TomVH: OL James Elliott Visit Update
Florida offensive lineman James Elliott (6'4", 305/Pensacola) is on his way back from an unofficial visit up to Ann Arbor this weekend. He went up to Michigan expecting to see a great place, and possibly a little help in making his decision. It sounds like he got more than what his expectations were set at.
TOM: How did the visit go?
JAMES: Man, that was the most amazing school I've ever seen in person.
TOM: It went that well?
JAMES: We actually stayed a little longer than expected just so we could see everything, and meet Coach Rodriguez. We didn't realize he was in Seattle, so we wanted to stay to meet him. We got to see practice and talk with him about the visit. It was just great.
TOM: What specifically has you so amazed?
JAMES: One thing that did it for me was the players. Every time I met one, they would tell me about themselves, and where they were from. They found out I was from Florida, and they all went crazy. I met some kids from Pahokee, which is a school we played in the playoffs. It was cool to see how all the players were so nice like that.
TOM: What about Coach Frey? I know your current coach is friends with him, how was it being with him?
JAMES: I got to see him, that was great. I also got to be around the offensive linemen which was really cool. Instead of taking breaks, sometimes they would just stay and talk to me instead, which was crazy.
TOM: The players and the coaches seemed to win you over, was there anything about the campus that stood out?
JAMES: They just started a new thing with a chaplin, and he said things are really changing around there. That was unbelievable to me. My mom and I are very spiritual people, so that was great to see. They have a Christian athletic group there, and they give you time to do bible work, and that's really important to me. Also, the stadium.....man. That place is unreal. They just put in the new turf, and it looks great. It was unbelievable being in that place. Everything about the stadium was awesome.
TOM: You already have an offer from Michigan, so what's next?
JAMES: Well, Coach Frey Coach Smith have approved my offer, so now I have to wait for Coach Rodriguez to approve it. Once he does that, we'll go from there.
August 15th, 2010 at 5:20 PM ^
Hello: James Elliott
August 15th, 2010 at 5:21 PM ^
"Man, that was the most amazing school I've ever seen in person."
I haven't heard that in a while from any recruits.. Wow. You think he wants to commit Tom? The last sentence there worries me. The same thing with "approving" happened with Kitchen, so I'm assuming they're waiting to see what happens with other o-line targets?
August 15th, 2010 at 6:48 PM ^
If RR thinks he is a plan B, then you probably don't want him taking up a spot if there are bigger targets still in the game. I am not saying that is the case with Elliott (I like the Frey connection and would think that Frey would only be interested if he thinks that Elliott would help), but I am going to trust the coaches on this one.
August 15th, 2010 at 5:22 PM ^
With a chaplin?
August 15th, 2010 at 5:37 PM ^
But if they meant Charlie Chaplin, I certainly hope film studies is voluntary and not imposed upon athletes who perhaps prefer harmonics.
August 15th, 2010 at 5:22 PM ^
Great update as always Tom. It's always a neat perspective to see how these visits transpire. I love how enthusiastic the other players are.
I hope this kid will continue the tradition of great Offensive Linemen named Elliott at U-M.
August 15th, 2010 at 5:23 PM ^
I don't pay to much attention to star ratings, but is this a potential starter type of player at Michigan? I ask because the class is getting pretty full on the O line, and we still have some prospects available.
Tom thanks for the update.
August 15th, 2010 at 5:43 PM ^
He's a 2* to scout and a 3* to rivals right now, but I couldn't find him on ESPN. Seems like he could contribute eventually, but he'd probably redshirt and wouldn't see the field until his junior year
August 15th, 2010 at 11:17 PM ^
Redshirting is the norm for incoming OL, not the exception
August 15th, 2010 at 6:19 PM ^
I read something a while back about the coaches having Elliott near the top of their recruiting board at OL. He is likely the type of player who fits our system better than others.
August 15th, 2010 at 5:25 PM ^
... interesting way of structuring offers these days. Maybe to make it clear what the difference is between a commitable and non-commitable offer. Sort of like a promise ring, I guess.
August 15th, 2010 at 5:35 PM ^
It's great to see someone so impressed with their visit to Ann Arbor. I would be interested to know what other schools he's taken visits to. Among his listed offers I see schools like FIU, Kentucky, Iowa State, Louisville, Maryland, South Alabama, Vanderbilt, South Florida, Louisiana-Lafayette, etc.
Being a NR OL, will Rich Rod hold off on approving this offer until the Anthony Zettels of the class make a decision?
