Michigan Thursday: Thinks Kyle Turley has a Big Mouth

Everyone pretty much supported Brady Hoke's decision to take the Michigan job.  Why not, he went from making $700K a year to $2M and Michigan was clearly his dream job.    Win - win, right?

Ex-NFL player Kyle Turley doesn't think so, he has been very critical of Brady leaving his San Diego State program for Ann Arbor.  Of course, he continues to have that stance and opened his mouth again this week:

“I don’t care if it’s your dream job,” said Turley, who played in the NFL from 1998 to 2007. “If you’re worth your salt as a head coach, eventually you’ll get that same job. You don’t have to screw people over to get it.”

Turley said he thinks Hoke’s departure from SDSU was like a parent “running out on the family” or an “ex-wife” who one day leaves the house and doesn’t say why “until you hear from her lawyer the next day.”

So I guess Kyle would have stayed with an NFL team that was paying him a low salary instead of another team that would have paid him double that amount.  When that other team was the team he grew up cheering for.  I wouldn't recommend any of us make any business investments with Kyle in the near future.  

Here is Brady response (freep link):

“He’s a really good guy, he’s really passionate about San Diego State, and I had reached out to him early when I had taken the job there because I loved the way he played football,” Hoke said. “When you look at him as an offensive lineman, how he would finish and all those things. Kyle is passionate about his alma mater, which he should be. That doesn’t bother me one bit. He was passionate about the Aztecs when we were, and he’s still passionate. That doesn’t bother me.”It’s simply part of the excitement of college football.

“That’s a guy who’s passionate about his school,” Hoke said. “Everyone’s got an opinion, and he’s allowed to have his.”

Kyle of course hopes Brady eats crow this weekend as SDSU beats the Wolverines.  Kyle, be happy you have Steve Fisher and support your team in a positive way.  Stay Classy Big Guy!

• Happy Birthday Denard!

• Danny O'Brien is planning on announcing his college of choice on 10/6.  The rumor mill is saying Michigan or Tennessee.  I think he is Blue (close to home, been at Michigan more then any program, Michigan coaches are all about the Dline, best friend Matt Godin already heading to A2)

• Braxton Miller will start for Ohio this weekend against Colorado.

• Minnesota game is a noon kick on BTN (3 weeks in a row on BTN has to be a record for the Wolverines)

Michigan Monday: Loves in Game Adjustments

The one thing that really bothered me about the Carr Era was we never seemed to make any meaningful adjustments when something wasn't working.  When it seemed USC had our play book, nothing.   It drove me crazy and probably you as well.

I wondered what was the reason for that?  Did they try to make changes and it didn't work?  Was it Lloyd not letting his coordinators change the game plan?  What was it?  (Side note on the RR years, I think they tried to make some defense adjustments from time to time, they just didn't work)

I don't have the answer to the above questions but I do know when I see a good game plan working effectively and when I don't.  Both Greg Mattision and Al Borges has impressed me regarding the in game adjustments and changes.  Al is coaching like a 17 year old with the keys to a brand new Lamborghini.  He knows how to drive but has never had a car this fast.

Greg on the other hand is trying to find the right personnel in game time situations.   Both have made very good in game changes and the reason the Wolverines today are 3-0 and ranked 21/22 in the polls.  I continue to be impressed on how Coach Hoke is letting them both do what they do best. 

Let's compare those strategies to our Rival to the north.  I was excited to see the match up this weekend between ND and MSU.  Sparty has owned ND over the past 10 years but was running into a difficult situation with a quality team that now found themselves 0-2.   MSU was ranked #15 in the polls and was a road dog to an 0-2 team.  

What happened was a terrible game plan by Mark Dantonio and staff.  It was like they didn't review any tape on ND the past two weeks.  ND continued to turn the ball over and MSU couldn't capitalize.  They even continued to call gimmick and trick plays.  A fake field goal from the goal line?  (side note; does anyone think ND practiced fake field goals a little bit extra this week? - just stupid).  MSU's game plan wasn't working and they just kept it and got blown out.  No adjustments = big loss. They weren't out manned on Saturday they got out coached.   If I was a MSU fan, I would be very upset at Dantonio playing Tressel Ball all day.

•  Michigan has taken a 2012 walk-on commitment from Fenton punter Kenny Allen.  Kenny had 1 scholarship offer from Oregon State and decided to stay close to home and punt for Michigan.  Kicking guy Chris Sailer had this to say about Kenny:   Kenny is a very talented young punter. He has the size and athleticism to dominate in this area. Can hit a huge ball. Also a great kicker. A top combo prospect in the Class of 2012. Will be a scholarship pick!  Kenny is averaging 43 yards per punt this year and is also a place kicker.   This is a good pickup for the Wolverines.  Anytime you can pick up a guy with scholarship offers to D1 schools as walk on, is a huge bonus.   If I was a fly on the wall, I'm guessing the Wolverines are concerned about their scholarship punter Will Hagerup who has been suspended 4 out of the last 5 games and still has one more game to sit out.

• Michigan is 21 in the Coaches and 22 in the AP.

• Michigan is an early 9 point favorite over San Diego State.

