Recruiting Update: TE
Sam Webb just put in a crystal ball for TE Theo Johnson (#3 TE composite) out of Windsor, ON. On the recruiting roundup yesterday Sam talked about how Michigan, and especially Sherrone Moore, has been turning up the heat on Johnson in the last month and keeping in touch with him frequently.
This increase in contact may also correlate with in state TE target Maliq Carr (#7 TE composite) seemingly trending towards Purdue, as his crystal ball shifted from 100% Michigan to to 70/30 Purdue. It's well known that Carr has little interest in playing TE where most teams (and Michigan) is recruiting him for. He's pretty much only entertaining the idea with Michigan because of how they are planning on using their TEs. Well, Purdue is offering him the chance to continue playing WR, while also giving him the chance to play basketball. This dual opportunity seems to really be resonating with Carr. His commitment date is set for October 11 so if Michigan wants him, they have a lot of time to push for him. But right now, it seems that Purdue is in the drivers seat.
I would think we have room on the bball team if that's the deciding factor. Get Howard out there.
He would have to be on football scholarship, so space isn’t an issue.
Situation is whether M football will accept him splitting training time. To be fair there are very few athletes skilled enough to play both at a high level in college, and this is probably lip service on the Purdue end. I doubt he will be playing both after a year on campus regardless of what school he chooses.
You are absolutely correct. The first big name example I can think of is Donovan McNabb. As good as he was as a college QB (we all remember that game), he had little impact on the SU basketball team, of which he was a member. He "played" in 18 games in 2 seasons..avg 0.8 pts per game. I don't think Carr is a McNabb level athlete.
Julius Peppers scored 7 pts a game in his final year playing basketball at UNC. But also, Julius Peppers is a freak of nature and I'm pretty sure played the role of a physical big that was almost necessary in the late 90s early 00s in college basketball.
I'll add Nate Robinson started a handful of games as a CB for Washington, including a game clinching interception in their bowl game as a Freshman. Charlie Ward won the Heisman as a QB but also played college basketball and is pretty high in several records books and went on to a successful NBA career.
Ronald Curry was Peppers teammate at UNC on both the football and basketball team.
Tony Gonzalez did decently on the basketball court in a similar role as Peppers (a physical big).
Justin Gage played both at Mizzou.
Those are probably the best examples. Lots of kids expect to play both in college and never do though. So you're point holds, more than likely he'll end up somewhere, play football, play basketball for maybe a year and then focus on football (and possibly move to H-TE).
Matt Trannon at MSU played both. Decently.
Kelvin Grady
I thought Kelvin quit hoops and joined the football team but didn’t really do both at the same time.
I've seen Carr play, he isn't even MAC level basketball player.
I checked 247 basketball recruiting to see if there was anything on Carr. He doesn't have a profile so I have no idea if he's any good on the court.
Tai Streets played for M basketball in the 90s for one season. I think he even made a basket once!
Paul Jokich played for us in both sports and did reasonably well.
Charlie Ward is definitely the gold standard of football and basketball success at college. He was a Heisman winning QB who was also a 3-year starter in basketball before going in the 1st round of the NBA draft.
But that was 25 years ago, when schedules in both sports were a little shorter and conferences more condensed, resulting in less travel. I think being a full-timer in both sports is just too much of a burden in today’s world.
Older guy. More local. Ron Kramer had a pretty decent multi sport resume.
Bo Jackson?!
Drew Henson, football and baseball. Should have picked one early and really focused on it. I suspect that is true 95% of the time for kids. I get that it can be hard to choose, but if you want a career in pro sports, you probably should pick your sport by the time you enter college.
Then there's Dave Winfield, who played basketball and baseball in college and was drafted by the NBA, ABA, NFL (despite not having played in college) and MLB.
Charlie Ward and Bo Jackson?
I think it's nearly impossible to train for both sports anymore, especially for guys who project as a forward in basketball. The ideal football body has far too much muscle mass to be effective at basketball.
Harbaugh and Howard could promise he could play both sports, that he can spend as much time on basketball as he likes, etc.
On the other hand, why wouldn't Harbaugh prefer the next receiver on his board who's committed to football?
If it's a choice between Carr and Theo Johnson, I think Johnson was always their preference.
Exactly what Mr. Miggle said.
I realize this is a slippery slope, but it seems like certain recruits have a ton of "demands" and/or unrealistic expectations for themselves that may be indicative of how they'll mesh with and impact the culture of the team. Yes, the kids need to look out for themselves and set themselves up for success, but sometimes the drama isn't worth the hassle. Everyone is not starting as a Freshman at their position of choice, getting playing time on both sides of the ball, playing multiple sports, etc. I'm not referring to any particular recruit, just general feedback about quotes from various recruits about their recruiting process. Screw the coaches that blatantly lie to them and promise them the world, although I think the new transfer portal will reduce that somewhat.
