Mike Farrells awards from The Opening
Good and bad reviews of the Michigan recruits.
First the bad:
Taco Charlton (Bear Market Award)
This award goes to the player who lowered his stock the most from the camp. While Pickerington (Ohio) Central defensive end Taco Charlton looks the part, he really struggled. He has great size, long arms and he is very athletic. However, he is also very upright, only has an outside move and when coaches tried to teach him misdirection or crossover, he didn't grasp it well at all. He was beaten on almost every 1-on-1 rep he took.
The not so bad:
Shane Morris (Honorable Mention - Tunnel Vision Award)
Honorable mention:Warren (Mich.) De La Salle quarterback Shane Morris was clearly one of the top three quarterbacks at the event, but his team was the favorite to win it all with weapons like O.J. Howard, Taquan Mizzell and Ahmad Fulwood. However, his Land Sharks team was eliminated early mainly because Morris focused on one side of the field and locked in on certain players. He has a cannon of an arm and a ton of upside, but his field vision needs to improve.
The Good:
Shane Morris (Spin It Award)
It was very clear that Warren (Mich.) De La Salle quarterback Shane Morris had the best arm at the event. He has a cannon of an arm and there's not a throw he can't make. With some of the other quarterbacks showing funky mechanics or not spinning the ball that well, it was fun to see him rear back and let it rip. He has a hose, as they say in the quarterback business.
Also an interesting part on Joe Mathis and his poor attitude.
http://michigan.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1383918
who is Mike Ferrell and why should I care?
I'm not sure who Mike Ferrell is, but Mike Farrell is the lead scouting director for Rivals.com.
While I agree that jumping over a tackling dummy looks awesome in that photo, let's not blow that "feat" out of proportion. Just like Sam McGuffie's ability to leap over defensive backs didn't make him a great football player, this has very little to do with Taco Charlton's football abilities.