• 2013 State of Michigan offensive line recruit Steve Elmer surprisingly committed to ND over the weekend while he was on a visit.   Steve and Shane Morris are the top two prospects in Michigan for the 2013 class.  Michigan was recruiting Steve and had been on campus a number of times.

• Jordan Diamond took a visit to Illinois this weekend.  Has Michigan cooled on Jordan or has Jordan cooled on the Wolverines?

• RB Greg Garmon has Michigan in his top 4.   A month ago I thought there was no way Michigan was taking a RB in the 2012 class.  I now think Michigan has a fighters chance at landing Greg or Bri'onte Dunn. 

Michigan Thursday: Danny O, Kyle Kalis and That Purdue ACL Elephant

When Kyle Kalis de-committed from Ohio State and a few weeks later picked Michigan.  He got "light up" on twitter and other social media from Buckeye Fans that couldn't believe he picked Ann Arbor over Columbus.   Since that date there have been a ton of rumors that Kyle will eventually end up in OSU's 2012 class.  Mostly if the NCAA doesn't drop the hammer and crush the Buckeyes for the next few years.   I expect the NCAA to drop more then 3 years "Show Clause" on Tressel, maybe cut 5 scholarships from the Buckeyes for the next 2 years and 2 years of probation.
It's hard to know what will happen between now and signing day but I sure how Kyle stays Blue. 

The next recruit we are looking at today is Danny O'Brien a 4 star DT recruit from Flint.  Tennessee was his early leader but Michigan popped their head up in his recruitment this summer.   His best friend happens to be Matt Godin who is also committed to the Wolverines in the 2012 class.  Danny recently cut his list to 6 and plans to cut it even further soon.  

The big question in Danny's recruitment to Ann Arbor is; Will Michigan take another DT in this class?
Sounds like they will:  "Hoke said to me, 'Take your time. I know you're one of those guys that is really making a decision in cutting them down.' He said, 'Take your time and we will take you whenever.' That stood out to me. I was never the guy that had a dream school picked out. That was big for me because I've been down to Tennessee a few times and that's what I liked about them. They said, 'Take your time. It's your decision. You are your own man and you have to make your own decision.' When Coach Hoke finally said that (also), that was big for me with Michigan."
Danny will take his official to U of M for the ND game.  That will be a huge recruiting weekend for the Wolverines.

• Purdue keeps their ACL streak alive, QB Rob Henry is the latest victim. 

Michigan Tuesday: The Basketball Train Keep Rolling

This time of year, is usually reserved for Football Camp opening (less then a week away) and recruiting making decisions before their senior season starts.   Michigan has 22 players committed (including Clark the gray shirt) and it's the Michigan Basketball team that has gone back to back days with 2 commits to the 2013 class.  

Monday, 6'0 point guard from Harper Woods, Michigan - Chandler Park Academy Derrick Walton picked the Wolverines.  Derrick is obviously at instate product be another top 100 guy in the nation.  Rivals has him 88th.  DW averaged 24 points a game last year.  

Michigan now has 4 commits to the 2013 class which include:  PF Mark Donnal, SG Austin Hatch (who is recovering from a plane crash in Northern Michigan), SF Zak Irvin and now PG Derrick Harper.  

• TomVH catches up with WR Jehu Chesson who enjoyed his visit for the BBQ.  He also confirmed Michigan is looking to take two WR's in this class.

• OSU will wear Nike's new Pro Combat uniforms this year but this time against Wisconsin and not against Michigan.   The new uniforms include things like "thermoregulation" and "Deflex".  Let's hope Michigan's include things like winning and toughness.  

Wolverine Weekend Update: The BBQ Brings A 2012 Verbal for Football and One for Basketball

The Worm has finally turned as 2012 4 Star DE Chris Wormley picked Michigan over Ohio State today at the Big House BBQ. 

Chris Wormley seemly had Michigan as his #1 school for what seems like a year and he finally pulled the trigger today.   Chris is 6'5 and 250 pounds and plays fast for his size.  He is a 4 star prospect to Scouts, 24/7 and ESPN.  He is 3 stars to Rivals.    It seems some services think he is bit of a tweener on which position he might end up at.  He is a DE prospect right now but could end up as a tackle as he adds some more weight and strength.

The recruiting insiders that cover Ohio have been high on Chris for awhile and as you know a Ohio State offer is what most kids in Ohio hope for.   Chris other offers seem strange for a 4 star player of his caliber which include the likes of Indiana, Illinois, MSU, Cincinnati and Toledo.   So either the other schools didn't bother to offer a guy who was either heading to Michigan or OSU or they were unsure of his position. 

Either way, Chris has been high on Michigan fans wish list for a long time and it's nice to have him on board.   Chris will be the last DE Michigan takes in this class, unless Washington wants to commit. 

The needs still remain at DT (probably 2), 1 more offensive lineman, and a couple WR's.  With this commit, Michigan has 21 guys wrapped up in this class and will take 5 more guys.   So I assume the coaches will be pretty selected.



Michigan fans had hoped for 1 or 2 2013  commits today and one highly ranked 2012 DT whose name rhymes with Ripken.   Still could happen but nothing yet.