Not singling anybody out, but speaking in general terms, there's probably only a handful of guys in each class the staff will/should make (some minor) exceptions for. Divas are toxic, and unless they are near the very top of the board, sometimes its best to pass and take a similar talent with a better attitude.
Howard could probably recruit Detroit better than anyone on the football staff right now. Hasn't been good at all since Wheatly left.
Hey man, how was your vacation?
I think Purdue is replacing NW as my second favorite B1G team. Like what they are doing there.
They're fielding a fun team to watch so far as football is concerned. But they also play a little loose with the rules - the head hunting they do is disgusting. And their medical facilities suck.
Wasn't aware of the head hunting, but I think with all of the targeting calls they wouldn't be successful with it. I'm assuming the upgraded the medical facilities since the whole Speight thing. I like that they beat OSU, that Brohm stayed and that Karlaftis went there. Though I wish Karlaftis went Blue. Feels like they are building something.
...and they still get credit for Drew Brees, Kyle Orton, Greise and Eric Hunter's one awesome year before mental problems.
You forgot about Wilton Speight?
No. Fuck Purdont
But does he have "speed in space"?
Not sure ? about your comment “what does he have to do with speed in space” Uof〽️ will always have TE regardless whose the O coordinator
They both run mid 4.6 40s so for a TE, yes they have speed in space.
Nice
4.6 @ TE = Speed in Space.
4.6 @ WR =/= Speed in Space.
If Carr really wants to be a WR, his fit really isn't at Michigan, and good luck to the young man. I'd be more than happy to have him end up at Michigan though.
Theo Johnson would be a very nice addition to the evolving offense. Flexibility and athleticism to play in-line and out wide, offers from all the major players.
Johnson is probably the best TE in the class? He’s a very explosive athlete at his size. This would be a major get, as he has offers from everyone including Bama, UGA, OSU, etc.
Carr also made some odd comments a few weeks ago. I just don’t see him working out. He seems a little flighty to me. He’s probably going somewhere else and that’s probably for the best.
Side note, under the radar a bit to me at least, Nick Patterson has been climbing the rankings since he committed - went from mid 600s to 425 and 20th ranked TE to 12th in the composite on 247. Almost forgot he was a commit. The two would be a solid TE class. Will be interested to see how the TEs end up getting used under Gattis and how that affects how many and what type of TEs we're after moving forward.
I'm happy to see Patterson climb the rankings as well. Though, I'm a bit concerned that his rankings may be inflated because only Rivals ranks him particularly high. ESPN hasn't ranked him and 247's rankings is fairly low. Hopefully he balls out at camps this summer and has a monster senior season (from what I recall, his school doesn't throw much either so good season relative to that). I see him more as an H-back in Michigan's offense. He's a bit of a tweener as of right now.
Yeah, that's interesting. Rivals has him as the #6 TE, right behind Theo Johnson. Based on his ranking history graph, they have him as the #211 player in the country. Big jump in January, went from not rated to #201.
I looked for something indicating why he was so well regarded over there, didn't see much. This article is paywalled (a portion of it is readable), but it has an interview with an opposing coach who speaks very highly of him. Seems like he's actively catching the ball. https://michigan.rivals.com/news/michigan-wolverines-football-recruiting-jim-harbaugh-nick-patterson-shea
Who knows if Patterson is bothering to update offers after committing to Michigan, but offer list still not very extensive.
That dude is only rising because he's committed to Michigan.
Doesn't sound like he's going to be committed much longer if you believe the UM rivals site.
Go Blue.
Man, Sherrone Moore is absolutely killing it on the recruiting trail
Man deserves a big raise. He's been absolutely lights out - the list of guys he's been the primary for is impressive 18 months on the job.
#options
I thought Carr was being recruited as a big outside receiver used to open up the inside of the field for the speed guys and that Harbaugh did say he could hoop if he wants?
I agree with a previous post that typically these kids get on campus and realize how much work it is if they want to be successful and choose one sport over the other.
Yeah wasn't there a thread where an article described the types of receivers Michigan wants, and a big tall guy was one of them? Everyone of course lost their mind arguing in that thread, but I thought big body guy was a thing for Gattis. In fact I thought Carr had even mentioned that.
EDIT: I think this was in a thread describing why they stopped recruiting the Kalil Branham kid, which I really wish they hadn't done.
I recall the same thread with quotes from Carr about how Gattis liked big outside guys and how he would be used.
Purdue's vibe with Brohm is fantastic.... after they beat OSU, their star has been rising steadily... and they are fun to watch with Rondale Moore... I don't think we were even recruiting him...
After they beat OSU they finished the season 2-4.
Including immediately getting waxxed by Rocky Lombardi.
And losing 63-14 in their bowl game. It was 56-7 at halftime.