Monday Recruitin' Acquires Large Catchy Type
Preferred Walk-On Hello: Simeon Smith
According to The Wolverine's Brandon Brown, Michigan has added an intriguing preferred walk-on for 2016 in 6'6", 208-pound Kalamazoo (MI) Loy Norrix WR Simeon Smith, who spurned at least one lower-division full ride to realize his dream of becoming a Wolverine ($):
Smith did visit Ferris State last week and was offered a full scholarship but he's in a good situation to be able to turn something like that down and attend Michigan.
"I have the Kalamazoo Promise Scholarship," Smith explained. "I can get free tuition to any school in the state of Michigan. I told the coaches at Michigan that I was interested before the Oregon State game and they said they were definitely keeping an eye on me. Then yesterday they offered me a preferred walk-on spot and I had to accept it."
Smith is exactly the type of prospect you like to see as a PWO; the film shows a prospect with lots of raw physical talent—with that frame he could end up as a jumbo outside receiver or a tight end. There's little question he'll be able to handle the academic load, as well:
While athletics played a role in Smith's decision to become a Wolverine, so did academics. Since transferring to Loy Norrix for his junior year, Smith has accumulated a 4.4 grade point average.
“I’ve heard they’re one of the best engineering schools in the country, and I’ve been taking AP calculus and AP physics to prepare to be an engineer,” Smith said. “When this opportunity popped up for me, I couldn’t turn it down.
“I get the education I’ve always desired in addition to getting to play football at a level most people dream about.”
Not a bad combination.
[Hit THE JUMP for the rest of the roundup.]
Gary's Three Easy Steps To Success
Five-star NJ DT Rashan Gary told Sam Webb that he's looking for three simple things in a school and Michigan looks to be in good shape given his criteria ($):
“It’s going to be how my mom feels at that college… (is she) comfortable,” said Gary. “It’s going to be food, academics and that’s about it.”
So what stands out about Auburn?
Said Gary, “Family environment, food, and just the defensive scheme that they have.”
And Michigan?
“Academics, family environment, and having my mom feel comfortable there,” he said.
Michigan checks off two of the three boxes there, and in other interviews Gary's mentioned enjoying the food on his last visit. Auburn remains the only other official visit scheduled for Gary. He mentioned some potential visit destinations to ESPN's Derek Tyson after Jim Harbaugh, among several other college coaches, took in the Paramus Catholic vs. IMG matchup last Friday ($):
“I’d say Ole Miss, Georgia, LSU, Clemson, Notre Dame and USC are all in the mix for the last visits,” Gary said. “I don’t have any leaders, I’m just trying to knock out my officials and from there I’ll know where I’m headed.”
It might take a bit for any of those schools to catch Michigan and Auburn. For now, Gary plans to announce his decision at the Under Armour game in January.
Webb also caught up with IMG five-star TE Isaac Nauta at the big game in Florida. Nauta had high praise for his recent Michigan visit and claimed he has no leaders at this time ($):
“No I wouldn’t say (Georgia is the favorite) at all,” Nauta replied. “People like to make their assumptions and whatnot but I don’t have a leader at this point. I decided I was going to figure it out after all five of my officials and I’ve had two very good officials so that just makes everything a lot harder.”
He'll choose his school at the Army All-American Game.
Corley, Hill Still In Play
TMI's Josh Newkirk spoke with Detroit King four-stars Donnie Corley and LaVert Hill after their narrow PSL title game win over Cass Tech at Ford Field on Friday, and both seem to be seriously entertaining the thought of going to Michigan. Hill isn't saying too much, but he's not turning the Wolverines away:
While Hill has maintained his commitment to PSU, he hasn’t told Michigan to back off his recruitment either.
“They are going to keep coming after me till I say ‘No,’ or something,” Hill said.
So when does Hill plan on saying yes or no to Michigan? Well, according to Hill, that's not his decsion alone to make.
“I got to talk to my momma,” Hill said on his upcoming decision to stay with Penn State or go elsewhere, with Michigan being an option. “I don’t know right now.”
Corley, meanwhile, admitted that someone very close to his recruitment is in Michigan's corner:
However, Corley did confirm some rumors that had been swirling around his recruitment. He was asked if his mother prefers Notre Dame, while his father would like him to attend Michigan?
Which he replied: "There is a little truth to it,” Corley said with a smile. “My mom, she is big on the education part of it. She knows football, but he’s big on the education part. She like’s Notre Dame. But my dad, he likes (U-M coach Jim) Harbaugh getting you ready for the NFL.”
Corley is graduating early, so Michigan will need to move quickly if they're going to overtake Michigan State, Notre Dame, and Ohio State, but it's not out of the question.
More 2016 Updates: M Leads For Elliott
This is somewhat out of nowhere: top-50 TX DT Jordan Elliott, who's committed and decommitted from both Baylor and Houston, told 247's Taylor Hamm that the Wolverines lead heading into his official visit for the Rutgers game. Texas had been the presumed favorite. While it's obviously tough to put too much stock in this considering Elliott's recruitment thus far, he'd be an excellent addition to the class.
Speaking of which, top-100 LA ATH Shyheim Carter told Scout's Chad Simmons that Michigan is one of four schools standing out to him, and he's got a visit to Ann Arbor lined up:
No official visits to Alabama, Georgia or Ole Miss have been scheduled yet although each has a shot to get one of the five. The one Carter has set is with Michigan. November 7 is when he plans to see the Big House for the first time and that will be an official visit.
