Mike Weber Top 3
RB Mike Weber told me he does have a top 3 within his top 5. Ohio State, MSU, Wisconsin but Michigan and Tennessee still in it.
— Tom VanHaaren (@TomVH) June 1, 2014We can worry about both. They're not mutually exclusive but I'm not much of a worrier anyways.
if Weber goes to Lansing and D Harris goes to Columbus
based on reports months before the decisions will be made.
I still have hope we land Harris. That hope is attributed to the fact that for some reason that I can't justifiably explain is the feeling I have that this years team will win 10 games. Not only that, I think we will see a huge step forward in our running game. I know I don't have much basis for this hope, but the last time I had this feeling was in the summer of '11
There is something, not sure what, that just makes me believe this is going to be a special year.
We have struggled through the last few years, but these kids are hanging in tough, and the coaching staff is seemingly doing everything they can to get better.
I think Bo is up there rubbing his hands together with glee, because he knows what we do not.
Those Who Stay Will Be Champions
Maybe more just the fact that we are due. Coach Hoke is a great person, may not be the best coach...but he is a man of integrity.
I have to believe that he starts a good run at some point just because the dude deserves it.
Seriously, Bo's words have never applied more than in the Hoke era. RR didnt work out, those who stayed won a BCS bowl. Now we have encountered some more trials, but all these kids will be champions.
taught you anything? Men of integrity get slaughtered like lambs, man.
A good season will fix all of this. It will change the narrative completely.
In my opinion, the likely (positive) resolution to all of this comes after the 2015 season. If Michigan can pull off a 9-3 type 2014 - i.e., something good enough to buy another year among all but the most extreme skeptics - 2015 is structured to be a very good season. The schedule is favorable, with our only road games against Utah, Maryland, Minnesota, Indiana, and Penn State. We'll also return a ton of (very talented) guys in 2015 on both offense and defense who, between them, will have an incredible amount of playing experience.
If we get good QB play in 2015 - and aren't in the middle of another disruptive, messy coaching change - I think we're in good shape for an excellent record.
My hopes for 2014 are basically just that it gets Hoke & co. to 2015 and brings some more positive offseason feelings than we're getting right now.
Way too many assumptions on a regime change "fixing the problem." It could more easily exacerbate the problems, change the problem, or just continue the problem.
Good point. But I was referring to the fact that uncertainty is the biggest fuel for negative recruiting. That's what I think either a good season (which I think we'll have) or a really bad one will "fix".
If he wants to go to a school that has produced basically one NFL running back the past ten years despite getting all 4-5 stars, let him.
Thomas Gordon, Terry Richardson, Delonte Hollowell, C. York, Royce J. Stone, Justice Hayes, and Da'Mario Jones all have left much to be desired.
Funchess has been good. Raymon Taylor has been serviceable but not very good against top competition.
I have lived in and watched much football in Ohio and Michigan.
D1 Ohio football is just in another stratosphere. I would equate D1 Michigan HS football to D3 or possibly D4 Ohio high school football, honestly.
When we get a kid out of Michigan that is highly ranked, I am always skeptical...just because of the competition factor. I would go out on a limb and say a 4* recruit from Ohio has a much higher chance of playing as such on the next level than does a 4* recruit out of Michigan.
Most of the best players in UM history are from Ohio...
I played D1 HS football in Ohio and am now an assistant at an overseas high school (military kids)...and let's just say they lack fundamentals. My high school team would score every play and not allow a first down against these kids. I guess I just assumed it was like I knew it in Ohio everywhere but its not even close
While they may be sophomores, we also heard absolutely nothing about them in the spring while a 4* freshman from Maryland jumped both them on the depth chart.
of the Big Five, but it was just a few years ago that MLK became the first public school, despite having better athletes than their opponents, to win a state championship at the highest level in MI h.s. football. And although CT has always been a pipeline to this school, Wilcher could never take them far at playoff time. Well he was somehow able to hire better assistants and after finishing runner-up, he won back-to-back state championships. And contrary to that stated above, MI has produced a number of nationally sought players, i.e., RoJo at USC, his fellow Big Red teammate, TT a few years later, Mike Teeter, NG from Fruitport who later became the strongest man in the NFL. Messner was recruited nationally and Bo and an assistant were actually waiting for him at the airport when he landed on his return trip on his visit to UCLA. USC swooped in and stole the DT from the above MLK team and we lost a great db to OSU from the school we supposedly own, Cass Tech. ^Many have decided to stay in state, and although many signed with MSU, some whom we didn't even recruits have gone on to do great things. Earl Morrall,whose brother I worked for while in h.s., had a very long career in the NFL after being named AA at MSU. And many of those that have decided to be wolverines weren't too shabby either. I already mentioned Taylor, Messner and Teeter who all were very good to great while here, but we can also mention players such as Jake Long, Rob Renes, Ty Wheatley, all of whom I am certain we would welcome back gladly. The west side of the state has been sadly under recruited by us but have produced players such as Bullough, Kirk Prins, Kirk Cousins, Josh Kerr, all of whom were without M offers but did nicely for MSU. We let the best two running backs in MI, in back-to-back years slip through our grasp due to non offers, in the form of Johny Williams from Muskegon Reeths-Puffer who broke our hearts in the early 80s by scoring on an 88 yd screen pass for WI to pull off, at that time, one of the greatest upsets in the Bo era. The very next year we allowed Curtis Adams to sign with CMU, where he earned AA status. Both of these players went on to have long, productive years in the NFL. ^The fact that we've let some very good ones get away does not matter. We were loaded at that time. The fact that we did get players such as Wheatley, Long and Messner does matter greatly because they added to the existing load. ^We are stil capable of recruiting anywhere and this is evident by going no further than our current coach who has hauled in some of the best in the nation. The thing that is paramount is that we again start coaching these kids up to the level that we did in the not-so-distant past. If this is accomplished when we get players such as Campbell and Harris to commit to us, the chances of them signing that all important LOI rises dramatically.
