tim jernigan

Tim •

Remember, all-time updates can be found on the 2011 Michigan Football Recruiting Board. If you have any recruiting tips or questions, you can e-mail them to me at [email protected] or tweet @varsityblue. For game updates on Wolverine commits, check out the F riday Night Lights series.

(Five) Star Search!

The Gainesville Sun's Ed Aschoff gives the latest on a few prospects of mutual interest for the Wolverines and Gators. First, FL DT Tim Jernigan (at right):

Michigan, FSU, LSU and Alabama are all ahead of Florida... For now, the chances of him ending up at Florida seem to be slipping away more and more. This could all change if Florida turns around its season, so this one is not over.

...and also FL WR Sammy Watkins (recent Army All-American Bowl selection):

His favorites remain Clemson, Michigan and Miami. I think Clemson has the advantage in this one.

Both are mostly maintaining the status quo from the past couple weeks. Grant Redhead, high school coach of FL CB Dallas Crawford and Watkins, tells Tom that Michigan has a solid lead for Crawford, and that Michigan's finish to the season may have an impact on Watkins's feelings on the maize and blue. The two will set up their official to Ann Arbor soon (both of their previous visits have been unofficials). Jernigan was officially selected to the Army All-American Bowl. At his press conference, Jernigan talked a bit of recruiting:

"I grew up watching all of them," Jernigan said. "They kind of present some unique situations as far as depth-wise and great academic schools, especially Michigan, great academic school. Those are the things that really stood out to me... It is nice up there. I got time to hang out with Coach Rod and I got a chance to hang out with Denard and got to meet some of the guys around the program. Real good people, my type of people, small town guys."

That sounds downright glowing about Ann Arbor, but there are a few visits left before Timmy makes up his mind.

Rivals has rehashed their Top 100, and FL RB Commit Demetrius Hart has moved up to #17, the top 4-star on their list. Given his stats against some of the best competition in the country, there's nothing dude can do to get 5-star status except grow.

Visits

DC RB Malcolm Crockett visited Michigan for the Illinois game, as his coach tells Tom. He projects to either side of the ball at the next level, but Michigan is looking at him as a downhill-type runner and complement to Demetrius Hart. Crockett is a teammate of 2012 DC DT Eddie Goldman, whom Scout has already pegged as a 5-star for next year.

NJ TE Jack Tabb plans to visit Michigan for the Wisconsin game in a couple weeks as long as his high school playoff schedule doesn't interfere.

IL OL Chris Bryant has been out with a knee injury this season, but was expected to return to the lineup last weekend. He'll visit both Arizona and Michigan (Big Chill) early in December ($, info in header). A bit more on his junior teammate Robert Gregory below.

AZ OL Cyrus Hobbi is regularly hearing from Rich Rodriguez. Last week, Tom told us he's planning to set up an official to Ann Arbor.

LA DT Mickey Johnson is still considering a visit to Michigan ($, info in header).

PA DE Deion Barnes will take all 5 of his official visits, even if he falls in love with one of the schools he sees early. He looks at former teammate Je'Ron Stokes (now a Michigan sophomore) as one of his inspirations, a positive sign for the Wolverines.

With his senior season over, MI LB Desmond Morgan will now focus on recruiting ($, info in header). He tells Tom that he may officially visit Michigan for the Big Chill hockey game, and with no inside information, I wouldn't be surprised if he made a decision around that time.

Michigan has "turned up the heat" ($, info in header) on MD CB Blake Countess. According to Tom, that "heat" comes in the form of an official offer. Mike Farrell of Rivals said last week that the Wolverines may lead for Countess, a consensus 4-star prospect. Countess is setting up a visit with Michigan's coaches, possibly for The Big Chill.

Etc.

NC QB Marquise Williams is solidifying his pledge to North Carolina "as of right now", but he's still taking more visits.

MI WR DeAnthony Arnett was the infamous "mystery visitor" to Ann Arbor last weekend, and he seemed to enjoy the wide-open passing game ($, info in header). Coming off the heels of his trip to Michigan, he'll be making a decision tonight... but had some fun throwing fans for a loop last night.

Arnett has consistently stated that he's a Michigan fan, but that he had worries about not getting the ball in the Wolverines' offense. With that fear out of the way, Michigan may be a factor in his decision, but conventional wisdom has him picking Tennessee.

