omar graham jr
We have a lot to get to, with a brewing war on the horizon with USC (don’t panic), some major changes on the board at quarterback and cornerback, and the NCAA finally allowing on-campus visits and camps again after a pandemic’s worth of naught.
But first, we’ve got to talk about The D (NNTTD), for Michigan declared yesterday Detroit Day. This was the scene in Ann Arbor:
Not pictured: an unkindness of Ravens
For one day in Ann Arbor, all T’s were pronounced as D’s* all soft TH’s became Z’s, company names were given apostrophized possessives and pizzas were served square and bubbly. Coneys and looseburgers were piled onto the serving staff’s arms and washed down with pop, followed by Sanders on Stroh’s. Harbaugh shared his powerpoint Hall of Fame case for Lou Whitaker, traded gear for jars McClures from Eastern Market, and everyone went home with Pewabic tiles, most of which survived the potholed ride home on 94, which still nobody calls the Ford. I made an all-Motown team for the occasion. Also 30 area recruits for 2022-‘24 were on hand (free), which hand doubled as a map for a spirited, three-hour debate about which route everyone should have taken to get there. That list also turned out to be incomplete($). Rivals’ EJ Holland got reactions($), with Cass Tech OL Jackson Pruitt’s ⬆ the most interesting.
Whom they met along the way is best detailed by the 24/7 crew, who broke down who’s who on the remade recruiting staff on their latest podcast. Lorenz also broke down Michigan’s greatest positions of need which became a high-view state of the class and hosted a VIP chat($) for those looking for the gritty—it’s a few weeks old but has some good bits on Deone Walker and tight end recruiting. Steve is also keeping the visitors list as updated as he can.
The board is also shifting daily. This was expected—after a year and a half of no visits, few camps, and scattered football we knew the late-rising 2022s and all of the 2023s were going to be left unevaluated, both in terms of their football projections and their real interests in schools, until way deeper in the cycle than usual. We’re now starting to see all sorts of guys show up to camps and earn serious offers, and it’s only been a few days since they’ve been able to officially interact in person with these schools and gauge how serious they are.
⬆⬆⬇⬇⬅➡⬅➡BA
People liked the NCAA Football game-inspired arrows last time so I’m going to use them some more. Ups and downs mean trends based on where they were last writeup. Lock means commit or near to it. Peepers is we’re watching for something to happen soon. Right arrow is steady on, or no change despite news, or Connor Jones’s coach is giving quotes again. Left arrow is just there so I could reference a videogame code that’s twice as old as the players we’re talking about.
* [I once seriously confused my bud from from France when I told him to find us a restaurant in a specific New York neighborhood and he spent a half hour searching for somewhere called Liddliddle Lee.]
[Hit THE JUMP for the position-by-position breakdown]
Michigan’s closing in on prospects at some positions of need, and adding guys to the board at a lot of spots where they’re less sure of their top options. So let’s check in on recruiting before this post gets pushed down by another Hello or Goodbye. The 2022 recruiting board lives here.
Quarterback
CA 3* Nate Johnson got a crystal ball from 24/7’s Sam Webb and a FutureCast from Rivals’s EJ Holland recently. Johnson ran a 10.49 100-meter-dash at a meet last weekend per his coach. For reference, Tyrone Wheatley put up a 10.46 at Michigan, Denard’s personal best was 10.44, and the mathematics of the Universal Standard Model of Quarterback Physics breaks down at around 10.42.
Holland said as long as Michigan overcomes the distance hurdle, Johnson will be in the class. Matt Weiss working with Lamar Jackson (and Harbaugh’s history with Kaepernick) is helping convince the dual-threat Michigan would know what to do with him, a comp also shared by 24/7’s Brice Marich($). Utah and Oregon State will get their visits, and then I am guessing we’re on commit watch when Johnson visits in June. Holland also said Johnson ran a laser-timed 4.45, and gave a player comp to Marcus Vick, noting the elite athlete could play safety or wide receiver if quarterback doesn’t work out.
Johnson might not be the only QB on the board however. Marich reports they’ve made contact($, info in title) with Cal commit/CA 4* Justyn Martin, who just had a pretty nice delayed junior season.
Happy Trails: IN 4* Tayven Jackson committed to Tennessee.
Best Guess: Nate Johnson and thoughts turn to Dante Moore in 2023.
Running Back
Lorenz reports that recent offeree LA 4* Trevonte’ Citizen is a longshot($), despite Michigan making a top ten cut. I’m not adding him to the board.
Best Guess: Pursuit of Sawchuk goes to the moment Sawchuk signs with Oklahoma, add a Karan Higdon or Tavierre Dunlap type along the way.