As you wish. You're looking for every reason to be disapponted. Funchess is on the 2015 early draftee list for a reason, you've only seen him play two years, he's been impressive, but still has work to do (not shocking). You know virtually nothing about York and Jones, and Taylor led the team in tackles last year, has started 23 games and has 6 INTs in two years.
Gardner is very impressive, and JD looks like he's pushing to start in a very deep position group as a true soph. You left off Morris, and Delano Hill and Wyatt Shallman are intriguing.
There's no revelation in saying OH produces more players, and other states may as well. There's also no problem in saying you'd rather have one player over another, but using the state as criteria and cherry-picking some guys and only focusing on their "issues" is...well...crazy.
Taylor leads the team in tackles, because he gives up 12 yard hitch routes every other play. I guess I should give him credit for only allowing it to go 12 yards instead of 20 like in the Rich Rod days. I know enough about York and Jones to know both were passed up by a freshman in Canteen who had been on campus for three months. Gardner is good, yes. JD has a chance to be good, but we'll see. There's also a possiblity he never starts at Michigan with Peppers coming in.
We've seen Morris throw ten screen passes and get beat 31-14 in one start. Delano Hill and Wyatt Shallman are intriguing because neither have played and neither have a true position.
But, as you pointed out, I guess I'm just cherry picking. It's not like I was really impressed with anyone who played football at Michigan the last two years besides maybe Gallon and Lewan.
You're making my point. According to you, Morris and JD "haven't proven enough" even though, they've both played in games and are certainly making positive waves. Conversely, you've already seen "enough" from York and Jones based on the Spring Depth Chart and Freddy supposedly being ahead of them (which all could change for many reasons).
Bottom line, its easy for you to use very little data to dismiss certain guys while demanding far more data before concluding that players worth having (or at least worth recruiting and landing).
Based on your logic and your last paragraph though, you must prefer to have players from Florida and Arizona over Michigan or any other state.
We have had Lamarr Woodley and Mike Martin out of Michigan. Drake Harris broke all sorts of records which is why I'm happy we have him instead of McDowell if could only have one.
Details on Urban Meyer's special dinner with Hilliard, Harris, Cornell, etc #crootin pic.twitter.com/yU6DkHKnx1
— nezz21〽 (@nezzy21) June 1, 2014Just another disappointment.
Its a tad premature to draw conclusions about the differnce makers in the backfield. Given the offense's issues last year there's a lot of wait and see this year. OL play, Nuss' scheme, DG's 5th year, OL play, Green/Smith development, OL play, and OL play remain to be seen.
As for Peppers, I think they'll use him on O during his career, but it may not be as a frosh (who knows how quickly he becomes an impact guy). Also, as an elite player at multiple positions with NFL dreams, I'd be far less interested in playing RB. The average NFL RB career is below 4-years, they're drafted in the 2nd round, and they're just commodities.
Peppers would do well to stay on D for multiple reasons.
It usually means anyone outside of that is no longer in it.
Meh.
Not happy, but there's still a long way to go.
just win baby
If Brady Hoke (hypothetically) gets fired, I don't think that fixes the problem. First Peppers probably transfers. He was iffy when he heard the rumors about hoke being on the hot seat so imagine if he's actually fired. See you later to the best athlete, no matter the position, on the team. Funchess will definitely declare for the draft, even though it might already be a foregone conclusion. Remember when Borges was fired... Harris decommitted. Imagine how recruits, who claim to have great relationships with him, will respond. I really don't think firing a coach who cares about Michigan, cares about the players, and just genuinely like coaching football is the best answer.
There is still plenty of time to make up ground. Harris seems to be someone who falls in love very easy. Everytime he visits a school, he comes out with a glaring quote about said school. He was at OHIO yesterday so it's just one more example and one more visit to a rival school. Get the kid back on campus, remind him of why he committed in the first place, and Michigan will remain in good shape. It's June, the season hasn't started yet. I am predicting 9 wins like everyone, with one win against MSU or Ohio. A season like this will go a long way in revamping the image.
We aren't getting either of these guys and I am not broken up about it. Would it be great to get Harris back? Hell yes, but we fired the guy he was most connected with and as great as Nuss seems to be, there is too much ground to make up. As for Weber, we shot ourself in the foot by putting all our eggs in the Borges/Harris basket. There are more RB's out there that actually WANT to come to Michigan and I for one want talent that actually WANT to come here.
Correction: "Still in it" generally means "I am only 17 and would rather not have to deal with a twitter firestorm from thousands of assholes I don't know when I tell the world I don't want to go to their favorite school."
to paraphrase Desmond Howard...
"don't let the door hit you on the way out, son"
geez... we gotta get back to this mentality, because its true.