• Michigan Basketball also got a commitment from Zak Irvin from Indiana who picked Michigan over the likes of Butler, IU, Tennessee and Purdue.   Zak is a 6'6 small forward and a commitment to the 2013 class.   Zak is pretty much a top 100 player to all the services and the third commitment to the 2013 class.

Michigan Tuesday: Brings Lots of News

After a slow week or so the Wolverine news train seems to be running at high speeds the last 10 hours or so.

News Maker #1: Brady Hoke Gets His FB
Surprise Utah FB Sione Houma become Michigan's 20th commit to the 2012 class yesterday.  Houma is a 6'0 211 pound FB who ran for 1,211 yards and 9 touchdowns last year.    To say he is under the radar would be putting it lightly, he is not rated on Rivals,ESPN or 24/7 and is 2 stars to Scouts.  

His offer list included Utah, Utah State and Washington.

My take:  The coaches wanted a FB in this class and now they got one.  I will trust the coaches with this one but with now only 6 spots left at max, I sure hope have room for the impact guys Michigan is still in on.    I would have felt much better about this commitment last Spring.   Either way it's another player the coaching staff targeted and got.


#2:  Jones, Jones and Pace are officially off the roster.  
The Michigan Athletic Department confirmed that Kellen Jones is no longer enrolled at Michigan and both Teric Jones and Christian Pace careers are over due to injury.  

My take:  Losing Kellen and Christian are the biggest blows to future playing time.  Christian was the only offensive lineman in the 2010 class and there was high hopes for Kellen to maybe even play this year.    Look for Poole to take advantage of Kellen's departure.   Side Note: With Christian Pace is now gone, Cullen Christan left a few months ago for Pitt, should freshman basketball player Colton Christian be concerned?  :)

#3:  Michigan 2012 class ranks #2 on Rivals.
What a compliment to Brady Hoke and Staff.  To be able to recruit this well after being on the job for 7 months is pretty incredible. 

#4 Kyle Kalis and his OSU recruitment
Some people have speculated that with recent news from the NCAA that OSU won't face the "failure to monitor" penalty that Kyle would head back to Columbus.  Kyle said this:  Despite all the speculation about the limited sanctions that Ohio State will receive, I've grown to love Michigan too much to ever consider going back. I'm excited to get up there next season and to start what I know is going to be a new chapter in Michigan history, and with the amazing class that my head coach Brady Hoke is putting together.

My take: Love this kid! If you want to worry about a kid, I think our chances with Dunn probably dropped a few points, but if we can still get him up for the BBQ, I think we have a punchers chance at landing him.

Also don't forget that OSU could be found guilty of being a double offender which carries a big penalty as well.

Update:  It seems DT Terry Talbott career might also be over due to a back problem.  Terry is the brother of DB Terrance.   If you remeber Terry all most went to North Carolina on signing day but stayed with Michigan. 

If you wondered how Michigan had 26 spots in the 2012 class, these injuries are the reason.

Michigan Friday: Looks at 2012 Running Backs

Michigan has 3 different positions in the 2012 class where they will only take one prospect.  Those positions include QB, RB and WR.  I have previewed options for QB and WR now it's time to look at running back.

#1 option is Ohio running back Bri'onte Dunn who is a 5 star to Scouts and 4 to Rivals.  The catch with Bri'onte is that he is committed to OSU but is concerned about the NCAA situation.  It seems Michigan is his close #2 school who continues to make up ground on OSU as they try to figure out the NCAA situation.  Bri'onte is planning to travel North  for the BBQ at the Big House and he will get a chance to rub elbows with many of Michigan's 2012 commits.  A unique twist in Dunn's recruitment is that his cousin is a one of the top players in Ohio for the 2013 class named Dymonte Thomas.  I have heard that Thomas and Dunn are close and have talked about playing together.  Thomas visited Michigan and loved it and the Wolverines are considered his leader right now. 

The big question between now and the end of football season will be, can the Wolverines sell Bri'onte on Ann Arbor over Columbus?

• Keith Marshall is rated the #1 RB in the country by Scouts and he is planning a Michigan visit.  Many insiders don't expect him to end up a Wolverine from North Carolina but if they get him on campus they have a punchers chance.
• Ejay Fatu is a FB from Texas and could fill the RB spot as well.  FB is sort of like field goal kicker recruiting, you find a lot of guys as walk-ons or take players from other positions.  So FB's normally don't get a ton of offers.  So for Michigan to offer Ejay he must be a strong prospect.

• Wes Brown sort of is similar to Keith Marshall situation.  Wes is a RB from Good Counsel in Maryland which usually has a couple top prospect every year.  Keith is a 4 star guy to both Scouts and Rivals.
• Greg Garmon is a 4 star RB from PA and mention here before is a cancer survivor.  Greg is another guy Michigan needs to get on campus for an official visit. 

You might be wondering where are the State of Michigan prospects?  This year is not great for running backs in the Great Lake State.  The best running back prospect is Dennis Norfleet who is 5'8 175 pounds and doesn't seem to meet the size requirements U of M is looking for.

The fact of the matter is this position recruitment will not be settled in the short term.  It seems Michigan has the best shot at Dunn right now even though he re-confirmed his shaky commitment to OSU a couple of weeks ago.  Attending the BBQ at the Big House is a great sign that he might be re-thinking the Wolverines.  

