Is it the end of the line for UM and Rashad Knight?
http://thedecommit.com/?p=159
The dominoes are starting to fall in the recruiting world, as Pahokee DB Merrill Noel has switched his commitment from Florida State to Wake Forest, prompting many to wonder what other programs will be impacted from Noel’s decision.
...This then impacted four-star CB/S Rashad Knight, who in spite of many great offers didn’t receive the Seminole offer he so badly wanted. As a result, teams like Michigan, Illinois, and Georgia entered the picture for Knight. Knight went as far to name the Wolverines his leader – a move that prompted the maize and blue fan base to rejoice.
But now all bets are off.
eh. we'll see how much a leader Michigan was I guess. Maybe our offer from the get go will demonstrate we want him more than FSU?
I wouldn't count on that keeping him away from FSU if they offer...
If a really hot girl denies you sex, but a slightly less attractive girl gives it to you, wouldn't you change your mind if the hot girl decided she did want to screw you? In his eyes, FSU is the hot girl, UM the slightly less hot girl.
That is a good way to look at it.
everything is so clear now
why he would consider tUniversity of Michigan the slightly less hot girl. FSU is one more violation away from being banned from the post season. I think FSU is the ugly girl ready to be sent to the hospital for alcohol poisioning.
If we were discussing a midwest prospect, maybe. But to expand the metaphor, FSU is the super hot chick in Knight's own backyard that may finally be warming up to the idea of doing the no pants dance with him, and Knight can't pass that up, even if the super hot chick may have an STD. It's still too tempting to pass up, especially when the other chick is 1200+ miles away.
is a factor, but FSU is not a "hot chick." IMO they are the fourth best team in their conference right now. VT, North Carolina (Butch Davis is doing a fantastic job), and Miami are ahead of them.
That's easy to say for people who didn't grow up Florida State fans.
August 3rd, 2009 at 11:29 AM ^
All that really matters is who the really hot chick is in Knight's eyes.
August 2nd, 2009 at 11:15 PM ^
I'm sure many people are saying Michigan is the 9th best team in the Big Ten right now...
August 3rd, 2009 at 12:09 AM ^
I laughed at the title of your post. I thought you were furthering the analogy.
what type of STD we are talking about here? The mild "penicillin will clear you up type" or the "never ending story" variety?
August 2nd, 2009 at 10:16 PM ^
I know it's an analogy, but putting together Florida State and "ugly girl" is just really tough to do mentally.
August 3rd, 2009 at 10:46 AM ^
I will concur, especially if you have ever seen a Girls of the ACC Playboy issue.
It just doesn't fit.
August 2nd, 2009 at 10:18 PM ^
isn't the hottest girl. They are the naughtiest girl.
Some guys like bad more than hot.
August 2nd, 2009 at 10:18 PM ^
I've heard from a reputable source (okay, it was Bouje) that the local girl might be a bit ditzy, and not nearly as attractive the morning after sans makeup.
August 2nd, 2009 at 10:19 PM ^
Men, all they think about is sex, sex, and sex. What pigs.
*Looks down*
Wait, I too have a penis. Carry on.
August 3rd, 2009 at 12:51 AM ^
I think this basically sums up recruiting. Very good analogy.
Even though I don't have "inside" info, I'll predict anyways. I'll take Christian and Grimes for CB in this class.
Are we Grimes' leader right now? Any word on when he plans to announce?
UM the outright leader. But he's made quotes like "UM will be tough to beat." I believe his last top 3 were UM, Ole Miss and Georgia. I think UGA though is tight on scholarships so he may get squeezed out there. And right now UM is his only scheduled official visit (can't remember which game, maybe ND).
From what I've read at different forums, this guy was a big hitter and could play safety too. Those two characteristics of his play made me want to get him. However, there's still plenty of recruiting to be done till signing day, and I guess we'll have our share of slight disappointments and pleasant surprises as well.
Damn.
I had never heard of this site until about 4 days ago when someone linked an article mentioning a Michigan recruit.
Not that I was ever expecting him to come north...
It's really hard to be hot to a Florida kid when you've just been 3-9 and it snows where you play.
Nothing is impossible, but unless we have a fantastic year and FSU struggles, I can't see him coming here.
when you're 3-9, you do have a lot of curves.
August 2nd, 2009 at 10:56 PM ^
has made me engorged.
August 2nd, 2009 at 11:28 PM ^
backed off Dior Mathias. I know we still lead for Christian and maybe for Grimes, but in this day and age you can never have too many DBs.
Did we actually "back off" Mathis? It seemed like he backed off us.
read amd heard it seemed to me that UM had cooled on Mathis, not the other way around. With the scholorships getting tight and being in a good position for Grimes, Cullen and Knight it was my impression Mathis was on the outside looking in, so he started looking elsewhere.
August 2nd, 2009 at 11:42 PM ^
of this thread drew up more response than I thought!
August 3rd, 2009 at 12:03 AM ^
just b/c fsu lost one commit doesn't necessarily mean they'll offer knight.
August 3rd, 2009 at 12:15 AM ^
Well, considering there was already significant chatter about him getting his offer soon, and the commit they just lost plays the same position.....it's not a positive development.
