his official visit ($).

Elliott is near the top of the list of potential weekend commitments for Michigan. 247's Steve Wiltfong put in Michigan Crystal Ball picks($) for Elliott and three-star FL WR Keyshawn "Pie" Young; he already had ones in for top-ranked MD OG Terrance Davis and four-star Detroit King CB LaVert Hill—the Hill pick is one he's especially confident about. Wiltfong also confirmed that four-star King WR Donnie Corley will be in Ann Arbor tomorrow.

There have also been two five-star additions to the 2017 visitor list: Davis' high school teammate, RB Anthony McFarland, and IMG Academy standout DE Joshua Kaindoh. While Michigan hasn't been mentioned among the favorites for either, that could change after this weekend.

While the focus of the coaching staff is still primarily on wrapping up the 2016 class, we could see their 2017 efforts pick up steam, especially since many big-time junior prospects seem excited about Michigan. To wit:

4 Star Top 100 DT prospect excited for Michigan visit this weekend. https://t.co/6VIrgPWpSx

— Cesar Ruiz (@_OverCees) November 25, 2015

4 OC, can tell that 4 DT Fred Hansard is excited for Michigan visit ! https://t.co/FViW60MpFl

— Fred Hansard (@Fred_Hansard56) November 25, 2015

Yup, safe to say they're excited.

[Hit THE JUMP for the rest of the roundup.]

Rashan Gary Is Probably Not Going To Ole Miss

Just about everyone considered five-star NJ DT Rashan Gary to be a strong Michigan lean entering his Ole Miss official last weekend. That feeling hasn't changed in the aftermath. One can point to Gary's tepid reaction to the visit, per Rivals' Adam Friedman ($):

"It was good," said the 6-foot-5, 295-pound Gary. "They took me to the room that I'd be staying in. It was cool. I had my own room and my own bathroom. That's not far from the classes so they're easy to get to.

Despite the headline of this article, Gary's mother—who's had only great things to say about Michigan—had a similarly lukewarm reaction. A post by one of the staff members of 247's Ole Miss outlet may give us a lot of insight as to why that's the case ($):

There is confirmation of an incident involving Rashan Gary's mother in the Grove that is just ridiculous. She was there for the Walk of Champions on Saturday and had not had enough time to get her credential. She was approached by security and asked to leave, I am told. An altercation ensued in which the rent-a-cop allegedly shoved her and cursed her. All things considered, I understand she took it as good as one could have. Other than that, we are told it was a good visit...

"Aside from the borderline assault by a supposed security guard, all was well."

Meanwhile, here's a quote from Gary's mother for an ESPN article this week about how Jim Harbaugh and Urban Meyer are succeeding by being hands-on recruiters ($):

“At Michigan we were recruited by the head coach. At other places you are recruited by the line coach or the area coach,” Coney said. “I don’t know that we’ve been recruited by another head coach before like that. I think Harbaugh is more interactive in the recruiting process.”

I still like Michigan's chances. Gary has further officials planned to Auburn and USC; it's unclear if he'll take another visit to Ann Arbor before making his decision.

Chris Daniels Is Probably Going To Oklahoma

With Keyshon Camp and Jordan Elliott visiting this weekend, defensive tackle recruiting should gain some clarity soon. So should this: fresh off an official visit to Oklahoma, four-star TX DT Chris Daniels announced he'll make his decision on December 18th.

The Sooners are the clear favorites. Daniels told 247's James Hale "I love OU, man," after the visit ($). When talking to Scout's Bob Przybylo, he also changed his tune about going to school far from home ($):

“Distance wasn’t a factor at first,” Daniels said. “But I’m a family-oriented guy. Distance is a big thing here going forward.”

Oklahoma is much closer to Texas than Michigan. This has been Geography With Ace, A Person Who Also Attended Elementary School.

Etc.

We covered a lot of ground with Steve Lorenz on Monday's radio show. If you haven't had time to listen to the podcast, alum96 did us all a solid and recapped our conversation on the board.