The thing to consider is if Ejay Fatu were to commit, would they still take a tailback in this class?

Michigan Monday: OSU Finds Winning and Taking a Blind Eye Acceptable

A report from ESPN over the weekend made me laugh.  The highlight of the article is that back in 2005-06 former OSU AD called Tressel reporting of violations as "unacceptable".

In an evaluation of Tressel's job performance from 2005-06, then-athletic director Andy Geiger rated Tressel "unacceptable" in terms of self-reporting rules violations in a timely manner. The coach was also warned in a separate letter that he and his staff needed to do a better job of monitoring the cars the players were driving -- an issue that would arise again this spring.

What is interesting is this is following the Maurice Clarett situation and I had heard some whispers that former AD Andy Geiger and Jim Tressel were going to resign following this scandal.  The evaluation of Tressel's job performance was clearly an attempt by Geiger to protect himself.   Which didn't work because Geiger was asked to resign, Clarett was made out to be crazy and Tressel went on winning Big Ten Championships.  

This also proves my point that Ohio State knew they were "dancing with the devil" when they hired Tressel from Youngstown State.  The second point which the NCAA will use next month, is that Ohio State knew for a long time that Tressel "over looked' compliance issues and will get hit much harder then vacating their 2010 season. 

Ohio State fans find it hard to believe that Tressel was dirty and are putting the entire blame on Pryor.   As more of these stories come out, they more they are going to have proof that "the Vest" was protraying one thing and doing another. 

• Michigan has offered 2012 WR from Cincinnati Monty Madaris (6-2, 190) who is 3 stars to Rivals and 4 stars from Scouts.  He has offers from Nebraska, MSU, Florida State,Cincy, BC and others.  This is a clear sign that Michigan is concerned about Stanford's timeline and Burbridge's grades. 

• Speaking of WR's in 2012 class, mega recruit Jordan Payton will visit Ann Arbor for the ND game. 

• RJS has decided not to take any other visits and he reconfirmed his strong commitment to Michigan.  Great decision!

• 5 star RB from Ohio Bri'onte Dunn is considering making up for the BBQ at the Big House later this month.

Michigan Monday: Bookends the Weekend with 2 Big Commits

Friday started it off with the commitment of 4 star safety Jarrod Wilson and ended on Sunday with the commitment of 5 star offensive tackle Kyle Kalis.   That's 2 highly rated Ohio prospects in one weekend with a combined total of 9 stars from Scouts.  

For those keeping score at home, out of the 19 commits for the 2012 class so far, 9 are from Ohio and 7 from the State of Michigan.  Brady Hoke and Staff are taking care of home turf while OSU works out their situation with the NCAA. 

With 19 guys locked in (20 if count the Jeremy Clark a Gray Shirt commit), the big question is who will fill out the last 6-7 spots left?  The coaches are telling recruits they will take 26 guys even though a full class is 25 and many believe there only to be 20 or so spots open.  Which means there are a few guys expected not to get a 5th year or need a medical scholarship.   I expect the 26 spots could include Jeremy Clark.

If I were in the Hoke Recruiting Room, here is my best guess on how they would like to finish off this class!

• 2 Defensive Tackles:  Best Guess:  Pipkins and O'Brien
• 1 RB:  TBD
• 1 WR: Best Guess: Stanford or Burbridge
• 2 DE: Best Guess: Washington and Wormley
• 1 OL: Best Guess: Diamond

I listed 7 players for 6 spots, which means timing on commitments are very important.   The coaches are telling players they will only take one DT, but I believe they will take 2.  They also want Washington and Wormley, even though they have plenty of defensive ends in this class.  The odd position out, could be running back as Bri'onte Dunn seems to be strong with Ohio State if their self imposed penalty is not increased by the NCAA. 

Either way it seems Michigan might have most of its class wrapped before the season starts.  Max Preps now lists Michigan with the #1 class in the country. 

The BBQ at the Big House is scheduled for July 31st and many commits will be on hand to get to know each other.  Some 2013 guys will also be there. TomVH list the guys scheduled to be there.

Michigan Sunday: Welcomes Kyle Kalis

Kyle Kalis just did a reverse Justin Boren.  The 5 star (Scouts) offensive lineman from Cleveland who originally had given his pledge to Ohio State then de-committed after Tattoo Gate has committed to the Wolverines as thier 19th verbal commitment for the 2012 class.

This is a huge pick up for the Wolverines.  Kyle is 5 stars to Scouts and 4 stars to Rivals as their #4 offensive tackle and #18th prospect overall nationally.   Kyle comes in at 6'5 300 pounds and is considered one of the best prospects in Ohio/Midwest.  Kyle has offers from pretty much every major school in the Midwest and South including Alabama, Florida, LSU, Wisconsin, Penn State, ND, Miami and others.

Kyle joins an impressive group of commits on the offensive line for the Wolverines for the 2012 class including;  4 star Blake Bars, 3 star Ben Braden, 3 star guard/center Caleb Stacey and 4 star Erik Magnuson.

