TVH Weekly: Visits, ND Reactions, and More

This weekend, believe it or not, seemed to be almost as big of a boost for Michigan in the recruiting department as the first. Denard Robinson is becoming a household name, and turning the heads of high school players all over. This update will be a little different than most, as I'll provide some reactions and quotes from various Michigan recruits.

Maty Mauk

6'2", 185 lbs.

Quarterback

Kenton, Ohio

Mauk is a 2012 prospect from Ohio who has taken in both of Michigan's games so far this season, the first as a Michigan recruit and the second as a guest of Notre Dame. Maty has an interesting recruitment ahead of him as his brother Ben played at Cincinnati for Brian Kelly, but the majority of his family are Michigan fans. MaukL

I like the coaches at both schools, and I talk to both of them quite a bit. My family has liked Michigan since we were kids, and my offensive line coach (Tony Osbun) actually played at Michigan, too.

Mauk's parents and Osbun were in attendance at the UConn game, and everyone came away impressed with the victory. Maty reported that he ran a 4.5 forty during his last attempt, and now has over 900 yards passing and 9 touchdowns in two games.

[Michigan's] offense was clicking a little bit more in the Notre Dame game. I'd feel good in either offense, because we run a five wide spread now, and if we're not passing then I'm the one that runs the ball. Winning for Michigan is a good thing, I'm just going to keep building relationships.

Mauk said he probably won't make his decision early on, and wants to see who ends up being interested in him. Since he can't get a written offer until August, it probably doesn't matter anyway. He's very interested in Michigan, and for him to see two wins in a row in person is a good thing.

Jack Tabb

6'4", 230 lbs.

Tight End

Red Bank, New Jersey

Michigan wants a tight end in this class by have whiffed on a number so far. Tabb is very interested in Michigan. I would even go as far as saying M is in his top two right now. He originally wanted to make his decision before the season started, but that got pushed back and it looks like it will be pushed back again:

I'll have all my official visits set up in the next few days. My mom wants them set up, so I need to get that done. Michigan will get one of the officials though.

North Carolina is the other school Tabb is very interested in. If they bring the hammer on UNC, and Michigan's self-imposed sanctions aren't significantly increased, advantage Michigan.

Other Reactions and Notes:

• Deion Barnes - The defensive end from PA has Michigan in his top five and has been very impressed with Michigan so far. 

  Denard Robinson had 500 total yards, that dude's a beast. I need to take a look at how the defensive ends did though.

  He was excited, but still wanted to see how the defensive line looked in the wins. Remember, I said before that the coaches told him to wait until the end of the season to take his official visit. I don't know why, it could be so they know where they stand with Zettel.

• AJ Jordan - The Trotwood wide receiver was at the UConn game and watched the Notre Dame game on TV. He was also very impressed with the offense. It can only help that he's been watching friend and former teammate Roy Roundtree make plays.

  They looked good. I'm not sure when I'm going to get back up there, but I know I'm going to Wisconsin on September 18th. We'll see how that goes so I can compare.

  Again I've said this before but I think Wisconsin has the slight lead right now. I think Michigan is closing the gap, but this visit next week to Wisconsin could swing the pendulum in either direction.

• Darian Cooper - He didn't get a chance to watch the game because his team had a game themselves. He did see highlights though, and heard about the stats. He had a similar reaction to most of the others, and was impressed. Cooper has a lot of interest in Michigan, but like many other is watching from afar to see what happens this season. Remember he's become good friends with current Michigan commit Delonte Hollowell, and will be staying with him this winter. If by winter time Michigan is having a winning season, expect the interest level to rise dramatically for Cooper.
• Anthony Zettel - He's stated before that he will wait until the end of the season to make his decision, largely stemming from the rumors about job security for Rich Rod and his staff. The wins have not gone unnoticed for Anthony.

  I watched the whole [Notre Dame] game on TV, it was pretty cool. I was supposed to go to Iowa this weekend, but I couldn't make it. The winning is helping Michigan a bit, but it's still pretty close. It's Michigan, Penn State, Iowa, and Michigan State right now.

  Anthony is playing everything close to the vest right now, but I have a feeling the winning is helping a lot more than "a bit." He's not sure if he's rescheduling the Iowa visit, but he "thinks so." He will however be at Michigan in a couple weeks, most likely for the MSU game.

• Vincent Valentine - A 6-foot-3, 300-pound 2012 defensive tackle from Illinois who holds a Michigan verbal offer says he is definitely interested in Michigan. Valentine also said he's going to try to make it up for a game this season, but he's unsure of which one. Vincent will have plenty of offers to choose from, and plans to take his time.
• Nacho Garcia - First, this. Nacho, who's real name is Abraham, is a 2012 offensive tackle prospect from Florida. Recently featured in an Andy Staple's article for Sports Illustrated, Garcia says he has early interest in Michigan. Nacho is a whopping 6-foot-6, and 339-pounds entering his junior season. He won't rush into anything, but said that everyone knows who Jake Long is, and he knows that Michigan always has a great offensive line. Just a name, and a great one at that, to keep an eye on.

These were some of the recruits I spoke with about their reaction to Michigan's performance. Others weren't as noteworthy, or didn't have as much to say, but trust me they're all watching.