Happy Trails, MD Ath Darius Jennings, who has narrowed his list to 6 non-Michigan schools.

...In Walkon News

MI FB/LB Joey Kerridge "has future plans set" ($, info in header). His Scout profile now lists high interest in Michigan and no offers, so we can safely assume he plans to be a preferred walkon at Michigan.

2012

FL QB Bennie Coney (at right), who holds a Michigan offer but was dismissed from his high school team, talks to a couple publications about his future. He say's he'll return to Plant City for his senior season, and has nothing but good things to say about his high school coach, and vice versa:

“Me and my coach, we’re good,” Coney said. “My coach is cool. We talk every day. We’ve still got our relationship...”

His coach has been in contact with college coaches to explain what happened and it’s doubtful that even a school like Notre Dame would view the incident as an infraction that would cause them to drop Coney from its radar. Coney is still interested in the Irish and, although they haven’t offered, they lead along with Florida State.

Since his coach is willing to vouch for him to college coaches, there's a chance Michigan may still be interested.

I brought up IL QB Robert Gregory last week, but in case you needed confirmation he's a good fit for Michigan... yeah, he is. ESPNChicago has him #3 in their Player of the Year rankings.

Mike Dyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports that Michigan is recruiting OH WR Dewayne Stanford.

OH OL Ryan Anderson visited Michigan a few weeks back ($, info in header).

In visit mini-news, I saw MI DT Dan O'Brien in the house with his dad at Friday's basketball exhibition against Saginaw Valley. His older brother, Patrick, hoops it up for the Cardinals.

OH LB Mason Monheim has visited Michigan already this fall, and is getting interest from a number of other Big Ten schools, including future member Nebraska. Orrville's defensive coordinator, Jason Haley, talks a bit about his game:

"Mason's right there with any we've had," Haley said. "He just has a knack for reading keys, and then getting from Point A to Point B. A lot of it is instincts, and watching film. He gets his read, then gets to the ball and makes plays... Across the board in college, you're not seeing that 6-3, 245-pound linebacker as often -- they're all looking for that hybrid guy who can run. Mason fits that mold."

At 6-1 210, Monheim could be a future bandit/spur type, or a guy who grows into a full-size linebacker.

Michigan is showing interest in NJ LB Jazzmar Clax, a lock for the all-name first team whether he ends up in Ann Arbor or not.

Wednesday Recruitin' Awaits the Dee-cision

Tim •

[Ed: see what he did there?]

Decision Time is Finally Here. Maybe.

GA S Avery Walls has been named to the Army All-American game. His coach had plenty of good things to say about him too:

"Avery came to this school and just instantly was a great leader who showed great character," Gess said. "As far as him as a player, he just shuts down a whole side of the field because coaches won't throw or run that way. He also raises his teammates' level of play. He's a great representative of Eagle's Landing Christian and what they stand for."

He'll make a decision next month, after a couple visits to Oregon and Cal. Michigan was in great shape after his visit to Ann Arbor, and hopefully the Ducks and Bears do nothing to change that. Walls is an early-enrollment candidate.

If FL RB Demetrius Hart doesn't make his decision next week, it wouldn't be the first time he's changed his mind about an announcement timeframe. However, this is the most public he's been about when he'll pick his school. Hart is taking an official visit to Alabama this weekend. Tom hinted that Hart may take another unofficial visit in his weekly update, and I bet that would be to Michigan should he choose the Wolverines. It's still looking good here.

Assume the Position: D-Line

Michigan is hunting for at least one defensive tackle, and probably another defensive end. Who are some of the candidates?

FL DT Tim Jernigan will not decide until after his senior season. He's also started planning out some of his visits:

He said he plans on attending at least one game involving each of the schools, including the UF-Alabama game Oct. 2 in Tuscaloosa, Ala., the LSU-UF game in Gainesville on Oct. 9 and games at Michigan and USC.

That means no Michigan State game in Ann Arbor, leaving Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin weekends. If his coach is right:

The biggest factor the coach said would play into Jernigan’s decision is playing time.

With a college-ready frame and skill set, Howard said Jernigan is going to likely attend the school that can provide him a chance to play early.