Now the big question is who will fill the last offensive line spot in this class?   5 star Jordan Diamond seems to be the likely choice, but could guys like Zach Banner, Joshua Garnett, or Andrus Peat beat Jordan to the commit?  Peat has been to Ann Arbor already but Banner and Garnett are not expected to visit until Michigan starts their season. 

Either way this class if filling up fast with two high profile guys committing this weekend.  I sure hope Jordan Diamond and Chris Wormley don't wait too long. 

Wolverine Weekend Update: 5 Star O Linemen to Visit A2 on Sunday

The rumor mill is swirling that 5 star Offensive Lineman Kyle Kailis is expected to make a return visit to Ann Arbor with his mom on Sunday.  Could he commit after his visit?

That remains an open question, but it's a very good sign he is back in Ann Arbor after his first trip a couple weeks ago.  This former OSU commit would be a huge recruiting win for the Wolverines. 

More to come on KK, so stay tuned

Michigan Friday: Looks at Hoke's First 6 months

When you take a leadership position one of the things you try to do is effect change early on in your role.   Most leadership changes come with big changes needed to be made in the organization.  Michigan's football program is no exception. 

One of the measuring points for a new leader is how much change and how well has the organization preformed in the first 6 months on the job.   Since today is July 1 and since Brady Hoke as been in the job for roughly 6 months, I will give you the Big House Blog's set of  year 1 commitments and will rate Brady with a score of: over achieved, achieved or under achieved.  

Brady Hoke's Michigan Football Mid-Year Commitment Review:

• Finish off the 2011 Recruiting Class - Over Achieved.  Brady and Crew did a very good job of convincing kids to come to Ann Arbor with only a little over 2 weeks to do it.

• Get a good start to the 2012 Recruiting Class -  Over Achieved - Max Preps ranks Michigan's current 2012 class #2 in the nation.  Enough said.

• Unite the Michigan Fan Base - Achieved.  From his first press conference and his first sound bite ("we would of walked to Michigan") Brady has united the Michigan fan base again.  The hiring of Greg Mattison was huge and their joint recruiting is stronger then ever.  He has been a bit lucky, with the potential collapse of Ohio State program and MSU whiffing on the recruiting trial.   With that great start, Brady still has some work to do on the field to get all the Wolverine fans to buy in.  He clearly has much more support from the former players then RR ever did.   Either way, he is off to a great start!

• Win Games and Championships:  TBD

Overall Mid Year Rating:  Over Achieved

This is clearly Brady's dream job and he is preforming like he has been preparing for Michigan since he left Ann Arbor for Ball State.  With that said, the proof will be on the field this Fall.   The last bullet above is the most important but Brady clearly has done a wonderful job since getting the job.   I will be the first to say, I wasn't the biggest fan of the hire, but Brady has impressed me pretty much every week since he has gotten the job.  

Let's hope all this good will translates to wins on Saturdays.  

Have a great holiday weekend!  Feel confident that the Michigan program is back on track.

Wolverine Wednesday: Has Some Quick Camp Updates

Here is some positive information from Allen Trieu, Midwest Manager from Scouts on 3 star Michigan Commit Ben Branden:

When Braden committed to Michigan earlier in the year, he was still somewhat of an unknown. He had a good camp in Ann Arbor last year, and we had seen him twice in the fall, and he had earned offers from Wisconsin, Michigan State, and Syracuse. So we knew he was good, but he has proven to be even better. He dedicated himself in the weight room this offseason, adding good weight and getting up to 319-lbs. Even at that size, he was moving well enough to be considered a left tackle prospect. He's strong, technique is improving and he's more athletic than previously thought. He has a chance to move into the top 7-8 in-state and the four-star range when rankings are updated.


Here is another instate guy, I keep hearing good things about as well:  Dennis Norfleet, RB

He's been a hot name recently, especially on the heels of the IMG 7 on 7. Folks in Florida got to see what folks in the Motor City have seen for three years. Norfleet is a dynamic playmaker with excellent hands and he has great explosion and ability to make defenders miss after the catch. He has proven time and time again that he can overcome his lack of prototypical size. We had him in the top 10 in the state already, but he will be going up a couple spots.

• CBS Sports/Max Preps ranks Michigan's 2012 Class #2 in the nation at this point.

• TomVH updates RB recruiting with Alden Hill.  Tom is not confident in Alden turning Blue at this point.  With 5 star RB Dunn sort of one foot in and one foot out with OSU, maybe the Wolverines should look at Dennis Norfleet for the one RB spot in this class.  Just throwing it out there.

• A Quick Memo to recruiting fans that follow recruits on Facebook and Twitter.   Please use common sense.  There have been a number of reports of badgering recruits on both services for Kyle Kalis and Terry Richardson.  I actually would prefer you didn't follow these kids, but if you elect to, please just read their updates and don't message them back. Mostly if they make a decision you don't agree with.  

Michigan Friday: Gray Shirts and Big Visits

Michigan added a "Gray Shirt" commitment from Jeremy Clark a 6'4 185 pound safety from Kentucky.   Jeremy was at Michigan's camp this week and impressed the coaches as a lock down safety.    Jeremy had a number of MAC offers and 1 BCS offer from NC State. 

Some of you might be wondering what a "gray shirt" means?:  It means that Jeremy will join the 2012 class but he will pay his own way until January or maybe even the next school year.  After that they will give him a scholarship or earlier if one becomes available.  

