Monday Recruitin' Finds New Use For T-Shirt Cannon

Today's recruiting roundup covers weekend visitor reactions and more.

Sunday's Silver Lining

Via Drake Harris

The third Michigan visit in three weeks for MI WR Drake Harris culminated in a tour of Michigan Stadium after The Basketball Game That Shall Not Be Named. Harris was accompanied in Ann Arbor for the first time by his mother and grandfather, as well, and he told WolverineNation's Chantel Jennings that his comfort level at Michigan is growing ($):

“I just enjoyed it,” Harris said. “Just hanging out with the coaches, they’re showing a lot of interest in me and showing me how much they want me to be a part of the team.”

The Watch List wide receiver said that with each visit, he, too, feels more and more comfortable around the coaches, specifically wide receivers coach Jeff Hecklinski. Harris has had the opportunity to meet Hecklinski’s wife and children, who he describes as “sweet.”

Harris is still a Michigan State commit by name, though it's worth noting that the Spartans also played a home game yesterday—for the third straight week, Harris was in Ann Arbor. His high school teammate, lineman Tommy Doles, also made the trip from Grand Rapids, and in the same article from Jennings he shed some light on the offensive line situation:

“There are, I think, two spots left for offensive linemen,” Doles said. “If one closes up, I’ll have to make some decisions and think about that. I’m aware of the situation, and I’ll be thinking about that.”

Doles told 247's Steve Lorenz that he may be back on campus next weekend, and said he'd "like to get things over sometime this spring," when asked about a timeline ($). Doles recently took a trip to Northwestern, but if he sticks to a spring decision it's hard to see him landing anywhere but Michigan.

[Hit THE JUMP for more visit reactions and the new 2014 Scout 300.]

Detroit King cornerback Jalen Embry took in yesterday's game as well, and told Rivals's Brandon Hunter that the Wolverines will be the team to beat if (and likely when) they come through with an offer ($):

Embry says that if Michigan offers, they would be No. 1 on his list. He believes he will receive one soon.

"Coach Mattison tells me to just be patient, and the offer will probably come before the spring is over," he said.

Embry also talked with Scout's Allen Trieu and unwittingly revealed a new recruiting strategy ($) [emphasis mine]:

"The game was real good until the end," he said. "The outcome was bad, but it was so hyped. Every time they made a shot, it would get all loud. It was real good. I didn't get a chance to catch a shirt, but other than that, it was good."

Hey, T-Shirt Cannon Guy, maybe aim a little lower next time.

Tim Sullivan caught up with Cass Tech DE Joshua Alabi, who made his second straight trip to Michigan and is already planning his next one ($):

"I think they said the second or third week of April, that's when I'll get up there for their spring practice," he said. "When I go to Michigan and see that, it's going to be very exciting because in Michigan high schools we can't have spring ball. Going to a college to see one of their practices, I'm sure it's going to be great."

Alabi visited with Cass Tech running back Mike Weber; both have a Michigan offer and are looking at a lot of the same schools, and I wouldn't be surprised if they end up in the same place.

New Scout 300: Mone Up, Ferns and Cole Down

Scout released their updated top 300 for the class of 2014 last week, and here's the movement for Michigan's current commits:

• Bryan Mone moved up from #111 to #97
• Michael Ferns moved down from #76 to #134
• Mason Cole moved down from #112 to #193

It's not a surprise to see early commits moving down at this stage; Ferns and Cole both made it onto the recruiting scene early, and with more prospects being scouted by the day it's a whole lot easier to move down than up from where they started. That makes Mone's rise notable—with his frame and skill set, he could easily be a top-100 overall prospect (or higher) on Signing Day.

Etc.

Elite California athlete John "JuJu" Smith told Tim Sullivan($) that Michigan is in his top group with USC, Wisconsin, UCLA, Cal, and Washington, and that he's been in contact with Cal Long Beach Poly's last Michigan player, Donovan Warren. Smith is hoping to make it to campus for a summer visit.

Michigan recently offered four-star PA WR K.J. Williams, per Sullivan ($). He's also looking at a potential summer visit.

Maize n Brew's Anthony Mammel chats with IL TE Nic Weishar, who'll be on campus this weekend after having to reschedule a planned visit for the Indiana game.