People down here still think FSU is on their way back to their former elite status because of the presence of Jimbo Fisher. I personally think the presence of Urban Meyer, the rise of USF into a mediocre but still BCS program, and the influx of coaches like RR into Florida to recruit has made FSU's path in recruiting a lot harder than it used to be.
Then, of course, there is that trifling matter of FSU's performance the last six or seven years, not to mention their apparent inability to monitor their program for NCAA violations. FSU is rapidly becoming the ugliest girl at the dance, but as any "Tally-ho" will tell you, sometimes you have a lot of fun with that ugly girl once you get her home.
I hope Knight has fun with his ugly girl. Besides, there are plenty of kids to go around, and no team gets everyone they recruit. If they did, they wouldn't have to float over a hundred offers out every year.
many people think Michigan has become the ugly girl too. However, try actually telling that to the fan base. Knight grew up a FSU fan. To the fan, their program never becomes the ugly girl. It's just, the girl woke up in the morning without her makeup on. That's what FSU and Michigan are right now. We're still putting our makeup on right now.
August 3rd, 2009 at 12:37 PM ^
I think the bigger problem for FSU is that they do not have a large number of "big name" alumni in the NFL anymore who play the skill positions. Many kids want to go to your school because they know you can get them to the league - when that track record has taken a hit for a couple of years, recruits notice that. FSU still produces top-notch defense linemen and linebackers, but when was the last time they produced a top-notch WR or QB? Say what you will about UM's recent problems on the field, but they still produce a decent number of skill-position players who make the jump to the NFL.
When Mylan Hicks went to MSU, I said "whatever, we're in on Lo Wood, Dior Mathis Tony Grimes, Rashad Knight and Cullen Christian, all of whom are better. We'll be fine."
When Lo Wood went to ND, I said "whatever, we're in on Mathis, Grimes, Knight, and Christian, all of whom are better, we'll be fine."
When it started to seem like Mathis wasn't really that big on Michigan anymore, I got a little uneasy, but still felt good about Grimes, Knight, and Christian.
If this is true, it meams we're basically in on Grimes and Christian with no margin for error. I think we need 2 more CB's in this class, since we basically got nothing but Witty in the last one. I'm now marginally worried.
won't Michigan keep Turner at CB as well? Perhaps the 2009 class provided two CB prospects.
How about Bobby Swigert, his name is regularly mentioned as a CB/S prospect?
And don't forget that Michigan's already picked up Courtney Avery, is in pretty good with Cullen Christian, Brandon Ifill, Grimes and Swigert, and could also be bringing in the Talbott kid at CB. In addition to moving a WR to CB in the future, this class could provide from 2-6 CBs depending on how things drop in the next 6 months.
August 3rd, 2009 at 10:02 AM ^
Swigert ain't gonna play corner. He's a safety (for us) or a WR (for other teams).
August 3rd, 2009 at 10:17 AM ^
Magnus is finally back.
Aren't Ifill and Swigert safeties?
So, we're back to us needed Christian and Grimes.
August 3rd, 2009 at 10:09 AM ^
We will probably get at least two corners in this class but the chances of getting talented prospects are dwindling. If Warren goes pro after this year, which is a possibility, we will basically have two UM caliber corners in Turner and Cissoko. I think Christian is a must.
August 3rd, 2009 at 10:18 AM ^
I think that would be a surprise to the guys that recruited them.
They could very well end up being good players. But Witty was the lowest-ranked player in his class - I'd rather not depend on him being great. Floyd, from what I can tell, may be more of a safety.
and my comment was more directed to the previous poster. Neither Witty nor Floyd have played a down of college ball. Judging them as not UM Caliber at this point is unfair.
As for them individually, Floyd was recruited by Carr before ultimately committing to Tennessee. Based on that alone, I am assuming he is of high D-1 caliber. Now, it may just be as a third DB or Nickel but he is there.
And as for Witty, he's a complete tossup and, like you, would prefer not to depend on him being great. He was injured so he missed a lot of high school but he's a burner. Also, he has shown well in the summer drills, for all that is worth (and I don't think it's that much).
And as to your other comment, I would obviously much prefer two of Grimes/Cullen/Knight/Mathis and still think we get two of those. My only point was that UM will pull numbers this year in the defensive backfield.
I get your point that those two could turn into good players. I probably worry too much but even if Witty and Floyd both play corner, we are pretty thin.
First of all, I seriously doubt Warren will go pro after this year. He would need a really big year to warrant that, since he had been solid but not overly impressive thus far.
Secondly, why is everyone writing off Courtney Avery? The recruiting services aren't all over him, but at M's camp he was (in the coaches' opinions) the best CB there and was shutting down all kinds of talented receivers. This is a prime example of the coaches having info the gurus don't, which is enough for me. I'd love to pick up 2 more solid CBs, but a class of 2 CB's when we have no seniors on the team and we got 2 the year before as well, isn't a bad deal.
Regarding your second point, it's somewhat misleading to think that way. First of all, saying Avery was the best CB at the camp isn't saying a whole lot. Second, the coaches have offered 160+ players, and judging from history, a majority of those players will not pan out in college (either at Michigan or elsewhere).
Personally, I don't think Avery will be very good. I think he lacks agility and recovery speed. I see him being more successful in a zone defense (Tampa Two or zone blitz) than in a defense where he's going to have to play a lot of man coverage.