Ann Arbor's Antjuan Simmons decommits from OSU

Submitted by Wolverine Devotee on

:)

 

After talking to my mom and people I'm close to I have decided to re-open my recruiting process. No interviews please. Thank you.

— Antjuan Simmons (@_antjuan_) December 1, 2016
MGoBoard
Football

Ghost of Fritz…

December 1st, 2016 at 6:41 AM ^

bagmen is not the only reason recruits pick OSU.  But would it really shock you if it were among the reasons?

In the BR article linked in a thread yesterday (interesting article BTW) on how lots of programs are paying players, etc., in the comments section someone claiming inside knowedge of the OSU program said the following:

"Obviously to protect OSU and its players there is no chance in hell I name names, but they just got caught in 2011 with pryor and yet I'm fairly certain that "cheating" goes on."

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2677700-cheat-or-go-home-inside-the-…

In addition, we have seen several instances where top recruits have gone to visits at OSU and then quickly stated that OSU is no longer on their list.

They definately have a certain culture, a certain way of running the program, that is different than Michigan.  It appeals to many recruits.  But whatever they are doing or whaterver cuture they have down there, has been an instant and major turn off for certain type of recruit.   

The culture on their program is just different than the cuture in the Michigan program. 

Joined: 10/04/2014

MGoPoints: 23880

Everyone Murders

December 1st, 2016 at 7:14 AM ^

I was in basic agreement with your first paragraph, but then had a WTF moment.  You lost me here:

If you really think OSU only gets top recruits because of bagmen then it must be what we're doing too

While I'm not of the "the only reason someone goes to OSU is because of the bagmen" crowd, your last paragraph is a false equivalency.  It's entirely possible that OSU utilizes bagmen (or at least turns a blind eye to it), while Michigan is more diligent.  Some schools - Notre Dame, Stanford and yes, Michigan, all come to mind - are known for discouraging boosters from paying off recruits.

Joined: 12/14/2010

MGoPoints: 65552

lhglrkwg

December 1st, 2016 at 9:12 AM ^

I find it willfully naive to accuse OSU of using bagmen and simulatenously asserting that we are 100% clean. Maybe that's truly the case but it usually is just a sour grapes accusation and not anything based on substance. Of course there was the tattoo scandal but we also had the basketball scandal. Occams razor would suggest that most of OSUs recruits want to go there because its.a great place to go right now. Not because they're all being paid.

Joined: 07/03/2008

MGoPoints: 88063

Everyone Murders

December 1st, 2016 at 9:24 AM ^

You'll note that I said that I'm not in the "OSU only gets recruits because of bagmen".  So that's not what we disagree on.

I think where we differ is that your analysis implies a "he who is without sin cast the first stone" mentality. That is, Michigan has to be 100% absolutely clean in every aspect of it's programs before it can decry payoffs like we know happened at USC and Auburn (and, in basketball, at Michigan).  I think that's an overly-rigid view of the world.  If we're having supervised stretching sessions and another school is buying (via a booster) a recruit's family a new house, I don't view it as the same.

Put it this way.  I almost certainly violated the posted speed limit on the way into work today.  I may have also changed lanes without signaling (if the lane was clear).  I still feel I can - without hypocrisy - criticize a homicide along the highway I drove down as heinous.  Even though I committed a crime in the very vicinity. 

Joined: 12/14/2010

MGoPoints: 65552

lhglrkwg

December 1st, 2016 at 9:43 AM ^

But the point I was attempting to make is- do we have evidence that OSU is using bagmen and we are not? Like it or not, we're basically selling recruits the same thing as far as our schools, coaches, traditions, etc. and we recruit at about the same level (though obviouslt OSU is at another level this year). Why are we accusing OSU of wrongdoing? If Michigan had been as successful as OSU has been in the last five years then I'd expect us to be recruiting at about their level too.

Joined: 07/03/2008

MGoPoints: 88063

Everyone Murders

December 1st, 2016 at 10:12 AM ^

I don't have much to quarrel with here.  I agree that once a program gets to an OSU level it doesn't need to necessarily pay off recruits.  There are plenty of good reasons to go to OSU to play CFB - winning, development, and a gateway to the NFL.

Again, I'm not accusing OSU of wrongdoing.  I think they were very guilty of it in the recent past, and Meyer has a certain unctiousness to him (think Aaron Hernandez), so I would not be shocked if it happened at some level.  In addition, the OSU response to the tattoo gate (and the Maurice Clarett payoff) suggests that the upper administration does not take the "play by the rules" ethic as seriously as Michigan.  That said, I am not accusing OSU of current payoffs to recruits.  And I was on board with you calling out others on this board for doing so without evidence.