[After THE JUMP: Dashes]
This feels especially dumb now that literally having a guy signed and on campus isn’t enough to stop him from getting recruited anymore, but hey, here’s the defensive half of recruiting update. Recruiting board is here, or find it under ‘Useful Stuff’.
Offense is here, including a list of visits. Some quick updates on that: the June 18-20 visit weekend is being dubbed “Victors Weekend” and the BBQ is that one week in July when recruiting briefly reopens (thanks reader).
Welcome Home Courtney Morgan
Years ago I was at the Bentley Library texting late-’90s photos I was finding to late-’90s players, and at that moment some recruit Hoke was after chose UCLA. I asked Cato June what’s up with losing guys to frikkin Jim *L* Mora and, Cato was like “You know who’s out there: Courtney Morgan!” So last week when I heard from someone that Mississippi State was going to hire Morgan I said “Man, we should get him.”
This totally means you have me to thank (you really do not) for Harbaugh bringing home a beloved Lloyd-era lineman who’s been killing it (and sometimes us) on the West Coast, to modernize Michigan’s recruiting efforts. Sitting recruiting director Matt Dudek, was welcome to stay but understandably wasn’t thrilled that Michigan had hired a high-profile alum to share his job, and gracefully resigned to take the opening under Mike Leach in Starkville.
For what it’s worth I was told “That wasn’t it” when I suggested the timing of this shakeup coincided with losing Xavier Worthy, that this was just a case of jumping on a true blue hot commodity who was in the process of moving up. Dudek critics have always been way off base—the I still don’t think I’m going out on a limb in believing Worthy’s botched enrollment played a role in making Dudek expendable.
Anyway: great move. Everyone from his former teammates to the OL coach of Pittsburgh Steelers have been handing out unsolicited praise about Courtney Morgan, and his track record at UCLA, Fresno State and San Jose State speaks for itself. Sam noted on their podcast (38:00) that Morgan adds a guy with Ohio ties (his parents are from there), which was previously a blind spot for this staff, and Lorenz added that Courtney has experience in marketing for when NIL comes into play. Like Hart and Bellamy, and very much unlike Dudek, this is the kind of program hire that should survive a rough season if Harbaugh doesn’t, which means the recruiting class could too.
Defensive Tackle
Quick summary: Need bodies. They have have a 3*, plus a good shot at Cass Tech’s next big guy, and the kind of Alabama 4-star Michigan can get. Very much in it for a #1 overall elite but you know how those go down.
The latest: All hands are on deck in the recruitment of elite TN 5* Walter Nolen, who will be visiting during the big June weekend. Via Sam Webb, the Allied forces include lead recruiter Ron Bellamy and position coach Shaun Nua, the parents of CB commit Kody Jones, 5-star commit Will Johnson, and Mom’s entire extended family($):
“Man, my wife's uncles and cousins... we went out to her grandmother's house and they came in with their Michigan paraphernalia on,” Mr. Nolen recalled laughingly. “They were like, 'cuz... nephew... you gotta go to Michigan!'”
“She's got an aunt that's in Phoenix and they were FaceTiming. She was like, 'nephew, you gotta to Michigan.' They were cracking jokes and one her uncles said, ‘tell her Ohio State is one of the (schools) on the list and watch what she says.’ She pitched a fit! Man, it was hilarious. (Laughter)”
Of course camp friend Kody Jones is in Nolen’s ear all the time.($, info in title)
EJ Holland used the bulk of his Into the Blue (free) column this week to address Michigan’s pitch after Nolen came up for an unofficial visit:
Michigan always preaches family to recruits. Nolen will get a better feel for the staff's genuine approach to this on his official visit, but I know Michigan is virtually moving the needle in this area. Nolen's grandparents live in Detroit, so he would have family close by if he were to pick Michigan. The Wolverines also offered Nolen's younger sibling, which meant a lot to the family. And I'm told his parents and other relatives that made the trip really loved their time at Michigan and around Ann Arbor. Continuing to pitch family will be key in this recruitment.
Holland thinks OSU and Alabama are the other teams ahead, while Wiltfong includes Florida, Nolen’s dad lists Michigan, OSU, and Georgia as his most likely visits to MLive’s Ryan Zuke, and OSU writer Bill Kurelic would take the field over OSU($). Mom says “academics, academic support, good strong academic support and a coach that’s going to challenge him,” are what she’s looking for. 24/7’s staff has analyzed the attack plan($) and agrees the Nolen Alliance presents a real danger. SEC writers warn not to overestimate our chances.
[After the JUMP: Michigan leads for some guys but shhhhhhh]
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