TomVH: OL James Elliott Visiting Friday
Possibly more good news from an offensive lineman out of Florida, James Elliott (6'4", 299 lbs.) is visiting Michigan this Friday until Sunday. I caught up with him to talk about the upcoming visit:
TOM: What made this visit come about? Why now?
JAMES: I kept in touch with Coach Smith for awhile now. We kept talking about how they have a couple linemen committed, and it's closing down pretty fast. Michigan's in my top three with Louisville, and USF, so I wanted to get up there and check everything out.
TOM: Who's coming with you on this trip?
JAMES: I'm going up with my mom and sister. We're going to come back for an official visit, too. On the official visit we're going to try to bring my offensive line coach, because he played football with Coach Frey at FSU. We'll take the official visit whenever my bye week is; I just can't remember when that is right now.
TOM: That's right, I forgot about that. Has your coach been helping you with the process?
JAMES: Yeah, definitely. He's going to be very influential in my decision. He's a great coach, and he always tells me how good a guy Coach Frey is, and so I want to see that for myself. Seeing a practice will help me see more on one visit. It will help me figure out a lot more in a shorter period of time, too.
TOM: You said you keep in touch with the coaches. Have they told you where they want you to play on the line?
JAMES: Some schools are saying guard, because I'm about 6-foot-4, 6-foot-4 and a half. Michigan said that I could play right tackle for them, because of my footwork. I have a good punch off the line, and they said my height isn't a big deal.
TOM: After this visit, what does your timeline look like, and what are you going to do from here?
JAMES: Well, I'm not sure yet. I could decide at the beginning of the season, or I could wait until signing day. I just talked to Penn State, and I sent them my film. They said if they like my film they're going to offer me. There's about eight or nine other schools that said I'm next on their list, after they see some more film of me after my first game. It's going to depend on how a few things play out.
Side Note: He wasn't aware that Tony Posada had committed today. He is however very aware that Michigan only has a few limited spots left on the line. I'm under the impression that this visit will be the deciding factor with Michigan. He either figures it out now, or he will wait and see if there's a spot open later.
August 11th, 2010 at 7:56 PM ^
Well James, enjoy your visit. Funny how 6'4.5" is a "concern". I am a god damn oompa loompa compared to these people.
August 11th, 2010 at 7:56 PM ^
Will RR be there? I thought he flew out for the NCAA.
August 11th, 2010 at 8:02 PM ^
I'm not sure, but James is more concerned with seeing Coach Frey and how he coaches, the environment, campus, etc. He wants to figure out if this is the place for him in a short period of time.
August 12th, 2010 at 8:11 AM ^
I believe RR said that he will be flying back Saturday evening, so he may have the opportunity to see young master James.
August 11th, 2010 at 8:41 PM ^
I'm not sure how this works so someone please help me out. UM has about 7 spots left and a bunch of guys still considering us.You know all the names. It's more than 7 that's for sure. If Elliott commits in the near future could could that make for an awkward situation?
August 11th, 2010 at 8:46 PM ^
Awkward? Not really. The recruits know the deal for sure. They know that spots are limited, and they know that there are other linemen committed. If spots fill up before, say, Nick Martin comes to a decision, Martin will have been well aware that he waited too long.
The only way it could get awkward is if Michigan took a couple more commits and then started ignoring phone calls from, say, Jake Fisher. It's not hard to turn away people when your class is full. It gets pretty hard to turn away people who you've already accepted commitments from.
August 11th, 2010 at 8:55 PM ^
Magnus, what's your opinion of Elliott as a prospect? Considering all the other offensive line recruits we're in on, would he be a good pickup for us?
August 11th, 2010 at 9:42 PM ^
I haven't seen film of him. He has a smattering of mediocre offers, so I'm not extremely impressed. But there was a time when Taylor Lewan wasn't a big-time recruit, either, so I'm withholding judgment until I see tape.
August 12th, 2010 at 10:48 AM ^
Can we put Turner's scholarship towards the '11 class? Or does it have to wait for '12? Forgot how that works.
August 12th, 2010 at 11:50 AM ^
We can use it for the Class of 2011. Our class went from approximately 17 (depending on the status of walk-ons) to 18.
August 11th, 2010 at 9:01 PM ^
I don't think Jake Fisher would be a guy we would start ignoring calls from, do you? We need tackles for sure, and he sounds like a good to very good left tackle prospect.
August 11th, 2010 at 9:41 PM ^
I was only using Fisher's name as a random example.
August 11th, 2010 at 9:51 PM ^
That's what I figured, but I wasn't sure if that was a subtle way of saying you aren't a big fan of Fisher. Because I think he'll be pretty good, and good be awesome.