The good news is that we are approaching their levels of recent success under the stewardship of Harbaugh et al.  As BronxBlue pointed out above and elsewhere, there's no point in waiting for OSU's program to fall back into the pack.  That seems unlikely so long as Meyer is at the helm.  But we're catching up.

Joined: 12/14/2010

MGoPoints: 65552

xtramelanin

December 1st, 2016 at 12:15 PM ^

it's not a trap.  besides, your avatar name is a little scary so maybe you are the trap within a trap?

actually, i had such an enjoyable time meeting robf at the last home game that i'm going to guess that it'd be just as fun to meet you/yours and not a few of our other mgobloggers. 

as to the farm, bring the kids (fi you have any) and we'll put you and them to work.  we've got extra muckers to wear.   that said, we butchered the last of the cattle before the big game so now it's quiet time on the farm - no crops, only some milking and layers (chickens) to take care of.  it's the easy time of the year until/unless the barn pump freezes and then we're hucking 5 gallon pails of water from the house down to the barn. 

Joined: 12/09/2014

MGoPoints: 15438

ak47

December 1st, 2016 at 9:12 AM ^

The stadium was shaking so much it measured on the richter scale on saturday, they have a multiple national title winning coach who hasn't lost more than 1 game in a season he has been there and put a record number of players in the first round of the nfl draft last year.  Lol if you think money is the reason people pick osu, if that is what those guys care about they go to ole miss.  Places like osu and bama don't have to cheat anymore.

Joined: 05/05/2011

MGoPoints: 33614

Ghost of Fritz…

December 1st, 2016 at 11:16 AM ^

so many people so often have great difficulty grasping the concept that casuation is not an either/or binary proposition?

Multiple casues are the norm. 

They pick OSU in part becasue of the winnning, tradition, etc., AND also becasue on top of all that it is made clear the they will be 'taken care of' in many ways, some within the rules and others outside the rules.

 

Joined: 10/04/2014

MGoPoints: 23880

Maynard

November 30th, 2016 at 11:52 PM ^

If you want the recruiting love spread out a little more, it is one of the best arguments for an 8 team playoff. In the current system, if a kid wants the best opportunity to play for a championship, Alabama and Ohio State are regarded as the best chance to get there. With 8 there would be a deepening of the playoff field, thus a deepening of the recruiting spread in my opinion. A few kids that would otherwise go with one of those two may then have more incentive to go elsewhere.

Joined: 02/19/2016

MGoPoints: 9888

The Fan in Fargo

December 1st, 2016 at 1:06 AM ^

Best chance to get there? They've made it once in the past 5 years. Should've lost their last two games. They escaped a sad Sharty team and a Dantoni that is such an unbelieveable piece of shit cheating ass fuck, he gave the game to the suckeyes. The high and mighty #2 team in the country for most of the year needed home field advantage, many mistakes by their opponent and the refs doing everything they could to win last weekend. I'm telling you guys, there is some loony stuff going on in and around Columbus. The water has gone bad. I'm sensing violatons and decline.

Joined: 09/04/2016

MGoPoints: 1877

buckeyejonross

November 30th, 2016 at 11:29 PM ^

If I had to offer a best guess, Harbaugh's timing right before signing day didn't help, the kid blowing it up with his own quotes and spin didn't help, and for years Michigan fans had a holier than thou attitude about this type of recruting behavior, so when their school dabbled in it too, it was the perfect storm. 

Joined: 07/27/2010

MGoPoints: 13808

bronxblue

December 1st, 2016 at 12:22 AM ^

This is mostly true.  I don't know how many fans didn't think UM pulled offers in certain circumstances, but like you said, it was the timing plus Swenson going public with it.  But the real holier-than-thou moments tend to be with what Saban did medicalling kids left and right.  That always got attention.  

Joined: 11/22/2008

MGoPoints: 172085

Ghost of Fritz…

December 1st, 2016 at 11:21 AM ^

Buckeye JR and Bronx Blue, but...

This seems different in kind.  Simmons was processed becasue OSU is likely to get a higher rated LB.

Swenson was different.  He was not pushed out for a better prospect.  He was processed becasue his senior season performance was not great and he has other issues, such as declining to come to a Michigan camp, etc. 

Agree that the timing of Swenson made it look bad though.

Joined: 10/04/2014

MGoPoints: 23880

Rabbit21

December 1st, 2016 at 7:37 AM ^

Dude, he gave a reasonable answer that reflects what a lot of us presumed were the facts on the ground in this situation. Heck, genuinely sarcastic had a long form article about how Michigan fans were going to have to get used to this sort of thing in the future and come to terms with it, even if they didn't like it.



Sent from MGoBlog HD for iPhone & iPad

Joined: 11/12/2009

MGoPoints: 30387