Monday Recruitin' Remixes Bo

Today's recruiting roundup covers the latest on Gareon Conley, last weekend's high school action, hopefully the last word on David Dawson, and more.

Conley Plans Visits, Emphasis On "Plans"

2013 cornerback commit Gareon Conley recently received an offer from Ohio State and is receiving serious interest from Oregon. After his game on Friday—in which he hauled in yet another long touchdown pass—he told multiple outlets that he plans to take visits, which would obviously negate his commitment to Michigan. From Josh Helmholdt, with emphasis added ($):

"I'm taking visits somewhere else because Michigan was the first ever college I visited so I want to see what's out there," Conley said.

Asked how he would respond if the choice came down to taking visits or remaining committed to Michigan, Conley said he had not decided on that or spoken with Michigan coaches about it recently.

"I haven't talked to them in awhile, but I've got to talk to them about it," Conley said.

We know the coaching staff's position on this issue: if Conley takes visits, he's gone. He hasn't spoken to them yet about potential visits to Oregon and Ohio State, so it's possible that this ends up the same way as his planned trip to Cincinnati a couple weeks ago, which he cancelled after talking with Brady Hoke; it's also worth noting that he hasn't scheduled any visits yet. The fact that potential visits have now come up multiple times in the past few weeks, however, suggests that his commitment is tenuous, and with months to go before signing day it feels like a 50/50 shot at best that he sticks.

The obvious backup plan—and he shouldn't really be called this, especially since Michigan has recruited him all along—is five-star FL DB Leon McQuay III, who will be on campus for the Northwestern game. Tremendous adds a couple less-heralded, as-yet-unoffered options in Cincinnati commit Aregeros Turner—who camped at Michigan over the summer—and Cincinnati De La Salle prospect Jaleel Hytchye (gesundheit).

The Team, The Team, The *BASS HIT*

Logan Tuley-Tillman's senior highlights are now available on YouTube. They begin with a photo montage backed by Bo Schembechler's "The Team" speech, which is obviously fantastic. Then a song by something called a "Driicky Graham" fades in—as Bo's speech continues—and I'll be busy collecting brain matter off my floor for the next few hours now.

Oh, there's also lots of Tuley-Tillman burying people, and even some defensive highlights where he displays impressive athleticism for a guy his size, which is nice.

[Hit THE JUMP for a roundup of last weekend's high school games, the latest on David Dawson, and more.]

As for last weekend's high school action, Scout's crew of Midwest analysts scouted several Michigan prospects, praising Gareon Conley's two-way play, Jaron Dukes's downfield blocking (he also had a TD catch in limited action), and the improvement of Taco Charlton ($):

Michigan pledge Taco Charlton (6-foot-6, 240-pounds) flexed his muscle in helping Central to a 28-23 win giving them a conference title and helping Central advance to the first round of the playoffs. Charlton continues to impress with his physical growth and improved technique playing defensive end and tight end on the night.

Out East, Scout's Michael Clark caught Derrick Green in action($)—he's still very much in the "do want" category:

Five-star running back Derrick Green did not disappoint, rushing for 215 yards and two touchdowns. Green was a man among boys Friday night. The 6-foot, 220-pound Green is a powerful running back that gets stronger as the game goes on. While Green does a nice job running behind his pads and gets a lot yards after contact, he made several impressive cuts on Friday night. His agility and quickness are extremely impressive for a back his size. There is no doubt that the five-star running back is one of the top players in the country.

Other standout performances from last weekend:

• DeVeon Smith shook off a sub-par first half (48 yards, so I guess sub-par by his lofty standards) to record 156 yards and two TDs on the ground, also adding a 78-yard kickoff return TD and a 73-yard punt return TD, leading Howland to a 35-20 victory.
• Ross Douglas continues to make noise in the offensive backfield, tallying scoring runs of 65 and 67 yards en route to a 155-yard day and a 41-7 Avon triumph.
• Another future defender standing out at running back: Ben Gedeon, who rushed for 149 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries while also helping Hudson hold North Royalton to 292 total yards and seven points from his middle linebacker spot.
• Mike McCray had two catches for 52 yards and a touchdown while also recording nine tackles as Trotwood-Madison dominated Butler (128 total yards) defensively in a 27-3 victory.

Dawson Looks To The Midwest

According to TomVH, former Michigan commit David Dawson has a new top three of Michigan State, Ohio State, and Wisconsin. Dawson previously took an official visit to Florida and it was widely expected that he would commit there, but Josh Helmholdt details why there's been a change in his recruitment ($):

The sudden change from an SEC focus to a Big Ten focus is due to a realization Dawson had in the last couple weeks.

"I don't want to leave home due to the tragedy my family has faced the past two years," Dawson said. "So, for me to stay close for them would definitely be a positive thing and I'd be close to my support system."

Part of the tragedy Dawson referenced was the sudden loss of his father last spring. An employee of the Michigan Department of Transportation, Dawson's father was hit by a car while helping a motorist in April.

This news was posted on the MGoBoard and immediately met with a chorus of accusations (not by all, of course, but an alarmingly high number nonetheless) that Dawson included Michigan's two chief Big Ten rivals to spite the Wolverines and/or their fans. Let's ignore the fact that Ohio State and Michigan State are two of the more successful programs in the Midwest and the stated reason that Dawson wants to stay home for a moment, and in a complete hypothetical (can't stress that enough) address that maybe he's spiting Michigan.

Guess what? That's his decision. It may not be the wisest, most mature way to select a school, but that's his prerogative. He's a 17-year-old kid who may occasionally think like a 17-year-old. The only aspect of this that is entirely unacceptable is allowing a 17-year-old to get under your skin, especially so if you then turn around and tweet nasty things to him. He's moving on. Michigan has moved on. Get over it.

I'm absolutely sick of seeing comments speculating on the mindset of a high school kid and ripping a recruit's decision-making and utter horsecrap about how this player or that player isn't "Michigan Man" material—because every freshman to arrive in Ann Arbor in the history of the football program was a fully-finished, morally-impeccable product, you see—and I'll be more than happy to send those making these comments to Bolivia, and encourage the mods to do the same. It's pretty sad that it's reached the point where I even have to say this stuff—I really hate coming across as a moralizing babysitter, for what it's worth, and I fully realize that the vast majority of you are not the issue—but here we are.

Etc.

Michigan offers a preferred walk-on spot to 2013 Leslie (MI) OL Bruce Hall, per Allen Trieu ($, info in header). The 6'4", 250 pound lineman is also getting attention from Northwestern, Ball State, Valparaiso, and a number of lower-division schools.

Sam Webb profiles 2014 PA S Montae Nicholson in the Detroit News.

Maize & Blue News has video of 2014 Detroit Country Day QB prospect Tyler Wiegers from his game against Brighton.

Tyrone Wheatley's son, Tyrone Wheatley Jr., is a 6'6", 235-pound sophomore TE/DE prospect($), and now a whole lot of you feel very old.

Needs improvement: leaping ability, common sense.