Vinopal from an opposing coaches eye
Great article on Ray from Rivals and the coach of the team that lost to Mooney in the state championship.
http://michigan.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1027567
December 12th, 2009 at 11:04 AM ^
Maybe this will help put to rest the stories about RR's recruiting.
December 12th, 2009 at 12:17 PM ^
Fat Chance! There will always be doubters and haters.
I agree this is really good to hear, though. I put my trust in the coaches; that they know what they are doing, certainly better than I. That's why they do what they do and I do what I do...which isn't coach football.
Can't wait for Sep 4, 2010!
December 12th, 2009 at 6:17 PM ^
plus one.
December 12th, 2009 at 6:56 PM ^
But, you didn't give him a point...
December 13th, 2009 at 1:21 AM ^
good intentions...
December 13th, 2009 at 9:57 AM ^
It seems like whenever I say that, I forget to plus the comment too.
December 12th, 2009 at 11:08 AM ^
Good stuff... btw top 25 teams (according to rivals) with two star prospects:
2. Alabama (3)
4. LSU (1)
8. Auburn (1)
14. FSU (2)
15. Michigan (2)
17. OSU (1)
19. Stanford (4)
21. Iowa (1)
22. NC State (3)
24. Pitt (1)
25. Clemson (1)
Note: I excluded teams with more than 25 recruits.
So, yeah... Top teams recruit two stars.
December 12th, 2009 at 11:16 AM ^
Eh, to be fair, of the 5 two star players between Alabama, LSU, and OSU...4 of them are kickers.
December 12th, 2009 at 4:08 PM ^
Hinting at a position move for Vinopal? :)
December 12th, 2009 at 11:09 AM ^
Great article. I'm hoping this kid proves everyone wrong and becomes an all-american for us.
December 12th, 2009 at 11:10 AM ^
...to not root for these type of kids who are football players instead of show ponies at recruiting camps. Hope the kid makes a name for himself at Michigan and is a key to helping put UM back on the map.
December 12th, 2009 at 11:18 AM ^
I am excited to see him and Carvin Johnson next season. I could care less about their star rankings, as those are more for fans to brag to one another. I like these kind of recruits, and I think the coaches have not steered us wrong with these so-called unranked or lower-ranked prospects.
December 12th, 2009 at 11:26 AM ^
If anything they could motivate the top prospects in practice because you know that these two star guys have a chip on their shoulder and will work their butt off. I can't wait to watch roy and carvin in the future.
December 12th, 2009 at 11:47 AM ^
I get the sense that Ray is underrated a bit and Carvin is underscouted. Perhaps 6 of one, 1/2 dozen...
The comment from the opposing coach that sticks out most, "... Vinopal was probably the fastest kid we played against all season, and we had a very competitive schedule." Speed and smarts, "get him a uniform"
December 13th, 2009 at 12:04 PM ^
They mean something, which has been demonstrated over and over, in multiple pieces of research by Brian, USA Today, and other researchers. Given the available evidence, the only people more ignorant than those that care only about rankings are those who say they don't mean anything. They do, and that is not an opinion, it is a fact.
Having said that, that doesn't mean Vinopal won't be a very good player for us, and we should trust the coaches actual eyes (and other coaches, as this interesting article says) more than recruiting rankings. The available evidence also shows than that are many examples of kids outperforming their ratings significantly. It sounds like Vinopal can be another one of those, and I am excited to see him in action, hopefully next year.
December 12th, 2009 at 6:19 PM ^
I'll take the kids with good football instincts and championships versus the pure athlete every time. It seems Mooney has done well in producing elite safeties etc.
December 12th, 2009 at 11:10 AM ^
Just more proof that stars arent the deciding factor. Our coaches know what they're doing
December 12th, 2009 at 11:18 AM ^
but I'm glad Ray's coming to Michigan. I keep thinking he's like a Kovacs but with speed.
December 12th, 2009 at 11:36 AM ^
I got a chuckle out of the "gritty" reference.
December 12th, 2009 at 12:00 PM ^
With all of these great reviews on Vinopal you got to wonder why he is still not getting any attention by Scout or Rivals he should have at least earned a 3rd star by now.
December 12th, 2009 at 12:12 PM ^
I recently talked to Ray on facebook (I am only 17 years old by the way so no creeper jokes)and i asked him about his forty and he responded, "I ran 4.56 freshman yr at and underclassmen combine. Penn state camp clocked me at 4.42. And west virginia 4.47 and 4.47". With that being said, he definitely has speed that some may be questioning. He said he is being recruiting by Coach Gibson, but he didnt tell me which safety position. He also said they told him they expect he'll be competing to play as a freshman, grantted he picks up the schemes mentally. But of course every coach is going to say that in order to get them to go to the school. I'm excited to see him next year. Go Blue.
December 12th, 2009 at 12:21 PM ^
Great post! Thanks.
December 12th, 2009 at 4:24 PM ^
good insight, I for one welcome Ray with open arms
December 12th, 2009 at 6:43 PM ^
Thanks for the info, cbish!
He has speed, likes to hit, seems like an intelligent player... If he puts it all together in the Big House, he's going to earn the respect of everyone who ever doubted.
December 12th, 2009 at 12:44 PM ^
Like I've said I love this kid. HUGE upside and he's really smart too...a 4.5 gpa that can only help his learning curve and speed at which he adapts to and absorbs the defensive scheme. In Barwis I trust, to make this kid into a little beast. :)
December 12th, 2009 at 1:01 PM ^
in the classroom with his abilities on the field, Michigan Football just got better. Add to that the fact that Ray is coming from a power house team-I mean wtf. I guess some people want their apples pealed before they buy them? I'm very glad that some bloggers are finally coming to their senses.
December 12th, 2009 at 2:15 PM ^
I'm convinced to look past the 2 star snub. Speed and smarts ... bring it!!
December 12th, 2009 at 4:26 PM ^
Gotta love that winning mentality too. Randy Shannon talked about it when he was hired, you have to recruit players from winning programs because they have that built in mentality.
December 12th, 2009 at 4:33 PM ^
sounds like a great athlete who could compete at multiple positions. September is a longs way off, but I can't wait.
December 12th, 2009 at 6:03 PM ^
I know it's been said in this thread enough times, but this kid has what it takes to be special, and I don't mean short bus kind of special.
We will now have solid competition at all non-linebacker positions of defense this year, so I expect our D to be at least slightly improved over last year. 2011, watch the F out.
December 12th, 2009 at 6:07 PM ^
obviously speed is great to have at a safety position, but I've felt that we needed a headhunter at this position for a long time. Hopefully the grit translates into no longer letting opposing teams get easy passes up the middle on us without taking any punishment.
December 12th, 2009 at 7:52 PM ^
Well gee I hope he stood out to opposing coaches, he's got a scholarship to play football for Michigan. We'll see about all the recruits when they step onto the college practice field, them standing out among high school players isn't a telling sign. I would like to find a D1 recruit who didn't stand out.
December 13th, 2009 at 8:38 AM ^
+1 for common sense
December 13th, 2009 at 9:50 AM ^
true, but he stood out on a 15-0 state championship high school football team