That means Advantage: Michigan over all of his other contenders.

MI DE/OL Anthony Zettel gave raving reviews of his visit to Michigan State:

"It was an amazing game to be at," Zettel said. "I think that Michigan State is starting to become a very good team. I was able to have some small talk with a lot of the recruits at the game."

OK, maybe that's more "I was in attendance" than anything hugely positive for the Spartans. Scout's Allen Trieu explains to the Lansing State Journal:

Michigan looks like it could be the team to beat for Zettel, but the Spartans are in contention.

"He's been a life-long Michigan fan, and you just want to be able to stay in the game with him," Trieu said. "The fact that he hasn't committed to Michigan yet is a big thing for Michigan State."

At this point , when "not committed to Michigan quite yet" is the best thing you can say about State's recruitment of the kid, the Wolverines are looking good.

GA DE Ray Drew, Walls's buddy, wants to visit Ann Arbor:

"I would also like to go to Michigan to see the Big House. Every football player knows about that place... There are a lot of schools I would like to see before I decide on signing day.”

He says he's close to having all of his visits set up, so we should know soon when he'll be in the house. Drew won't make a decision until Signing Day.

The Others

MI RB Thomas Rawls is smashing Mark Ingram's Flint-area rushing records. If he can get his grades up, he could be a good addition to Michigan's class. At 5'10", 215, he's a differenet sort of back than Hart.

NJ TE Jack Tabb is taking an official visit to Iowa City this weekend ($, info in header), even though the Hawkeyes already have three (!) tight ends in this class. Michigan is in the running for one of his other visits, and he took a trip to Ann Arbor earlier this summer.

IL OL Chris Bryant, a recent visitor to Ann Arbor, has the Wolverines in his top 3/4 with Arizona, Stanford, and Illinois. From the tone of the article, Michigan is still on top.

KY LB Lamar Dawson has M in his final 7.

Dee Hart isn't the only Orlando Dr. Phillips guy with Michigan interest. It is highly unlikely that FL S HaSean Clinton-Dix will strongly consider Michigan anymore, but his fellow safety Roderick Ryles is looking for an offer.

Happy Trails

FL TE/DE Brandon Fulse has narrowed his list, and Michigan is no longer on it.

Happy Trails, FL DE Giorgio Newberry. He's committed to Florida State.

It appears as though VA CB Demetrious Nicholson is no longer planning to take a Michigan visit.

2012

FL QB Bennie Coney is holding a Michigan offer. It will be interesting to see what types of QBs Michigan goes after this season.

Just to clarify, Plant City is not the same Plant that 2011 OL Commit Tony Posada attends.

OH RB William Mahone is interested in Michigan, and attended a summer camp in Ann Arbor this summer. The Buckeyes already have two RB commits in 2012, so they won't be the competition.

As expected, MI DT Danny O'Brien received his verbal offer from Michigan at the Bowling Green game.

ESPN's Chris Pool reports that IL DT Tommy Schutt also holds a verbal offer from the Wolverines.

Also in attendance last Saturday was OH S Allen Gant. The son of former Wolverine Tony Gant (and nephew of Charles Woodson) plans to take his time making a decision.

Thursday Recruitin' Enjoyed UConn

Tim •

The Afterglow

Tom's weekly update had a quick rundown of how some prospects enjoyed the game. Most Michigan fans were expecting a commitment from FL RB Demetrius Hart (at right), so not landing him is a bit of a disappointment. Tom says Michigan still leads, and a commitment at the MSU or Iowa game is still a possibility. On Hart's teammate, FL S Ha'Sean Clinton-Dix:

Speaking with a few people about him makes me feel like he's pretty solid with Alabama. That's not to say that it would be impossible to sway him, it would just take quite a bit to do that. If Demetrius makes another trip up to Michigan and Ha'Sean were to come with him, there would be reason for excitement. I've been told that there may be some teammates (possibly former as well) trying to persuade him to go north.

Swinging Clinton-Dix would be huge for the Wolverines, and I'm willing to bet his former teammate talking up Michigan is one Ricardo Miller. Fluff on him. The Orlando Sentinel covers the visits of Hart, Clinton-Dix, and 2012 QB Nick Patti. No news other than "it was a little unseasonably cold." Patti has an early top 4 of Michigan, Oregon, North Carolina, and Florida State.

