According to Tom Beaver on WTKA...
...Baxtor wants RR to come to Cali and do an in home with him and family. Apparently Carroll told Baxter not more than a week ago he wasn't going anywhere and now we know that's not necessary is the case (assuming the deal falls through for Pete).
Even though Prater decommitted from USC, Prater not looking at UM.
Will Gholston is a great combine guy but disappears during the game. He's a great athlete but has yet to show that promise during games.
Hopson leaving hurt Murphy/Grimes recruitment and possibly others...
Marcus Knight visiting this week.
January crazy month for recruiting where coaches leave and kids shift. Kids from South commit early to hold a position but tend to change their minds in Jan.
Already known... Drake and Witty dropped from UM.
January 10th, 2010 at 9:31 AM ^
sounds like a win-win. I'm positive there will be some good news over the few weeks heading into Signing Day. Go Blue
January 10th, 2010 at 9:33 AM ^
...that would a VERY NICE conclusion.
Also, rumors that USC was looking to hire a coach ASAP and that Harbaugh is the guy to keep the class intact.
January 10th, 2010 at 9:49 AM ^
But, no one short of an NFL coach is keeping this class together for USC. It'll be a fine class, but not compared to recent USC classes. It seems like the hammer is about to drop on USC and I bet some recruits recognize this and decide to play elsewhere (hopefully in Ann Arbor).
January 10th, 2010 at 12:44 PM ^
couldn't express his lack of interest in the job fast enough. Peter King reported Saturday afternoon, "that Jeff Fisher is uninterested in USC right now especially with the university's football program facing continuing questions about inducements made available to players, including an upcoming civil trial on the Reggie Bush issue."
http://gridironfans.com/forums/latest-nfl-headlines/119628-jeff-fisher-…
So it's gotta be bad when a former player won't consider coming back to coach the alma mater. His remaining 2 years and $16M probably has something to do with it too. But NFL coaches aren't dummies (except maybe for past Lions coaches), and they aren't going to leave their big NFL contracts and head to a school facing the spectre NCAA sanctions.
January 11th, 2010 at 12:20 AM ^
"So it's gotta be bad when a former player won't consider coming back to coach the alma mater."
I wonder, were the M coaching job to open up again, if Harbaugh would have the same reaction if approached.
I think it says more about Harbaugh than U-M if that's the case, but I am curious.
January 11th, 2010 at 6:08 PM ^
As a devout Titans follower for the last 10 years, I can tell you that Fisher is not going anywhere. Bud Adams gets more senile by the day, but even that crazy bastard knows that the only reason that the Titans are a relevant franchise is because of JF. How may NFL coaches can go 4-12 and still get huge love from the fanbase, I'm guessing no that many. And besides some guys are NFL coaches some are college coaches and FEW are good at both. Fisher is simply an NFL guy.
January 10th, 2010 at 11:48 AM ^
as soon as Monday. Although Riley is a good coach, I don't see him continuing SC's dominance at all.
January 10th, 2010 at 12:44 PM ^
plus, his salary requirements would be relatively low.
January 11th, 2010 at 12:22 AM ^
That reminds me of when Johnelle left MSU, and the rumor was that Tom Izzo would be called in to coach the football team. Because he's a great motivator!
January 10th, 2010 at 12:09 PM ^
Why would Harbaugh want to go there, immediately be fingercuffed by the NCAA, and fight through the mess that should be the next five years of USC athletics?
January 10th, 2010 at 2:34 PM ^
Why would anyone (player or coach) want to go to USC before the NCAA report/decision comes out? It seems nuts to make such an important decision without all the relevant information. I was really surprised when one of the players in the AA game yesterday committed to USC (i forgot who).
January 10th, 2010 at 9:33 AM ^
"We've got wings on our helmets"!
January 10th, 2010 at 10:00 AM ^
It's "Our helmet's got wings!"
January 10th, 2010 at 11:08 AM ^
Thanks for the correction, although a Google of the ad reveals the full quote as, "Look, our helmet's got wings!" Mea culpa.
January 10th, 2010 at 9:46 AM ^
Did you mean Rashad Knight, CB/S prospect from Florida?
January 10th, 2010 at 9:53 AM ^
Thats what I was thinking
January 10th, 2010 at 9:59 AM ^
I might have transcribed/heard wrong.
January 10th, 2010 at 12:17 PM ^
Marcus Knight = former unspectacular but good Michigan receiver from maybe 10 years ago who kicked around the NFL for a few years.
January 10th, 2010 at 9:46 AM ^
I really hope that RichRod can get this Baxter kid to come to Ann Arbor. He seems like the real deal. He looks like a physical specimen and looks like he plays like one too.
He's a 5 Star from San Diego, which would do wonders to hush the whole three star mafia.
January 10th, 2010 at 10:10 AM ^
I think you're missing the point. Baxter would make people happy because he's the real deal, as you said yourself - not because he is a 5* from San Diego.
You make it sound like the "three star mafia" is only concerned with star rankings. But you miss the entire point, and I find it kind of ironic: By your own admission, Baxter "seems like the real deal. He looks like a physical specimen and looks like he plays like one too."
So therefore I would suggest that it is perfectly rational for people to prefer a 5* RB over a 3*, no?
January 10th, 2010 at 10:26 AM ^
against the 3 star mafia....
Watching his video, he looks like the real deal.
I can't wait to see this kid in Maize and Blue
Yes!!! I am predicting a commit come signing day.
January 10th, 2010 at 6:02 PM ^
You are not THE_KNOWLEDGE. Only THE_KNOWLEDGE can make predictions, everyone else is stuck with making educated guesses.
January 11th, 2010 at 7:58 AM ^
THE_KNOWLEDGE is an imposter. THE KNOWLEDGE was the real thing.
