SIAP: Nike's "The Opening"
*I searched for this using all sorts of relevant keywords, so hopefully there isn't a thread already
ESPN Recruiting has a link to Nike's "The Opening" which is a five day training program for elite athletes, including Michigan targets Armani Reeves and Wayne Morgan (who was on the original, shorter list), among others.
This seems like Nike's attempt at a super combine of sorts, and has ESPNU telecast written all over it. I know it has been said that Morgan's coaches encouraged him to delay his decision. I wonder if this has anything to do with it. A Brooklyn boy spending five days in Oregon? A great showing at this could lead to dozens of new offers.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/football/news/story?id=6595180
http://rise.espn.go.com/football/articles/2011/05/NIKE-THE-OPENING.aspx…
Well Morgan already had offers from most of the big time schools
Scout and Rivals both list nine offers - Alabama, Miami, Michigan, and Penn State are the only one I would consider big time. And 4 is certainly not "most." It was only recently that he was thought to be a huge Rutgers lean. Then we came in. Then he was a big Michigan lean. Then he postponed his announcement. I'm just sayin
'cuse, rutgers, maryland, uconn, and BC are not small time, but they're small-medium fish in the BCS world, the teams who meet with occasional success but are not the powerhouses or name brands.
Listen to Sam Webbs recruiting roundup from today--Sounds like it sounded out like Morgan didn't want to publicly committ yet, then the coaches said thats fine, we don't have a spot anymore though.
Some players want to be Blue; some do not. I am glad Hoke/Mattison et al. are recruiting well enough that the impact of this won't be severe.
Best of luck to Morgan in his career; I hope he enjoys Oregon.
This class is shaping up so well that it really can't be said that anyone is a "great loss," as we are often prone to think. There are enough recruits to go around, especially in the midwest, and Michigan is getting their share. Football isn't like basketball, where one recruit can be the difference between a first round exit and the Final Four.
I guess that was a bad comparison since football doesn't even have a playoff.