Click through to Tom's update to see reactions from OH WR AJ Jordan and MI OL/DE Anthony Zettel (who Rivals say was "impressed with U-M win" ($, info in header)), along with a few 2012 guys.

GA S Avery Walls said:

"The game was great, and the visit went great," he said... "This visit helped Michigan a lot. I'm going to be watching their next few games," he said.

MIchigan was already the presumed favorite, so if the Wolverines perform well over the next few games, a mid-October commitment is a possibility (he has west coast trips planned for the 2nd and 9th).

Tom also talked to 2012 OH DE Chris Wormley, who said Michigan's attention has picked up now that it's, you know, legal for them to give it. The visit helped Michigan in his recruitment.

Josh Helmholdt runs down some of the prospects who were in attendance in that one Detroit paper. Of note other than the known 2011 guys:

Flint Northern running back Thomas Rawls, Crockett linebacker Bilaal Collins and Lake Orion running back Marques Stevenson also attended the game.

The class of 2012 was also well represented. Notable prospects in attendance included Crockett quarterback Brian Blackburn and running back Marcellous McElrath; Catholic Central lineman Matthew Godin; Flint Powers defensive tackle Danny O’Brien; King running back Dennis Norfleet; Kenton, Ohio, quarterback Maty Mauk; Orchard Lake St. Mary’s linebacker James Ross; Cass Tech teammates Terry Richardson and Royce Jenkins Stone, and Toledo (Ohio) Whitmer defensive end Chris Wormley.

I also heard from a source on 2012 PA OL Tyler Alt:

Ty had a blast at the Mich game. Got chills walking out of the tunnel and the recpetion by the Mich fans was unbleiveable.

Good to see younger guys enjoying Michigan. If Rich Rod and Co. can put it together on the field this season, the 2012 class could be a special one.

On the other side of the fence, FL S Wayne Lyons is the only mutual prospect officially visiting South Bend for Michigan's game against the Irish.

Etc.

I won't put him back on the board just yet, but NC QB Marquise Williams says he'll decommit from the Tar Heels if the NCAA puts them on probation. If that comes to fruition, there's a chance he'd consider the Wolverines again, especially since he's still planning an official visit to Ann Arbor.

OH TE/LB Austin Traylor is still considering MIchigan ($, info in header).

FL DT Timmy Jernigan won't be announcing his decision at an All-Star game:

He'll probably trim his list to a final three schools by the midway point of his final prep football season. National Signing Day is Feb. 2.

"I hope by signing day, I am pretty sure I will have something figured out by then," Jernigan said. "Of course there is pressure but I am pretty sure I'll make the right decision."

No word on exactly when he plans to visit Ann Arbor, but he still plans to.

IL DE James Adeyanju does not have Michigan on his fall visits list. He took a trip to Ann Arbor this summer, and is still considering the Wolverines. Both Adeyanju and IL OL Chris Bryant will make decisions after their senior seasons.

Recruiting fluff on PA DE Deion Barnes. He'll make his selection at the Army Game (if invited), or at the end of his senior season. He also talks a bit about his game:

Once he gets to a college campus and in an enhanced weight lifting program, Barnes figures to fill out and become even stronger. For now, his quickness and instincts have proven him to be a natural at rushing the quarterback.

"My instincts and my experience, I would say those are my strengths," he said. "And I like to think of myself as probably one of the smartest guys on the field."

Michigan's efforts at both offensive line and defensive end will become much more clear when we figure out how the recruitments of Zettel and Bryant shake out.

KY LB Lamar Dawson has reportedly been selected to the Army All-American Bowl.

OH LB Sean Duggan breaks down his top five of BC, Wisconsin, Michigan, Virginia, and Duke. On the Wolverines:

Michigan- "Again they have great academics at Michigan. Football is big in Ann Arbor, which is great. The coaches there are great, and the tradition is huge."

All of his schools are academic powerhouses, so he's looking as much for a good education as he is for good football.

FL S LaQuentin Smith, (a teammate and friend of the Dr. Phillips guys), has added Michigan to his list of favorites. He plans to visit Michigan before making a final decision at the end of this month. His highlights: