Jon Benke

January 12th, 2012 at 1:27 PM ^

Josh Garnett, Jordan Diamond, and Armani Reeves all sit at 96, which is the highest number for all commits/targets, with Bolden and Pipkins joining Magnuson, Kalis, and Wormley.

Wolverine0056

January 12th, 2012 at 1:27 PM ^

Too bad Pipkins wasn't an EE. It would have been nice for him to get in and working out with the S&C coach to get ready for contributing early. Not a big deal though since I'm sure he will be at least rotating in right away.

freernnur5

January 12th, 2012 at 1:36 PM ^

Keep in mind the updating is still going on, which is why the numbers aren't fully in order yet (for example Jameis Winston sitting at a 97 being in between the 100s). 

They should have it all updated soon.

JimLahey

January 12th, 2012 at 1:38 PM ^

I couldn't be happier with our class. A group of excellent players who all appear to have strong characters. On top of that its always nice to have one or two headliners in a class, or crown jewels, if you will. We have that with Kyle Kalis and Ondre Pipkins. Skill position players are nice but if you want to compete with the big boys you have to recruit and develop elite players in the trenches, and thats what we're doing.

Does anyone know when rivals releases the final rankings? I'm curious to see if Pipkins gets his 5th star. 

redhousewolverine

January 12th, 2012 at 3:24 PM ^

Ya I think that he said in an interview both UofM and Stanford are ahead of ND, and in a previous interview that it would not be incorrect to say that Michigan had a slight lead. That visit to Stanford looms large, especially considering he values education so highly. It would be great to land him.

Hardware Sushi

January 12th, 2012 at 2:04 PM ^

NO. I hate it. Changing the tide is so Goddamned stupid unless directly making fun of someone using it even quasi-seriously. MSU fans use this to seriously describe Mork Dantonio.

I get the story behind the mgoblog meme. The meme is funny because it is an annoyingly dumb cliche that was used in a dead-serious manner.

Please do not use it in any way that can be mistaken as serious.

96goblue00

January 12th, 2012 at 2:06 PM ^

I have seen his film and, at 6'6" 270, he seems like a very solid OL. I think Rivals is the only site that gives him any love, rating him 4 star, while 24/7 lists him as only the 67th OL in the country. At least based on the film, his technique looks fine, and he plays with toughness. He also seems like a bright kid. With his frame, I can easily see him putting on another 20-30 lbs and blowing people up.

FreddieMercuryHayes

January 12th, 2012 at 2:13 PM ^

Definately agree.  But I think you touched on the reason a bit yourself.  If he's 6'6" and only 270, then he's definately got some room to grow.  It's really hard to evaluate OL out of high school, and the higher ranked ones tend to be the ones that have more college ready bodies.  But I'm looking forward to Bars.  He's supposedly a pretty damn smart kid as well.  Wasn't he seriously thinking about going to Vanderbilt?

redhousewolverine

January 12th, 2012 at 3:30 PM ^

Ya, I think his positional mobility or tweener status is limiting his rankings a bit. Plus, he doesn't seem like a kid who has gone about promoting himself (not in a bad way, just stays out of the limelight. I really like this OL class; I believe Stacey is ranked pretty high too, for a guard. Plus, Braden is oozing potential and has great size. He is perfect for a OL class of 6 guys because it gives the coaches time to develop him and if he doesn't pan out then we have 5 other guys. All in all, this seems a great OL class and a great class in general.

DWolv95

January 12th, 2012 at 2:29 PM ^

He's been well coached and has good fundamentals and technique.  His high school O-Line coach is Kevin Mawae, the former Titans and Jets center.  Once he gets in the S&C program at Michigan, he should be a solid performer in a couple years.

DWolv95

January 12th, 2012 at 2:51 PM ^

Yes, Blake has Kevin Mawae as his OL coach.  And good student as another poster stated.  Montgomery Bell Academy specializes in sending graduates to top 25 universities. 

UM Fan in Nashville

January 12th, 2012 at 11:35 PM ^

Blake is no slouch at all.   Montgomery Bell Academy (MBA) is known around these parts as being one of the top prep schools.   Kids that graduate from MBA don't usually go to Tennessee or Alabama, they go to Stanford, Vandy, etc.   And Kevin Mawae has helped out that program and brought in a lot of NFL help to coach the kids up.   Blake will be a great addition to UM not only on the field, but can really help the other kids off the field.   I'm really excited for Blake.   Great kid.