February 17th, 2011 at 3:51 PM ^
Thanks for the link--I think the fact that his parents are immigrants from Nigeria could help Michigan here. I feel like the diversity and stronger education he could receive at Michigan could end up being a major factor.
February 17th, 2011 at 4:36 PM ^
agreed. nigerians are best.
February 17th, 2011 at 3:52 PM ^
Not a death sentence necessarily, but when that school down south puts an offer in to an Ohio kid, it makes for tough recruiting. Still hope he goes Blue, this kid's a monster!
February 17th, 2011 at 4:09 PM ^
There is no way that osu can take all of these DEs that have been offered. I think they have 2 spots maybe 3 for DE.
I don't know how their coaching staff is ranking the DEs. I'm willing to guess that LaTroy Lewis, Greg McMullen, Adolphus Washington and Se'von Pittman might be higher on their board.
February 17th, 2011 at 4:17 PM ^
OSU only has room for 13 guys right now. I think their class is going to start filling up pretty quickly. If it does, a lot of recruits will be rushed into a decision regarding being a Buckeye or not.
FWIW, an OSU Sam Webb-type who talked to Odenigo said that he will choose between ND and OSU. Problems for Michigan are that Centerville is an OSU-feeder and that Odenigo's reportedly good friend (Bennet) signed w/ OSU this year.
FWIW No. 2: I love this kid's quickness - and his skill level given that he's only played two years of football.
February 17th, 2011 at 4:44 PM ^
So I'm assuming the same goes for Benny McGowan the OL prospect from the same school.
February 17th, 2011 at 5:23 PM ^
Yeah, OSU won't have many spots, maybe 17-18 max (and they already have 5 plus a handful of "locks"), so I'm not going to get that worked up by a guy getting an OSU offer since they won't be able to take that many.
We've offered a lot of Ohio kids, and will offer many more. OSU's class will fill up quickly, and there will be a lot of very talented guys left after they're done.
EDIT: So basically what we want is an OSU commitment from as many kids as possible that we're not recruiting.
February 17th, 2011 at 6:04 PM ^
The more guys who sign with OSU who we as Michigan fans haven't heard of, the better...Now that I think of it, a good sign for Michigan here is that this kid probably isn't one of OSU's (very) top priorities since he received his offer late (or at least as late as Feb. of 2011 can be for a '12 recruit).
February 17th, 2011 at 4:44 PM ^
Look out for Stanford: Tom and I read somewhere else that Stanford is probably his #1 right now. I'm sure osu will be in contention, but this kid wants to be a doctor like his parents...osu isn't the best fit for that at all (I really don't know their pre-med program, but I just assume they suck in every category because I hate them).
I think this kid will take his time, look at academics and atmosphere/diversity. If this indeed happens, UM will be near the top.
EDIT: After watching this kids film, I am beyond impressed & would like him as much as Wormley. Him hunting down braxton miller multiple times sealed the deal. 6'4 210lbs and just got into the weight room with explosiveness means he could get huge & still be freakishly athletic.
February 17th, 2011 at 6:18 PM ^
It would suck not signing him, but if he is really that interested in academics and chooses a stanford/duke/vandy/northwestern over us due to them, it'll be a nice reminder of what really should matter to a student-athlete, and frankly i'd wish him the best.
***i have no clue what his offer sheet is
February 17th, 2011 at 10:30 PM ^
Not sure about their undergrad, but they actually have a pretty well respected medical school/campus for what its worth. That said, fuck 'em.
February 17th, 2011 at 10:51 PM ^
I think it has more to do with the question, "how supportive is the school of someone attempting to do pre-med while on a football scholarship."
I think Stanford would probably be better in that regard than Michigan or OSU. If the kid is a real braniac/workaholic though, I'm sure it could happen anywhere.
February 18th, 2011 at 10:30 AM ^
You're absolutely right in that a kid could make it work anywhere. Myron Rolle made it work at FSU as a pre-med student and Rhodes Scholar. I definitely don't think of FSU as an academic powerhouse - or necessarily as a football culture that would encourage and support his non-football interests and academic prowess. But Myron Rolle is a true outlier at Deep South football factories, and most players of his ilk would probably be better off at a place like Stanford, Duke, etc. It's kind of sad that Myron Rolle is such an academic outlier among an already selective subset of athletic outliers** that earn D1 football scholarships and are high-level NCAA gridiron performers on the field.
**Royalties have been appropriately forwarded to Malcolm Gladwell for using this terminology.
February 17th, 2011 at 4:49 PM ^
I am hopeful that we can make some headway in his recruitment because he is a high character kid, first, and an astounding athlete, second. These are the players we need.
February 17th, 2011 at 6:01 PM ^
its a little sad when it seems every ohio kids wants an osu offer and we seem to wait and see if we can clam some of the leftovers, while a great mich kid calls oklahoma his best offer. mich only seems to be the mix with most local talent, with alot last year going elsewhere, where osu is gold in thier state. i know there are exceptions and 2011 recruiting was hampered by a coaching change, but i dont know if hoke can change this course anytime quick.
February 17th, 2011 at 6:07 PM ^
The ugly truth is that OSU beats Michigan every year and goes to a BCS bowl every year. As Sam Webb might say, they're Big Willie right now. My hope is that Hoke and co. are good enough recruiters to pull in some guys with OSU offers even before Michigan changes OSU's (and its own) fortunes on the field...Of course, just beating OSU would be good too.
February 17th, 2011 at 7:03 PM ^
I couldn't agree with you more. Even more disheartening to me is the defeatist attitude that permeates through a lot of the Michigan fanbase regarding both recruiting battles and actual games with OSU.
February 18th, 2011 at 11:04 AM ^
I cannot wait until the time comes when ANY top player from the state feels that their top offer is from UofM.
February 17th, 2011 at 6:28 PM ^
there is a lot of talent in Ohio HS football. That's not the case in Michigan. I've heard Sam talk about the great HS talent in Michigan in 2012. Except for Scout, who Sam works for, the other sites don't seem all that impressed. Scout has 15 players from Michigan of the 472 they have given at least three stars to and most Michigan kids get just that three stars. ESPN list 5 Michigan players in the 150 watch which is 16 pages long. Rivals has 6 Michigan HS players in the 250 watch.
I sure hope the coaches know what they're doing as the FHH trio are no where to be found on either Rivals or ESPN. This is what gets me about those who demand we recruit the state. Even the higher rated guys here aren't as good as some of the lower rated guys from hotbed states because the overall talent is so poor. Our last two 5 stars from Michigan, Grady and BWC, have provided nothing though Will still has an opportunity to make a name for himself.
February 17th, 2011 at 8:29 PM ^
February 17th, 2011 at 10:41 PM ^
It's early, and a lot of those services jump on the kids from more highly scouted states earlier. Michigan will not have Ohio or Florida level talent, but it does have higher-than-average Michigan level talent. There are a number of guys not in the Rivals watch list from in-state that will be good - the FHH kids as you mention, the other Cass LB, Ron Thompson, Matt Godin, and a few others who are on the verge of getting M offers.
And don't go using Grady and BWC as examples that we don't need to recruit in-state, because many of our greatest players have come from Michigan. Guys like Braylon, Long, Graham, Woodley, Harris, Terrence Taylor, Gabe Watson and current standouts like Mike Martin, RVB, Demens, and Cam Gordon are all in-state guys we couldn't have done without.
February 18th, 2011 at 12:17 AM ^
Michigan's 2012 class is better than Michigan classes usually are. I don't think anyone thought it would be comaprable to Ohio/Florida/Cali/Texas, though.
February 18th, 2011 at 11:06 AM ^
Was a 5* correct?
February 17th, 2011 at 9:28 PM ^
about this kid today. This is what he said . . .
"They are both friends of Allison's [his daughter]. The Ifeadi kid is going to be a BEAST!!! I thought he was more impressive than the Bennett kid that's going to Ohio State and was an All-American this year. He is real tall and thin, but has the frame of a prototypical NFL DE. Allison says he is a bright kid and wants to go to Stanford. Both of his parents are doctors of some kind."
Take it for what it's worth.