Alex Bars to Notre Dame
Looks like he just committed to ND.
https://twitter.com/Alex_Bars70
Poop.
So, does this mean they'll turn on the rivalry again to increase human interest stories?
Rats. Good luck to him.
So much for those crystal ball predicitions on 247. Oh well, long recruiting season ahead still. Anything can happen.
Yeah, I never quite understood why they were all so optimistic about Bars heading to Michigan. I never heard / read anything saying he even had a leader. Him committing to Notre Dame is not a surprise, regardless of what 247's Crystal Ball said.
YES! You are a 1000% correct. Everything that I read about this kid seemed to point to him going his own path. I never saw anything from Sam, Spath, TVH saying this kid had more than a passing interest in us. I don't know why so many people thought he was solid. I am not really worried about OL with 10 kids in 12 & 13. We have 2 already. We have other needs.
So he went his own path by playing where his dad played?
Yes.
Hamburgers.
So who's the next tackle target?
Casey Tucker has expressed a little bit of interest after decommitting from USC. Roderick Johnson has visited. Otherwise, we might need to send out some new offers.
Magnus, do you think Mike Grimm might receive an offer in the future?
I'm not a big fan of Grimm. He's a waist bender, and he doesn't have the feet to play left tackle.
There's virtually no buzz about any of those tackles committing. Jones is probably the closest, but Michigan is probably #2 or #3 there right now, pending some visits next month.
Who do you think the next great LT is here? Has he even been recruited yet?
I know the excitement dropped a lot on LTT because of his weight or how raw he is, but there's a reason every major program in the country offered him (Alabama, FSU, OSU, ND, USC to name a few). He has the frame to get there. He needs to put in a lot of work, but his attitude and the fact that he was able to drop so much weight before coming to campus, and the fact that he enrolled early suggests he could get there.
That said, no one should sleep on Magnuson either. Between those two, I think we should be at least solid at LT for a while (and we'll be much better than that at every other OL spot).
reports on Mags have not been good. Actually, it has been pretty silent. Spath told me this kid is getting beat in practice by walkons. This could change, but as of now he is not lighting things up.
I think Logan Tuley-Tillman has a lot of potential. I also think Erik Magnuson has the feet to do well as a pass blocker; he's supposedly pretty ineffective in the running game. His body needs to improve, though; he's young and I just don't think he has the physical strength to do the job right now.
Denzel Ward?
Denzel Ward?
Roderick Johnson would be a great pick up. He looks really good.
damn
I heard we need one LT recruit then we are done for the year for OL.
Jamarco Jones (presumed OSU lean) and Roderick Johnson are probably the next two up. After that, not much else activity right now.
Isn't Jones 6'4"? He measured that at the most recent camp he was at. That just screams gaurd to me, and we have plenty of interior OL. We need a prototypical tackle. I like Johnson and his frame, but I really have no idea where we stand with him. If we can't get someone like that, then I would also be OK waiting until they find someone they like with a 6'6" or 6'7" from and long arms. Even if it's a rawer prospect, we need tackles on the roster.
Yes, he is a guard, but Michigan hasn't stopped recruiting him despite only taking 3 OL prospects. Since they always shut positions down when they reach their target number, they must be willing to take him.
I actually totally agree with you that we need more OTs, but I think people are way too quick to slap "guard" on any guy that isn't 6'6 or bigger.
Here are some actual heights from the NFL combine:
6'4 5/8
6'4 1/2
6'5 1/8
6'4 3/4
6'5 3/8
Those are the heights of every OT drafted this year in the top 3 rounds that wasn't a top ten pick. Not what you would expect if you follow recruiting, where every 6'5 and under guy is a presumed guard...
That is their combine measurement. At the combine they measure everyone in exactly the same way and obvioulsy they don't round much. You can add 1 or 2 inches to most of those to get their listed high school and college heights. Which leads us back to the 6'5" or over mantra for a tackle.
Exactly. I bet every one of those guys was listed at 6'6" or taller as a recruit.
to be so tall? if you have a 6' 3" guy that is quick and strong, and assuming his arms aren't short, what is the magic of the LT being 6' 7"? i played with guys of both sizes, and have to tell you my favorite LT linemate, who played for the cowboys before coming to us, was a shade under 6' 5" and a stud.
At Michigan the majority of tackles over the last decade have been 6'6" or taller (according to Michigan's rosters). Lewan, Schofield, Ortmann, Dorrestein, Huyge, Kolodziej, etc. I think the last 6'5" guy to play tackle was Steve Schilling, who...moved to guard. The guys in the OT pipeline are 6'6" and 6'7" players like Tuley-Tillman, Braden, and Magnuson. It's clearly a trend with Michigan's coaches, not just recruitniks.
I was more curious about the 'why' that drives the trend, assuming adequate athleticism and arms that are long enough to do the job.
I think it's just not very likely that shorter guys have the wingspan/length necessary for the job. Wingspan approximates height, so guys who are 6'3" are less likely to have the reach necessary; they also lose a couple inches worth of weight, so then you have to worry about their strength at the point of attack, too.
So if he's a legit 6'4" and will show up on the roster as 6'5", then he's still probably unlikely to play tackle.
I also, by the way, just think he plays like a guard, regardless of height. I've said that since he came on my radar.
OK, that's another thing altogether, and certainly more important.
My point wasn't necessarily about Jones specifically, just the overall point. It seems like OL height for recruits (and college players) is similar 40 times for other guys. It seems that every OT at a major college is 6'6" or above, yet so many of the NFL guys are below that. And it's not that the NFL wants shorter guys, it's just that a lot of those guys who are 6'6" as recruits and college players are actually 6'4.5" or so, and are listed as such on their NFL rosters.
So just how we shouldn't get upset when one of our CB recruits doesn't run a 4.5 when he's timed electronically, we should react similarly when an OL recruit comes up an inch or so shorter when measured at a camp.
Thats two ESPN 100 THIS week the all mighty crystal ball had coming to us getting away!
/s
Kyron Watson.
had him going to Michigan.
I remember reading a few articles about him the past few weeks and they noted that his family has strong ties to ND and he's the only(?) of the brothers to get an ND offer...didn't realize all the predictions were him to Michigan, to be honest.
Wish him the best. He will likely never actually play against Michigan.
Have fun playing for Brian Kelly.
Apparently Kelly got Alex to commit by telling him he can be just like Brady Hoke...
but by the time he learns that's not true, it'll be too late.