Too early to be concerned about 2010 class?
After landing miller and jackson early, and with marvin robinsons expected commit, everyone thought that this would be an epic class. but im really starting to take a turn toward negative town, despite my best efforts. Not im not saying that im deeming this class to be a certain failure, but Im not as confident as I had been months ago. We landed gardner, who was at the top of everyones list. Assuming we land cullen christian, and lo wood, and possibly even marvin robinson, that still only gives us 1 player in either scouts or rivals top 100 (gardner is 77 to scout). It seems like everyones "probable 5 star) proclamations for robinson and miller seem to not be panning out.
But what concerns me most is that we dont really seem to be on the top of the list of any of the big time recruits. Looking at scouts, we are on seantrel hendersons (1) list but thats a serious longshot, same goes for lache seatrunk (7). we may have a shot at either jeff luc (9) and/or jordan hicks (12) I think landing one of these two is an absolute must! We are in desperate need of a stud linebacker. althou its not listed on scouts, iv herd our WR kyle praters (10) name being mentioned as having interest in UM, but that is a certain longshot. OTrobert crisp (36) would be a great pickup, but i think UNC has the inside track. OSU and MSU are the favorites for DE William Gholston (57). The favorites for RB mack brown (63) are florida and georgia as of now. We might have a shot at landing S Dietrich Riley (70) which would be big. Tai-ler jones (81) is a probable long shot.
I want to stress again that Im not saying im "worried," im just "concerned." I expect that at least 5 of you will respond by saying "its early, its early, stop your whining, plz help yourself to a glass of stfu." but just looking at that top 100 list, im not entirely confident in our chances of landing any one of them. we dont seem to be competing for the top 25 recruits like as one would expect of the winningest program in ncaa football history.
however the fact that we arent on the list of a single top DT does worry me.
Just give it time. The rankings will change a lot from now until signing day. There are still the summer camps and there senior seasons to evaluate. Plus, these sites usually don't have a lot of film on these at all. Just the top guys.
If Michigan wins say.. 7 games, I fully believe it will be a top level class.
Lattimore apparently loves us and the SC coach is dogging him so that looks decent. I am not saying he look s blue, but he is a name that could be mentioned in your post. It will be fine. We have had years with no five stars before and we did just have a season with 3 wins...
were you happy about those names 10 days ago (or whenever those lists came out)? Honestly, if we got every Derrick Bryant/Jeremy Jackson/Lo Wood type that are currently ranked below where we were expecting, I would still think the class is awesome.
a year ago our class looked a hell of a lot different than it did after signing day. patience. if there's one thing Rod has proven he can do while he's been here, it's recruit. That, after proving nothing here. If we have any semblance of a good season expect a great, maybe legendary recruiting class.
Everyone was pretty happy with our class last year, and we only had 2 guys in the top 100. The fact that we already have one guy who looks like a reasonable top 10 sort (Gardner) and a handful of guys who could creep in there, I'd say things are looking good so far. I think you should chill about it.
take a xanax and chill out
its early, its early, stop your whining, plz help yourself to a glass of stfu.
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Just kidding.
I understand your worries, but a) the rankings are new and will undoubtedly change and b) the season will likely affect our recruiting class. Recruits are waiting to see how Michigan plays this year. If we see a marked improvement, more recruits will buy in. If we have a 4-8 season, kids will start to wonder what's going on.
I don't think you should be worried about not getting those top-100 guys, though. Rodriguez's first recruiting cycle was largely reflective of Carr and his staff, but you saw what Rodriguez could do in the 2009 class (7th nationally). That ought to teach us something.
Like everyone else is saying -- I wouldn't worry about it at all. Obviously, some guys were overhyped a bit, so it's hard not to be a bit let down, but the class is still looking pretty solid so far. On top of that, it's pretty obvious how disparate the recruiting rankings are between the major recruiting services. The rankings will change, and we're in the lead for a couple of high-profile guys.
We're in good shape with Torrian Wilson, Skyler Schofner, Jeffrey Godfrey, Corvin Lamb, Brennan Clay, Derrick Bryant, Caleb Lavey, Josh Furman, Lo Wood, Cullen Christian, Dior Mathis, Marvin Robinson, and Latwan Anderson.
That's 13 kids in addition to the 6 already committed. I'm not saying we'll land all those kids, but I'm sure more will pop up as time goes along. If that ended up being the rest of our class, it would be a pretty good one (although it lacks a DT, but there aren't many good ones out there).
March 23rd, 2009 at 10:42 PM ^
+1 i agree 100% we look good for all the kids and i esp like wood m rob christian and two very solid qb that takes care of two major problems in 09 and i really hope we can pull henderson or luc since apparently? we can't have a successful class without a top 5 talent you didn't hear it hear fist but i will repeat what alot of fans are saying year 2010 will be a historic year for michigan sports 3 big ten/ccha title (football, basketball, and hockey)
and as for dt with big will and martin takin up a square mile in the middle and obi (3 star recruit i might add) running like the flash sideline to sideline look out msu and nd
and sorry as much as i hate that school down there in the crap shoot of a state not this year but ill stay hopeful just not optimistic
March 23rd, 2009 at 11:01 PM ^
Holy hell, what?
Seriously, I struggled getting through that. Some basic grammar can go a LONG way.
Okay, it's just this simple: we finished 3-9. Why do people have ridiculous expectations? Negative recruiting against Michigan is at an all-time high. We had the worst record in school history. Why would the top level recruits look at us? They are going to wait and see how we do. Another clunker of a season and our recruiting class will be average.
Why would any highly rated kid want to come to a losing program? Look at Jeff Luc, someone who has more than a passing interest in us. He can come here, or he could go to Florida, who has won 2 of last 3 championships. Meyer is going to make Brandon Spikes, their starting MLB, into a first round pick, so Meyer has an easy sell of Luc replacing Spikes and stepping right into a championship level defense. We just got our 3rd defensive coordinator in 3 years and had the worst defensive performance ever last year. So which would seem better to Luc?
I'm tired of hearing about the "tradition thing" with Michigan. Kids nowadays mostly don't care about our tradition and our past. They care about now, the present, and right now we're coming off a disastrous 3-9 season. Michigan had better win at least 6 games if it wants to keep the recruiting momentum.
You're underestimating the tradition aspect, but I agree with much of your post.
I to have agree with most of your post but you might want to reconsider the tradition statement(on the surface that statement would seem true but most kids upon getting there scholarship from Michigan almost always scream tradition ) but like I said the rest of what you had to say was informative.
Agree completely, WTB. Michigan has to prove itself again to the top recruits, especially on defense.
Also, I'm not one of the people who says that recruiting ratings don't matter, because I believe they are somewhere from fairly to quite accurate. That said, being bummed that a guy is rated #150 instead of #90 is virtually negligible (not to mention that those rankings will change a lot anyway). If We Ricardo Miller came back with a 2 star rating, then you can get bummed. He's still a 4 star. I'm down with 4 stars.
A) They go after as many 5-star candidates as possible then move down through the 4-stars.
or
B) Grab the recruits they feel will best fit their system so that they can field the best team possible.
It appears to me that you're in favour of A. That's fine, to each their own, but most would prefer option B I think.
At this point last year not one actual member of the '09 class had committed yet, except for Campbell whose recruiting was a saga anyway. Tate Forcier was just a really good quarterback on the West Coast that everyone wanted and who gave basically no indication that he might even be considering Michigan. Denard Robinson and Je'Ron Stokes weren't even on the radar screen. Why on earth anyone would stress and flip out over this stuff more than ten months before pen is put to paper is beyond me. Fun to follow: yes. Stressful: take a couple Valium and watch some baseball.
"Tate Forcier was just a really good quarterback on the West Coast that everyone wanted and who gave basically no indication that he might even be considering Michigan."
You're kidding, right? It was pretty obvious from the outset that even though he hadn't committed, Forcier was a strong, strong Michigan lean.
Real Michigan men don't lean, they commit.
Sommy's right. I don't think it changes your point, but Tate was high on M before Newsome or Beaver committed.
I would think that early playing time is a pretty attractive thing. No matter how good a recruit is, hes going to face serious competition going to a school like florida or usc. But coming to michigan he gets: legacy, top level education, shot at early playing time, one of the best S&C coaches in the country, and we still put just about as many players into the NFL as any other team. To me that is a uniquely attractive offer. I just hate seeing OSU (who has sucked up the bowl games over the past 5 yrs) and ND (who has been an overrated pile of garbage mixed with Wies's fast food wrappers) getting multiple commits from top 20 guys every yr. Even PSU has 2 top 50 guys already.
I hate OSU just as much as the next guy, but sucking in top-level bowl games is not a reason for a recruit to look elsewhere.
Those schools are getting recruits for the same reason we had the #7 class despite a 3-9 season. They are big time football schools. ND will always get big names. OSU and PSU as well, albeit to a lesser extent. Utah and Boise St can go to BCS games all they want, and will never compete with those schools wrt recruiting. On field performance is a good thing, but can only go so far.