August 11th, 2010 at 9:37 PM ^
Thanks Magnus.
I'm not worried about UM blowing off commits. What I was just thinking was well, just a hypohetical situation here: Elliott commits soon. As does Hart, Bryant, and Holloway. Then during the season say Zettel, Frost, and Walls commit. That's it, out of spots. Then any chance you had at, say, Crawford, Watkins, Funderburk, Hobbi, Drew and few others is gone even though those guys were still considering you. It would kinda make you look at what you have and wish you had handled a couple offers differently. Remember when George Castanza learned that he could have gone out with Marisa Tomei but he was married to Susan. He kinda looked at Susan and had some regrets. I meant awkward like that.
August 11th, 2010 at 9:47 PM ^
I mean, you can't get every recruit. Am I going to be disappointed that Drew can't commit because of Zettel? No. Am I going to be disappointed that Crawford can't commit because of Avery Walls? No. Am I going to be disappointed that Hobbi can't commit because of Elliott? Maybe . . . let me see Elliott's tape first.
But ultimately, there are going to be several guys that Michigan fans are clamoring for that will end up elsewhere. I'm still hoping Sean Parker's LOI got lost somewhere and he's going to start practicing with Michigan as soon as it comes out of the fax machine. There were also quite a few people who were pissed that Newsome and Beaver decommitted, even though we've got Forcier and Robinson on the roster now.
You can't catch 'em all.
August 11th, 2010 at 10:30 PM ^
Those of us who grew up watching Pokemon take exception to that.
August 11th, 2010 at 9:48 PM ^
Remember when George Castanza learned that he could have gone out with Marisa Tomei but he was married to Susan. He kinda looked at Susan and had some regrets.
*engaged
I still enjoyed the reference though.
August 11th, 2010 at 10:17 PM ^
...Susan's death by George's cheap wedding invitation envelope glue.
The scene when George tells everyone that Susan is dead is brutal.
Poor Lily.
August 12th, 2010 at 10:44 AM ^
Had regrets about Susan before he heard that he was Marisa's type... I'm just sayin'.
August 11th, 2010 at 9:48 PM ^
First of all, if all of those guys that you mentioned commit, our class will be pretty stacked so it's not a bad problem to have. Sure, we wouldn't get another CB (but who needs CB's?) and we wouldn't get a NT, but we'd get a solid class and a lot of positions sewn up for a couple years.
That said, I bet a guy like Holloway couldn't commit right now if he wanted to. Not all of our offers out there are commitable. Also, this is the tricky situation with recruiting, and the recruits know that. This happens at many schools, and unless you're a big time guy, you know that a school you really like might fill up before you make your decision.
Also, if we fill up within the first month of the season, it's very possible that a guy or two bails between that point and signing day (either a current verbal commit or a guy on the roster transfers) and you let them know you have a spot available.
August 12th, 2010 at 8:59 AM ^
that a couple players may enroll early. We can credit them back and pick up a couple more schollies I believe.
August 12th, 2010 at 10:50 AM ^
A lot has to do with Kinnard, Conelius Jones, and Turner. If none of these three make it in or return to the team, there are 3 more scholarships available. I know Kovacs was given a scholarship, and they had one for Dorsey, so the count is definately different than originally thought. Also, with normal attrition, transfers or injuries, we could still see a larger class this year. As far as rolling back scholarships, I don't know if we have spots from the previous year if these guys do end up coming after the fall.
August 11th, 2010 at 9:14 PM ^
Mr. Elliott lives in my hometown (also the hometown of Emmitt Smith, Derrick Brooks, Trent Richardson, etc). I look forward to seeing him play ball this fall. If he commits, you can bet my brother and I will be wearing our Michigan gear to a few games.
I'll let you know 1st hand my impressions of his ability when the time comes...
August 12th, 2010 at 8:20 AM ^
That's quite an alumni list right there. And please do keep us informed on his first game or two.
August 12th, 2010 at 12:36 PM ^
I think you should always wear your Michigan gear to the games.
August 12th, 2010 at 8:53 AM ^
"Jumbo"? Only if he goes Maize and Blue of course.
August 13th, 2010 at 4:59 AM ^
But recycling nicknames seems wrong to me.
That said, since his name is James, I'm definitely in favor of calling him Jimbo Elliott. You know? An homage, but you're bringing something new to the table.
August 12th, 2010 at 11:22 AM ^
It's interesting to see how the offensive line recruiting is coming to a end. It's like a race to see you who will commit first and how the rest of the dominoes fall. It will be fun to see it play out.
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