Mallory to Miami
April 22nd, 2017 at 11:02 AM ^
Its getting hard for me to understand that with how with michigans recent success, the upward trajectory of the program, all the NFL talent the school is producing, the NFL talent all over the coaching staff, the top notch academics, etc... how michigan is having trouble selling the best talent in the country to be part of this class. last year we watched as ohio state reeled in a ton of top notch talent using the "small class" line and now this year we are picking off middle of the pack guys early on in the process. I mean I trust harbaugh and the staff at getting the guys they want but with most of the top guys seeming to go the other way it feels like things arent ever going to be at that top notch, top of the line, best of the best level when it comes to the recruits that come to michigan
April 21st, 2017 at 10:14 PM ^
"and now this year we are picking off middle of the pack guys early on in the process."
I can only assume you are referencing the twins inasmuch as they are the only recruits in this class not to be "across the board" 4 or 5*s. You do understand, don't you, that we could pull in every member of every class - except for kickers, of course - rated no lower than 4*? 5*s, obviously, are a bit more difficult to pull. Our goal is not to win the star average. It is to pull in the available high schoolers that will help the most in the overall plan. Hell, we could do nothing but recruit Cass Tech and avg 4* in our defensive secondary. Brown, Zordich and Harbaugh see something in these two they want to explore as part of their overall plan. Trust them.
As far as Mallory, he is one of the best TEs in the class, and as a legacy it would have been cool to have him opt for UM. But please believe me. The staff has their eyes on targets, and Mallory, no doubt was an option. He could have been a "if we get him, great. It'll be an unexpected bonus," but our primary focus is lying elsewhere. And it could have been simply a choice of someone high on our list that opted for another school. But how you can ask how Michigan is having trouble selling the best talent in the country to be part of this class is perplexing to me. I am not sure if you noticed the difference in the talent level - and Hoke did a good job - in just two full recruiting cycles. We have speed and athletes all over the field at a level we haven't seen in awhile.
Harbaugh had as much cache as any head coach in the country and used it as well as any HC could to maximize both numbers and talent in his first two full recruiting cycles. Believe me, there are far more players that would love to play for Harbaugh then there are roster spots available. He - no coach does - will not be perfect on every choice, but please remember when no one else in the country could field a team that could play with USC, he somehow put together a string of classes that hung half-a-hundred on the best damn football program in the country at that time. The man knows what he's doing, and like I said he doesn't get every player he wants; no coach does. But if you believe its less than successful if he doesn't get a specific player you deem "the best" I only ask you revisit his resume. I stand by my prediction this is the year you'll see your first "true Harbaugh team." It might not equate to 11 wins and a NC, but believe me it'll send a message to every opponent we line up against.
April 22nd, 2017 at 10:10 AM ^
April 21st, 2017 at 10:00 PM ^
April 21st, 2017 at 10:03 PM ^
April 21st, 2017 at 10:16 PM ^
April 21st, 2017 at 10:17 PM ^
I think that Michigan is one big season away from turning the corner and establishing elite status.
Beating Ohio State at home this year could be a significant part of accomplishing that goal.
April 22nd, 2017 at 12:32 AM ^
Are you referring to recruiting? Miami, Penn State, Notre Dame, and other teams outrecruiting us this year are far less "elite" than we are. It is a little funny that the trajectory for Harbaugh's third class seems to be going down rather than up compared to the past couple years. Maybe a ceiling effect because our last classes were so high.
April 22nd, 2017 at 12:53 AM ^
It's too early to call the trajectory to be trending down for this class. A lot can happen between now and signing day. Though this class was never going to be as good as the last 2 years because of sheer numbers. Unless we took a ridiculous class like OSU last year or USC a couple years ago, it was always going to be a dropoff. What's interesting to see is how much of a dropoff? I'm would like it if we can reel in a 5 star this year and make a move on getting more DTs
April 21st, 2017 at 10:17 PM ^
Andrew has offers from Middle Tenn St and NW Texas St. He is really not that good of a prospect to be honest.
Pretty sure we get MM. I thought Ruckert was a osu lean, but some feel confident in him added to this class. I do not understand some on here who try to rationalize or are upset about a recrit going elsewhere even when we are in great shape with one or two who are bigger and better. People need to relax and wait this out. Look where Alabama is at right know. I think they are like in the forty's and sure will take their place in the top five on nsd. I guess what I am trying to say is I would take MM or Ruckert over Mallory any day so where is the loss. I wasn't real happy with the twins but are reading good stuff about them, but am really excited about the rest of the class so far.
April 22nd, 2017 at 10:26 AM ^
Given that his dad Mike never coached for Michigan, Will has never lived in Ann Arbor; since Mike has always been coaching elsewhere for Will's entire life, it's unlikely that Will attended very many games here, either. On top of that, Mike has coached in the deep South since 2008, first for the Saints and now for the Jaguars, meaning that Will has been living down there since he was nine years old. He's undoubtedly comfortable down in that part of the country; the upper midwest probably looks a bit like foreign territory.
On top of that, of the three Mallory brothers who played for Bo, only one—Will's uncle Curt—ever coached for the Wolverines, and he was fired along with the rest of Hoke's staff after 2014. The fact that Harbaugh was a teammate of Mike and Will's other uncle Doug yet still did not make an apparent effort to retain Curt can't have gone unnoticed in the Mallory clan.
But perhaps most important in Will's decision was this:
"Michigan was my first offer and I had a great relationship with [assistant coach Jay Harbaugh] – still do – but when he made the switch [from tight ends coach to running backs coach] I felt like I kind of lost contact with them. Then I just saw more of Miami and kept building a relationship [Miami tight ends coach Todd Hartley] and just once I saw the vision that Miami has for me, it made it an easy decision," Mallory said.
"[Mark Richt] is just building something special," he added. "I want to be part of it."
He said that a few coaches have already informed him that they plan to continue to recruit him, but he doesn't intend to take visits elsewhere.
"I want to shut it down. I'm not really the type of guy that wants to entertain other schools," he said.
http://247sports.com/Bolt/TE-Mallory-Explains-Why-He-Picked-Miami-Over-…
April 22nd, 2017 at 11:03 AM ^
April 22nd, 2017 at 11:07 AM ^
Good luck to him, but Michigan will survive.