...the coaching and on-the-field performances of Utah and Boise State all the more impressive over the past 5-8 years. They've maximized their talent and coaching in a way that the rest of the BCS (maybe Florida, USC, Ohio State and Texas excluded) cannot claim to have done.
In 40 years I won't remember who in Michigan's 2008 recruiting class got 3 or 4 stars, and I won't remember Utah's 2008 recruiting class rankings either.
But, I will remember Utah 25-Michigan 23. So, that is how far on-field performance will go when I'm 72.
I never said on field performance isn't important in general. Clearly is the most important thing. No one cares about anything else if your team doesn't win. My point was that on field performance means little when it comes to recruiting.
Your point about the Utah-Michigan game proves my point. Utah beat us, at home no less. Last year there is no doubt that they were the superior team, some people though the best in the country. But barring some ties to the University of Utah, do you think there was a single kid who had offers from Utah and M who had a tough time deciding where to go?
Did we offer any Mormons last year?
At some point though, reputation and performance are not interchangeable in recruiting. If this level of performance continued for 5 years out of Big Blue and Utah, kids would have a tougher time saying that Ann Arbor was better for their football futures than Provo (is that right?).
I live in Minneapolis. Tim Brewster has turned Minnesota into an average recruiting school. But people laugh their heads off when he starts talking about 16 Big Ten titles and 6 national championships and the "glory days" of Minnesota. It means nothing, even to an alum like me, when Minnesota hasn't gone to the Rose Bowl since my Dad was 3. I want results. So do recruits - the fancy new stadium and great new facilities at Minnesota won't mean squat if they go 4-8 this year (which I think they may). If Brewster aligns performance with the Gophers' (ahem) tradition, well, he may keep Henderson in-state.
While I think you're right in essence, I think there is a tipping point which I feel Minnesota is waaaayyyy past, and I don't want Michigan to get anywhere near. I don't think they will.
The glory days of Michigan were in 2006 and 2000 and 1997. High school juniors were born in about 1992. Those memories are fresh in their heads. The good teams of the 2000's (OSU, USC, Oklahoma, Florida) only have 100 scholarships to hand out between them. There's plenty of "scraps" to go around.
I agree with you Magnus, but the most talented "scraps" are lodged in the wild west and deep south, where schools like Alabama, LSU, Texas, UCLA have first dibs. But there are still quality recruits rolling around. Florida scraps are especially appetizing.
Too early. Particularly when the only thing that changed your feelings of optimism to slight concern are Rivals/Scout's early top 100 lists, which are extremely fluid at this point of the year.
are you fucking serious? you're worried that we won't get a top 100? you're worried that none of the top 100 guys list us as a favorite? this should be your last post here.
WTB wrote:
"Okay, it's just this simple: we finished 3-9. Why do people have ridiculous expectations? Negative recruiting against Michigan is at an all-time high. We had the worst record in school history. Why would the top level recruits look at us?"
Because we are talking about Michigan here. Kids are intelligent enough to see that UM has only had one losing season since 1967, and it was last year. They have seen Michigan on TV since they were kids. They know the Maize and Blue and the Winged Helmet carry a lot of clout on the football food chain.
"Why would any highly rated kid want to come to a losing program? Look at Jeff Luc, someone who has more than a passing interest in us. He can come here, or he could go to Florida, who has won 2 of last 3 championships. Meyer is going to make Brandon Spikes, their starting MLB, into a first round pick, so Meyer has an easy sell of Luc replacing Spikes and stepping right into a championship level defense."
And every program has its selling points. Losers worry about what everyone else is doing; winners worry about what THEY are doing. RR has shown that he can get good recruits.
"I'm tired of hearing about the "tradition thing" with Michigan. Kids nowadays mostly don't care about our tradition and our past."
Only an idiot would percieve UM as a bad or even mediocre program after ONE BAD YEAR.
"They care about now, the present, and right now we're coming off a disastrous 3-9 season. Michigan had better win at least 6 games if it wants to keep the recruiting momentum"
If the record the season before signing day is so important, how did Ole Miss get Michael Oher? How did Vanderbilt get Jay Cutler? And on, and on, and on.....
Most of all, how did UM get the number seven class if that 3-9 record is so important? How did they get "THE MOST ACCURATE PASSER IN HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL" if 3-9 is so important?
Good players feel that they can turn any team into a winner. Good players know that UM had an off year and that they can be the ones to get them back on their feet. Good players love the challange of taking a team like Michigan back to elite status.
I think you are taking that "blue" thing to seriously, as in "I feel blue today." If you want to be Chicken Little and see the sky as falling, go ahead. But you might be happier if you tried to feel a little bit of optimism toward "your" team.