This is a nice find for the Wolverines.  "Yes, I'm a Wolverine," he reported. "After talking with my dad last night, we kind of knew where we were going."



Clark says after camping at Michigan, he knew it was the right school regardless of when the scholarship would be there.

"I felt at home at Michigan. The coaching staff was good and I fell in love with it there."


As far as what the plan would be for next year and beyond, Clark simply stated, "We haven't talked about that yet."

• OL Eric Olson that visited Ann Arbor recently, committed to Northwestern today.

• It seems that Kalis had a good visit to Ann Arbor today but did not commit.  He is headed back to home now.  No word on Wormley yet.

• There are rumors flying around that Michigan could get commitments this weekend from Kalis, Wormley and Jarrod Wilson.  Now that would be a recruiting "Hat Trick"!  Update:  Jarrod Wilson has set his announcement for July 8th at 2:30 at his high school.

• Walk on News:  Michigan has accepted 2012 walk on from Lake Forest (Ill.) WR Bo Dever.  Bo was named after Bo Schembechler and his dad played at Michigan. 

Congratulations to Darius Morris on getting drafted.  I know he was upset that he was drafted in the second round but he has a great opportunity to go home and play for the Lakers that need a point guard.  I wonder if Darius will get advice on an agent from Kobe and hire former Wolverine Basketball Player now agent Rob Pelinka.

Michigan Friday: Recruiting Blitz

Brady Hoke and staff has been very busy since "they walked to Ann Arbor" in January to take over the Maize and Blue program.   They had to finish up the 2011 class and start to build relationships for the 2012 class as well. 

Over the past couple of months, the Michigan staff has done a tremendous job getting recruits to Ann Arbor.  Michigan now has 16 verbals in the 2012 class and only about 9 spots left.   Players are excited about Brady Hoke, the direction of Michigan's program, Greg Mattison with his Raven experience and the implosion of the school in Columbus doesn't hurt:

"When I filled out Strobel's evaluation card after talking to him, I wrote down, '95 percent going to Ohio State,'" CBS College Sports recruiting analyst Tom Lemming said. "I thought he was a lock and I thought the Top 10 recruits in Ohio would all end up going to Ohio State.


"But now, with Tressel gone and so much uncertainty hanging over the program, I'm not so sure."

Well, one man's misfortune is another man's opportunity, as the saying goes, and other schools could benefit from Ohio State's dramatic fall.



"Michigan, man," said Doug Plank, a former Ohio State and NFL defensive back now working for NCSA, a recruiting firm that connects athletes and their families with schools. "They are back in the recruiting business in Ohio."

Hoke had a reputation of being a very good recruiter when he was brought on board.  I had my doubts on that statement in January, I no longer do:  "Knowing the coaches so well when they were at San Diego State; knowing the style of offense they were running and where they would take the program at Michigan made me want to stay in touch with them. I called Coach Funk when he was hired to take me on board with them. They stuck with me, and when I committed, they were very excited."
 
"The odds are not very high I would have signed at Michigan, Magnuson said. "I had so many offers, going that far away without Coach Hoke probably wouldn't have happened."

Michigan's focus still remains on both lines with these last nine spots.   The Wolverines will also be looking for a QB, RB, WR and maybe a FB. 

Here is some latest news for guys that could be Wolverines:

• Jordan Diamond who is expected back in Ann Arbor today got a 5th star from Scouts in it's latest rankings.  Jordan has been a Wolverine lean for some time now and it would be great for him to pull the trigger soon.  I heard some 'talk" that Jordan's high school prefers that recruits wait a while to commit so they can build up some extra PR as signing day gets closer.   Chris Bryant commitment to Michigan was an example of that policy.   With the way this class is filling up, I would prefer Jordan to jump on board sooner rather then later.   

• 6'5 Texas Offensive Tackle, Trey Keenan is planning a visit to Ann Arbor.

• Michigan's Football Camp starts on Sunday so there will be a number of guys on campus this weekend.  Here is a list of visitors from TomVH.

• 2013 CB prospect that played well at the Sound Mind and Body camp named Shaq Wiggins got a Michigan offer this week.  He will be in Ann Arbor this weekend at Michigan's camp, coming off an MVP performance at Sound Mind and Body.

• It seems teams are starting to back off Tate Forcier as he sent a packet to the University of Hawaii this week to see if they are interested.   Looks like Tate is trying to sell his services, instead of schools recruiting him.   I hope he figures it out at some point.   

Wolverine Wednesday: The Evil Buckeye Empire is Crumbling

(sorry about yesterday's post, that real life stuff gets in the way sometimes)

When Michigan was going through its stretching and non-coaches coaching issues, I made a statement that if the media and NCAA come snooping around your campus they are going to find something wrong in your program.  A real life example is when your about to sell your home, the prospective buyer hires a Home Inspector for $400 to find things wrong with your house.  For $400 he will find something wrong with your home, no matter how big or small.

OSU now has every major media outlet in their backyard along with the NCAA and their foundation has cracked and water in the basement is starting to get pretty deep. 