January 10th, 2010 at 12:00 PM ^
I believe he was referring to the criticism RR gets for recruiting a relatively large number of 3 star prospects, and the lack of 5 star guys in this class.
January 10th, 2010 at 10:15 AM ^
Hearing him in interviews impresses me too, he seems like a nice, smart kid.
January 10th, 2010 at 11:09 AM ^
He's really cocky, actually. He's smart (his high school is an academic magnet school) and was respectful in interviews yesterday, but I'm sure that if he comes here, he will rub some people the wrong way with how he acts.
January 10th, 2010 at 11:14 AM ^
Good, this team could use some cockiness.
January 10th, 2010 at 11:26 AM ^
I prefer our already manifesting Cox-iness.
January 10th, 2010 at 12:32 PM ^
If I were to enjoy all the success Baxter has had I'd think it would be a little difficult to stay humble. It's no excuse, but I think he deserves a little cockiness.
January 10th, 2010 at 12:48 PM ^
"The U.... it's all about the the U...."
January 10th, 2010 at 11:25 AM ^
How do you know this?
January 10th, 2010 at 11:57 AM ^
How do I know that he's cocky? I've seen him play, I've seen him interviewed, and I've read his interviews.
How do I know that his high school is a magnet school? I follow recruiting closely, and I did a bit of research on his high school when his named popped up on Michigan's recruiting radar.
How do I know that he'll rub some people the wrong way? This is Michigan. There are old, stodgy alums who like humility, not flash.
January 10th, 2010 at 12:43 PM ^
The actual answer to "how do you know Baxter will rub some people the wrong way" is the same answer as "how do I know X will rub some Michigan fans the wrong way" - Gaussian distribution.
January 10th, 2010 at 3:55 PM ^
If you are any form of a living being (or not), you will rub Michigan the wrong way.
January 10th, 2010 at 3:58 PM ^
just fyi.
January 10th, 2010 at 4:33 PM ^
I wasn't aware that one could discern a player's peronality traits by watching them play. Seeing as you possess this unique ability, perhaps you could give us a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator assessment for the current squad. Tell me, is Forcier an ISTJ or an ESFP?
January 10th, 2010 at 6:04 PM ^
He's a BAMF
January 10th, 2010 at 6:12 PM ^
You're right. There's absolutely no way you could discern that Barry Sanders was humble by watching him hand the ball to the referee after every touchdown, and there's no way you could tell that Ray Lewis is a cocky son of a bitch by watching him dance and talk shit after every tackle.
January 11th, 2010 at 8:07 AM ^
If you can't tell a guys personality from the way he conducts himself on the field, I would have to say you are one of the slowest people I have ever met.
If you watched T.O., Chad Johnson, even Boo Boo play, you can easily tell they are cocky individuals. It isn't rocket science.
January 10th, 2010 at 11:35 AM ^
Is this not a common trait among 5-Star recruits/People proclaimed the player of the year?
January 11th, 2010 at 12:36 AM ^
I agree with you on how he seemed to be a nice kid in the interview, and from what i heard his press conference was impressive as well
January 10th, 2010 at 9:57 AM ^
To make things even better, we have a shot at Blake Sims (4-star from Georgia) who just decommitted from Alabama. He said that Saban wanted him on defense and he wants to play offense. He is a QB now but wants to play somewhere else on offense. Kid is fast as hell...5th fastest kid in 2010 on Rivals. He said he is visiting/talking to Michigan, UGA, UF, FSU, UT in the next month.
January 10th, 2010 at 12:45 PM ^
Blake Sims is the real deal! He is that explosive type of athlete that would flurish in RR's system. He also has a strong arm and could possibly challenge for time at qb. Apparently he was very interested in Michigan before he commited to Alabama. He would be a great pickup for us.
January 11th, 2010 at 12:38 AM ^
Could anyone else see us putting in some WR passes or something with Simms, that was my initial thought when i heard we might be getting him, would be a nice addition to make RR offense even more explosive
January 10th, 2010 at 12:45 PM ^
Blake Sims is the real deal! He is that explosive type of athlete that would flurish in RR's system. He also has a strong arm and could possibly challenge for time at qb. Apparently he was very interested in Michigan before he commited to Alabama. He would be a great pickup for us.
January 10th, 2010 at 10:02 AM ^
I swear to Bo that if I find out RR is off sailing somewhere and baxter gets away there will be hell to pay! RR should already be on the plane to Cali...and calling parker from the plane.
January 10th, 2010 at 10:07 AM ^
I'm gonna go out on a limb here, but I can pretty much guarantee that RichRod's spending all of his waking hours trying to get this recruiting class firmed up and getting our team back to where we should be.
There isn't a hotter seat in America right now, and RichRod's ass is starting to burn.....
I'm pretty sure plane tickets to San Diego (and elsewhere) were purchased the second that Rah Rah Pete Carroll's name was linked to the Seahawks job,
We'll be fine...I get the feeling our recruiting class will be a lot better than people think.
January 10th, 2010 at 12:47 PM ^
I know that, in general, our fanbase demands victories. And I know that the pressure has definitely been building and his leeway has dwindled, I really just don't see him getting canned before he has a real shot to build his depth.
Our Athletics Department is just too smart to let go of the upside that Coach Rod has.
It would be like pulling your money out of a long term investment too early.
A lot of people talk about firing him after next year, but I simply don't see it. The people that want him fired are not the people with the ability to do so.
I trust Martin and Brandon do make the right choice and to not make a premature one.
January 10th, 2010 at 10:05 AM ^
"Will Gholston is a great combine guy but disappears during the game. He's a great athlete but has yet to show that promise during games."
Didnt he have 31 sacks this year? I believe thats showing up in games.