"Because we are talking about Michigan here. Kids are intelligent enough to see that UM has only had one losing season since 1967, and it was last year."
People keep committing to Notre Dame and it's a black hole. Specifically linemen, like, holy hell who wants to play for ND?
If you think that another subpar season (which is VERY possible, if not likely, btw) won't have a negative effect on recruiting, then, chances are, you will end up being the idiot.
I don't think Jay Cutler was even a highly rated/sought after prospect coming into college (Rivals and Scout doesn't go back that far). Michael Oher was practically adopted by a rich white family in which both mother and father went to Mississippi and are big time Ole Miss boosters. Oher was going nowhere but Mississippi (read The Blind Side by Michael Lewis).
Yes, we pulled in a top 10 recruiting class and I'm estastic about that. The original OP was talking about the top level recruits though, guys who are top 5 in their respective positions. The only two top level guys we landed last year were Campbell, whom we all are well acquainted with his story, and JT Turner, who was blue since day 1. I doubt we'll be on any top level guys' short list until we starting putting up W's. Don't count on another top 10 class if we finish 3-9 again. One bad season is an anomaly; back to back bad seasons is a trend. Recruits won't be as forgiving this time.
Not that this is even that important, but I think Cutler was a 4-star on Scout.
....Mike Hart and Pat White were 3 stars?
pretend like every single recruit was born last year? tradition always matters.
Theres usually like 30-35 5* recruits each year and about 117 teams they could go to. Most likely all of them are not in MI to boot. Those rankings are based on past players that have gone pro, hence these players are best suited to go to a pro-style offense.
So you expect this small percentage of out of state players to come here and play for a team that had one of its worst years last year? I know we have tons of tradition and great facilities along with a top notch academic program, so that will draw in some good recruits. However, you can't sit back and just think 5* talent is going to come rolling in when other programs exist to use it as well. Also, given Michigan's past of not doing much with top talent could be a deterrant as well.
You CAN expect 5-star talent to come rolling in.*
*If you're dum.
Unlike some of you, I am a little worried. Rich Rodriguez has never been a fantastic recruiter, and the addition of Greg Robinson to the staff probably doesnt help too much. I believe some of our guys (Miller, Jackson) will move up in the rankings as the year goes on, but still I am tired of looking at the top 25 or so (the five stars) and seeing at most one Michigan commit. Compare that to the numerous USC, Florida, and even OSU commits, and we are coming up a little short. Furthermore, landing those uber talented kids in the top five or so IS beneficial, and obviously they can fit our (or practically any) system.
I agree that we gotta start winning games to make this happen.
There is little better exposure than playing in and winning major BCS bowls. Hopefully we put together some good seasons and the recruits start rolling in, but I am tired of the complacency we have in picking the scraps of Florida, OSU, and USC, Notre Dame, etc. offer lists. We land an occasional kid from the area who is big time (Campbell, Grady, Mallet, Warren), but Michigan needs to start lading some of the big time national recruits. Pryor was the closest weve been in a while, and I frankly doubt we were even that close.
That being said, I do not want to suggest Michigan should sink to Kiffin-eske levels of whoredom. I believe of course standards should be upheld, and institutional self respect valued. This is not impossible, Notre Dame does great, USC does incredibly well, as does Florida, and even Georgia pulls its weight, yet these schools retain their standards.
Rodriguez has never been known as a great recruiter? Really?
How about on the first Tuesday of February 2009 when he brought in the #7 class in the country after a 3-9 season? No?
Yikes.
Not many teams pull in multiple 5-stars per year. To judge Rodriguez against USC and OSU is a bit unfair. He just got here, and before that he was in the stinkhole that is Morgantown, WV.
This post smells like Bigfoot's dick.
LMAO
I agree. I'm sick of the "why don't we get the recruits USC gets?" type of posts. I don't need to tell you why. Michigan has historically been one of the best recruiting teams in the country, despite being in a state relatively void of high level talent. When Lloyd left and RR came, there wasn't even a slight drop in recruiting. If we don't win, it's NOT going to be about recruiting. Period.
*a bums nutsack
for the record I don't really know what that smells like, and I hope you don't know what big foots dick smells like either.
But seriously? Not a good recruiter?
...that Mallett and Warren were kids "from the area."
They aren't, but, in fairness, they were recruits of the old regime.
In fairness, Fuck Lion was talking about Michigan as a whole, not one regime or the other. So Warren and Mallett apply to the argument.
Got it. I don't understand what point he's trying to make, then.