The "shell game" that was Tressel reputation continues to unravel.  The Columbus Dispatch reported yesterday that The Vest communicated often with Pryors non-family members:  After Tressel received an April 2, 2010, email from a former player warning him of potential NCAA violations, the coach exchanged 77 calls and text messages with and spent a total of 4 1/2 hours talking on the phone with Ted Sarniak, the hometown mentor of quarterback Terrelle Pryor in Jeannette, Pa.



Their longest phone conversation - 18 minutes - happened on Dec. 21, two days before OSU announced Pryor and five others would be suspended for part of the 2011 season for violations.


The two also spoke for three minutes immediately after the Dec. 23 news conference benching Pryor, Daniel Herron, DeVier Posey, Solomon Thomas and Mike Adams for five games and Jordan Whiting for one game.


Tressel and Sarniak exchanged text messages on March 8, the day OSU announced that Tressel had known about the violations for months.

Tressel also sent 91 text messages to Roy Hall, the current Jeannette football coach and another of Pryor's mentors. Hall previously told The Dispatch that he was not aware of the investigation and had not talked with Tressel about it.
 
Again the man with the clean reputation was anything but.  His cover up for Tattoo-gate went far and wide, which leads me to wonder how many other times did he have similar type of events and covered those up  (successfully) as well.
 
Pryor 
 
Raise your hand if you first thought was "Doom" when Pryor went to Ohio State?  That decision alone basically cost Michigan fans one season with combo QB play of Nick Sheridan and Steven Threet.  
 
Now 3 years later, Michigan has Denard Robinson one of the best kids in College Football and Terrelle Pryor is considering the CFL.   Wow, things sure have changed in 3 short years.  
 
Funny as it may seem Pryor not picking Michigan might have been the turning point for Michigan to retain it's roots and get back to playing Michigan Football.   I will admit, I was not a big fan of the way the Michigan Program was heading in Carr's last year.  He had a talented football team that came out of the tunnel on opening day not ready to play and got beat by App. State.   Lloyd had stayed too long and his program showed it.  
 
RR came in as the new hot shot coach ready to change the world.  His teams didn't play any defense and finally the Michigan faithful had enough.  If Pryor was here would he had got into the same type of trouble?
Who knows and who cares?  We might of had a few more wins and RR still might have a job.  But sitting here on 6/8 I am pretty happy with the direction of the program lead by Coach Hoke, Coach Mattison and on the field by Mr. Robinson.    Thank you Mr. Pryor!
 
The news of Pryor leaving was not really news, the Buckeye Blogs had it a couple of weeks ago.  He just made it official yesterday.   The news from ESPN that he made $20K to $40K in autographs is a new one.
 
So while USC loses it's National Championship and Tennessee's AD quits you start to wonder about Ohio State's NC and Auburn's as well.   Not a great time for College Football as a whole, let's hope Michigan is on steady ground and ready to move in the right direction.

Wolverine Wednesday: Kids Don't Go to Ohio State to Study Public Relations

They clearly don't understand PR in Columbus.  They have made one mistake after another trying to manage tattoo-gate. 

Let's take a look at how poorly OSU has handled their Public Relations in this matter:

12/23/2010: AD Gene Smith:  “There are no other NCAA violations around this case,” Smith declared. “We’re very fortunate we do not have a systemic problem in our program. This is isolated to these young men, isolated to this particular incident. There are no other violations that exist.”

Really?  Why would you say "we do not have a systemic problem in our program" if you don't?  He knew they had one. 

3/8/2011: Tressel Press Conference after Yahoo report that he knew the players sold their gear.

• Jim never apologizes and just says he made a minor mistake not letting OSU know about the email.
• The school suspends Tressel two games against two weak MAC teams
• President Gordon Gee drops this line (regarding JT's job status) “No, are you kidding me? I’m just hopeful that the coach doesn’t dismiss me”

3/18/2011: Tressel extends his suspension from 2 games to 5 games under media pressure on 2 games being a joke

4/20/2011: AD Gene Smith calls the Tressel situation a nightmare in a interview


5/18/2011: During the Big Ten Spring Meetings:  AD Gene Smith gives his support to his head coach Jim Tressel

5/30/2011: OSU decided to fire ask Tressel to resign.  On Memorial Day when there was little to no sports activity.  No NBA finals or even the Indy 500.  A day with only a few baseball games.  

The reason for the timing was not for the respect for the Military or anything else you have read or heard.  It was because the SI article was due out the next day and OSU wanted to get in front of the article.  OSU was alerted about the article and potential violations on Friday.  Jim was on vacation and returned on Saturday.  Sunday they discussed the situation and Monday they made it public. 

5/31/2001: NCAA and OSU are investigating Pryor and his 8 cars in 3 years. 

Stay tuned I'm sure it will get worse.

Michigan Tuesday: Wolverines Add Another 2012 DB

With Ohio State's program flapping in the wind, now is the time for the Wolverines to make some "hay" in recruiting in the State of Ohio and in the Midwest. 

The first Ohio prospect to jump on board the Wolverines train (after Tressel resigns) is Allen Gant the son of former Wolverine Tony Gant from outside Toledo, Ohio.  Allen is 6'2 and roughly 200 pounds and recently received a Michigan offer.   Allen didn't have an OSU offer but did have offers from WVU, Cincinnati, Stanford, Illinois, Boston College, Kentucky and MAC Schools.