August 15th, 2010 at 5:57 PM ^
RR will take Zettel in this class no matter what. He could play DE or OG.
August 15th, 2010 at 8:10 PM ^
if Michigan fills up before zettel makes his decision they won't be able to take him. that being said, i don't think zettel will wait for that to happen
August 15th, 2010 at 6:00 PM ^
It's really great to hear a recruit talk about how all of the players are friendly to them. That's gotta be huge for some recruits.
August 15th, 2010 at 6:05 PM ^
illustrates what we have at Michigan, the type of players lead by a great coach and staff. He'll be here a long time in my opinion. A chaplain nice
August 15th, 2010 at 6:49 PM ^
August 15th, 2010 at 6:56 PM ^
...you are the reason I now spend my former Rivals money on beer.
August 15th, 2010 at 7:16 PM ^
Why does the 2011 recruiting board have Elliot listed as from PA? Great enthusiasm, I think he may favor us at this point. He has good size too, but there may be bigger fish to finish out the OL than a 2* recruit.
August 15th, 2010 at 7:27 PM ^
If I recall, our last 2-star offensive lineman is our starting RG as a sophomore:
http://rivals.yahoo.com/michigan/football/recruiting/player-Patrick-Omameh-64658
When it comes to recruiting linemen, I completely trust this coaching staff. If they want this guy, I want him.
August 15th, 2010 at 7:52 PM ^
Omameh may be the starter this year, but we have no clue how he'll perform. Ergo, it's not fair to trot out Omameh as an example of a 2-star that panned out when we've yet to see him really play.
August 15th, 2010 at 8:08 PM ^
you didn't watch him the last 5 games of last season then...
August 15th, 2010 at 8:16 PM ^
you do realize that the OL are graded on a pro-style offense. I trust RR and coach Frey in whom they select to offer.
August 15th, 2010 at 8:33 PM ^
Omameh performed well enough to start several games as a freshman, and to (presumably) lock up a guard spot as a sophomore. So even if he doesn't turn into Steve Hutchinson, it's safe to say that he has already far exceeded the expectations for the average 2-star.
August 15th, 2010 at 7:41 PM ^
305 pounds is great, but can he MOVE?
August 15th, 2010 at 8:08 PM ^
faster then Tony Posada, slower then Jack Miller
Miller 4.8 40 268 lbs
Fisher 5.2 40 249 lbs
Posada 5.4 40 315 lbs
Elliott 5.3 40 305 lbs
With his weight, i think he moves well for his size.
August 15th, 2010 at 8:10 PM ^
Rod wouldnt have recruited him if he couldnt. All our new OL recruited, you can assume without fail, that they are very mobile.
August 15th, 2010 at 7:47 PM ^
As long as we haul him in with Zettel not far behind, sign me up.
August 15th, 2010 at 8:49 PM ^
If Elliott were to commit, would there be no room for Cyrus Hobbi or Chris Bryant? They both sounded like more highly sought after recruits. There is something to be said, however, for the kid's enthusiasm. You want kids who really want to be Wolverines.
August 15th, 2010 at 9:12 PM ^
Just so long as young Elliott realizes Bible study is voluntary, but so is Heaven.
August 16th, 2010 at 9:23 AM ^
If you're the real Gordie then contact me please.
BABY!
August 16th, 2010 at 11:15 PM ^
As a poster I'm an impostor, not the real Gordie Bell.
My real name is Vasily Gordonskya Belov the famous Russian physicist
August 15th, 2010 at 9:48 PM ^
While I'm sure he is a very nice kid who may indeed turn into an excellent player, I just don't understand why we are competing with Army, Buffalo and Florida Atlantic for recruits.
August 15th, 2010 at 10:11 PM ^
He has offers from better programs than the three you've listed.
It doesn't surprise me that you would choose the worst teams on his list to bitch about, though.
August 16th, 2010 at 10:15 AM ^
Really? How much better? I didn't feel like typing in all the world-beaters we're up against like:
Iowa St, Kentucky, Memphis, Louisiana-Lafayette, Kansas (wait, are they the "better" program?), Memphis, Vandy, etc.
August 16th, 2010 at 11:07 AM ^
Seems like a great kid that has a ton of love for Michigan. I would definitely like adding him to this class. I trust the coaching staff with the rest of the offensive line recruiting and they will make it work with the rest of our targets.
August 19th, 2010 at 10:36 PM ^
My daughter goes to HS with James Elliott at Pensacola Catholic High School. She says he is going to commit to Michigan. Im not sure if his offer is committable per Mgoblog.
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