Sam Webb: If Brohm Goes to Louisville, We Get 5-Star Karlaftis

Submitted by BursleyHall82 on November 12th, 2018 at 10:37 AM

This isn't really breaking news, but Sam Webb was as direct as I've heard him on the subject this morning. If Jeff Brohm takes the job at Louisville, we get George Karlaftis.

To recap, Karlaftis LINK is a 5-star defensive end from West Lafayette, Ind. He is committed to Purdue, but as Sam reiterated this morning, Karlaftis has been saying all along that if Jeff Brohm leaves Purdue, then George Karlaftis is leaving Purdue, too.

"If Brohm leaves Purdue, then Michigan gets another 5-star. It's as simple as that," Sam said. He also said that Karlaftis is so good, he sees the field as a freshman, no question. On our line, that's saying something.

Seeing as how Louisville has no other real options, I'm feeling good about this.

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michgoblue

November 12th, 2018 at 11:08 AM ^

This sounds like such a trite, overused comment, but I will say it anyway:  the game really is won and lost in the trenches.  Assuming that you have decent enough talent at the other positions, the lines make and break a team.  An insanely athletic, well-coached DL has the ability to completely disrupt an entire offense.  Can't run against them and can't really throw because if the ball isn't out in 2 seconds, the QB is running for his life.  Even if the QB isn't hit, the pressure and collapsing pocket can prevent him from going through his progressions and impact his footwork, leading to poorly-thrown balls.  The impact of a dominent DL cannot be overstated (see, for example, hmmm, our team this year).  

Same is true on offense, obviously.  A top OL can make all other aspects of the offense work, whereas a crap OL, whether coaching or talent (see the past decade of Michigan football), can destroy what might otherwise be a decent offense.

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michgoblue

November 12th, 2018 at 11:04 AM ^

No inside knowledge, but as I said in another comment in this thread, even if they are not processed out of the class, I would expect that one or two of the lower-priority guys might end up looking around on their own.  These kids are savvy and are surrounded by coaches who know the deal, and they recognize that with players such as Harrison, Karlafis and Hinton (and even Obajo) in the class, playing time over for the first few years, if ever, might be hard to come by.  Wouldn't hod it against them if they decided to explore other possibilities.  

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Mr Miggle

November 12th, 2018 at 11:21 AM ^

Harbaugh changed his approach after getting a lot of criticism for pushing out commits in the 2016 class. I hope he continues to keep that to a minimum. Sometimes the "process" is the recruit looks at how much the class has changed. One only need look back at Mike Weber to see that. 

If Harrison and Karlaftis come on board, that's a dramatic change for the other DE commits. 

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robbyt003

November 12th, 2018 at 10:57 AM ^

So best case scenario we get Karlaftis AND Zach Harrison, but that would give us 5 DEs in this class (assuming Hinton moves inside).

Zach Harrison, George Karlaftis, David Ojabo, Mike Morris, and Gabe Newburg.

That seems excessive, but you don't pass on 5 star talents.  I remember Mike Morris wasn't happy because Florida State saw him as an OT, but he wants to play DL.  So that could be a possibility for him if he stays on?

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michgoblue

November 12th, 2018 at 11:01 AM ^

I suspect that if we add Harrison and Karlaftis, one or two of the lower-rated guys in the class may decide to look around.  That's not a comment on any one recruit, but it makes sense that if you are in a class with that much competition at the top end, you might want to look around and see if there are other landing spots that might offer you a better chance to see the field early.  

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Magnus

November 12th, 2018 at 11:09 AM ^

Harrison could play WDE, and I think Karlaftis could, too. Hinton can play DT (and IMO he should play OL), and Ojabo looks to me like a future DT once he finishes filling out. He looks like a Lawrence Marshall type of guy who will come in physically looking like a DE, but then he'll end up 285-290 lbs. and playing 3-tech.

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Gentleman Squirrels

November 12th, 2018 at 11:07 AM ^

Hinton and Morris would move inside. Newburg and Harrison are your WDEs. Ojabo and Karlaftis are SDEs. Karlaftis could bounce inside and out a la Wormley or Gary.

Karlaftis and Hinton would probably be on the 2 deep immediately. Harrison may come on situationally depending on if Vilain is healthy or not. Newburg, Ojabo, and Morris are redshirt and develop over time candidates.

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michgoblue

November 12th, 2018 at 10:58 AM ^

If we end up with Karlaftis, this could actually be the best recruiting class of the Harbaugh era to date:

Assuming that Harrison also comes, Harrison, Hinton and Karlaftis would give us three 5* players (!!!!) on the d-line.  That's insane.  Mazi Smith, a high 4* himself, would be our 4th highest rated DL.  And, don't forget about 4* David Ojabo.  Talk about d-line U.

Add in 5* Daxton Hill at safety, and the defensive haul is just off the charts.  Close to Bama levels at the top end. 

On offense, Zach Charbonner is already not far below 5* territory, and looks to be improving over his senior year.  Throw in Grey (another 4* RB), and 4* talent at guard (Rumler), tackle (Jones), TE (All) and QB (McNamara, who is going to come in when we still have DMcCaff and Milton have multiple years left) and the top end of this class, just going by stars, is STOCKED with talent.  

Also, if we keep winning, I expect that there will be 1-2 more top end kids that are previously committed or leaning elsewhere that might surprise and pick Michigan.  

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Tom Pickle

November 12th, 2018 at 11:42 AM ^

2:1 favorite doesn't seem all that high based on what you'd think the chances would be based on all the media speculation. Everything surrounding this situation you'd think this would be a done deal. That gives me a lot less confidence that Brohm is actually going to Louisville.

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