Rivals list Allen as a WR but I assume Michigan is bringing him in as a DB and probably a Safety prospect.  Allen is rated 3 stars by Scouts and not rated by Rivals.  This is the second DB in the 2012 class with Trey Richardson.

I like this pick up for a couple reasons. One, he is a Michigan legacy prospect and two, he is a local prospect living outside of Toledo in Sylvania, Ohio. 

This is Michigan's 13th commitment for the 2012 class.

 

Surprise! Tressel Has Always Been Dirty

The SI rumored article is out.  I hope we now can  stop hearing all over ESPN radio and other places that Jim is a guy with high integrity and just made one bad decision to "protect" his players.  This is a man that hasn't played by the rules since he was at Youngstown State.  This man did what ever it took to win, which included taking a blind eye to everything wrong outside the program and setting up "special" deals for his players with boosters.  I just heard OSU's President/part time comedian Gordon Gee say that Jim and the Ohio State program continues to have reputation of high integrity.  Think again Carrot Top!

The article details a number of infractions over an 8 year period.  Including:

• Tressels NCAA problems at YSU - that have already been reported and are very similar to the problems currently at OSU.
• Not 6 players trading gear for Tattoo's at least 28 players
• Players driving cars they couldn't afford
• Players would hang out at 2 different tattoo parlors where they would: drink, play video games and smoke weed. 
• Some players traded signed gear for marijuana
• Tressel was setting up phony raffles as an OSU assistant so that top recruits would win
• SI informed OSU about the article on Friday, which clearly lead to his firing resignation today.

The story basically portrays a man that tricked us all by having a "senatorial" image but was clearly playing outside the rules to win football games.   Bolded below is my favorite line from the piece.  The section refers to when Jim was an assistant under Earl Bruce at OSU in the mid -80's.

One of Tressel's duties then was to organize and run the Buckeyes' summer camp. Most of the young players who attended it would never play college football, but a few were top prospects whom Ohio State was recruiting. At the end of camp, attendees bought tickets to a raffle with prizes such as cleats and a jersey. According to his fellow assistant, Tressel rigged the raffle so that the elite prospects won -- a potential violation of NCAA rules. Says the former colleague, who asked not to be identified because he still has ties to the Ohio State community, "In the morning he would read the Bible with another coach. Then, in the afternoon, he would go out and cheat kids who had probably saved up money from mowing lawns to buy those raffle tickets. That's Jim Tressel."

That's Jim Treseel, former Ohio State Football coach.  What a memorial day to remember.

Michigan Monday: Tressel is Done

Like I suggested months ago, Jim Tressel has decided to resign from Ohio State.   Many of you know the story and the crime, but do you?

Pultizer Prize winning SI writer George Dohrmann is about to release a story that is supposed to bring new allegations to light on the OSU program.   The story is expected to be released today/tonight.  The story was originally going to be released on Tuesday at 12:00.

So this firing/resignation was a clear attempt to get in front of that story. It seemed OSU was pretty intent on riding forward on the Tattoo-gate allegations with Tressel.

Is this a good day for Michigan?  I don't know.  It's clear our biggest rival hasn't been playing by the same rules.

Is Tressel's era at OSU a total fraud?  I think there can be a clear case for that.  His YSU allegations were known when OSU hired him.  OSU knew what they were getting when they hired him.  They danced with the devil and now they are in hell.

OSU has been owning the Wolverines for years and most years had the better team.  Now there will be an asterisk on all those games.  OSU and Tressel cheated and has been cheating for many years.  This isn't an isolated incident this has been going on for a number of years.

What is next for Tressel?  He is done in college football for a number of years.  He will get a "show" penalty from the NCAA and won't be able to coach in college until his NCAA suspension (TBD) is up.

Who is the next coach?  Luke Fickell will coach next year and then anything can happen after that.  A number of people are predicting Urban Meyer.   If I'm Urban why would I want to leave Florida for a school that is under a huge NCAA cloud?  I wouldn't count him out but I would be surprised if he took that job.   He has a new job at ESPN and will only work a couple of days a week.  He can work on his health and spend more time with his family with his current gig.  He turned down ND for Florida, I expect him to stay at ESPN for at least a couple of years.

I'm willing to bet Les Miles is trying to figure out at way to turn this situation into a raise or contract extension.  :)

How will this effect recruiting for the Wolverines in Ohio?  It won't hurt!  Expect the Wolverines to continue to do well in Ohio this year. 

Did he get fired or resign? Did Gary Moeller resign?  Clearly both were fired.  If Tressel was paid a "package" he was fired.  If OSU doesn't own him a dime he resigned.  OSU clearly wouldn't have to pay a severance package since Jim lied to the NCAA.

What makes me the most sick is Tressel came off as this high integrity, clean cut coach, who always did the right thing and clearly that was as far from the truth as possible.   

I will repeat my earlier statement:  OSU danced with the devil to beat Michigan and now they find themselves in HELL.

Last point to ponder:  Did Terrelle Pryor get two coaches fired?  Thank you for picking OSU TP, Thank you!