"I am really liking Michigan a lot right now. I grew up a big Charles Woodson fan, so I feel I could go there and have a chance to be the next one like him at Michigan. Coach [Jim] Harbaugh is a great coach too, so I like that about Michigan. I am ready to see what it is like up there."
Even though some of these big-time recruitments are unlikely to end in commitments, it's impressive that Harbaugh even has Michigan in the conversation at this early juncture in his tenure.
Etc.
Not bad:
Michigan recruit Kiante Enis had 358 yards on 14 carries in Winchester's 62-6 victory over Eastern. #ktfootball #tgd via @SportsKT
— The Gridiron Digest (@gridirondigest) October 24, 2015
Other, less ridiculous stat lines from Michigan commits last weekend can be found at Maize n Brew.
Happy trails to four-star Farmington Hills Harrison DE Khalid Kareem, who committed to Notre Dame over the weekend. Michigan never showed much interest after Kareem decommitted from Alabama.
October 26th, 2015 at 3:27 PM ^
Gary also said something about distance being a factor. Ann Arbor is 40% closer than the two Alabama schools (about 600 mi vs. about 1000 mi) so if that's true we're in good shape.
October 26th, 2015 at 4:40 PM ^
More than just distance, the flights are also much easier for when you need to fly.
A2 is very easy (and cheaper) to get into and out of because of DTW than most college towns. And this pays dividends even 20 years later when you are an alumni and you want to go back for a visit.
It's a very understated recruiting advantage.
October 26th, 2015 at 10:19 PM ^
October 26th, 2015 at 3:31 PM ^
"I get the education I’ve always desired in addition to getting to play football at a level most people dream about.”
Definitely coming to play school. Like this kid already.
October 26th, 2015 at 3:31 PM ^
October 26th, 2015 at 3:42 PM ^
and went to Oxford rather than going straight to the NFL?
October 26th, 2015 at 6:08 PM ^
...if being a Rhodes Scholar was his goal, it seems going to U of M would have been a good choice: U of M has had 25 Rhodes Scholars; Florida State has had 5.
October 26th, 2015 at 6:35 PM ^
sold him on it. They probably did a better job than anyone else in doing so. To be fair, FSU was a women's college for the first half of the 20th century,
October 26th, 2015 at 3:44 PM ^
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October 26th, 2015 at 10:23 PM ^
October 26th, 2015 at 3:34 PM ^
I'm not familiar with the Kalamazoo Promise, so perhaps someone who is could explain to me. My understanding is that, if the student is on scholarship, it's counted against the 85, regardless of if it's nominally a football scholarship, an academic scholarship, needs-based, or whatever (to prevent unscrupulous coaches from having infinite scholarships). Does the Kalamazoo Promise not count towards that? Is it a third party thing that he applied for/earned and thus it's not a "scholarship" as much as a "third party paying for college"? And perhaps relatedly, is there any risk of the NCAA (being so judicious and consistent with their application of rules) determines that this scholarship should count against Michigan because of reasons (someone behind it went to Michigan or is a fan or some other obviously stupid nonsense that they would latch onto)?
October 26th, 2015 at 3:48 PM ^
from Kalamazoo, not just athletes, and are good for any public school in the state. There's no issue with the NCAA whatsoever. Michigan has no role in awarding or paying for it.
October 26th, 2015 at 3:59 PM ^
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October 26th, 2015 at 4:42 PM ^
So he's still a walk-on, but with somebody else paying the bills?
Sounds like my kids.
October 26th, 2015 at 11:13 PM ^
And as of this year, any private college in the state.
October 26th, 2015 at 3:47 PM ^
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October 26th, 2015 at 4:05 PM ^
It appears that since the scholarship was awarded by an outside organization that has no ties to the university and requires no information about athletic involvement in order to qualify for the scholarship, then he would not, in fact, count toward the scholarship limit.
http://informedathlete.com/ncaa-rules-on-outside-scholarships/
"Here are some key points about outside aid classified into these three categories:
No relationship to athletics ability: A scholarship program that requests or encourages an applicant to include their athletic participation or achievements as part of the application process cannot be classified in this category. The organization that awards the scholarship may be asked to confirm that it did not consider athletics participation or achievements in selecting the athlete who receives the award and must not restrict the athlete’s choice of college institution.
...
Athletics Participation as a Major Criterion. Scholarships are classified in this category if the athlete’s athletics participation and achievements are the major criteria for awarding the scholarship. In fact, if applicants or nominees are required to be an athlete in order to be considered for a scholarship, then that scholarship will automatically be considered to be in this category. Furthermore, if the recipient of a scholarship from this category was recruited by the college they will be attending, the recipient will be considered a “counter” for financial aid purposes and the value of the scholarship will be counted toward team financial aid limits as if it were an athletic scholarship awarded by the college. Scholarships in this category should be sent to the financial aid office of the college the recipient will be attending so that the aid will be properly tracked for NCAA limits."
October 27th, 2015 at 12:06 AM ^
To all of its graduates who live in the city,Subject to how long they actually went to school there.
October 26th, 2015 at 3:34 PM ^
Glad Rashan Gary has food as one of his top priorities. I think if all recruits were actually honest with themselves that might be a more typical answer to a list of priorities. Gotta know what your food options are goin into college.
October 26th, 2015 at 3:54 PM ^
October 26th, 2015 at 4:17 PM ^
How can one college have a food advantage over another?
October 26th, 2015 at 4:40 PM ^
Quality/amount of on campus dining choices, quality of food in surrounding city, that sort of thing. For instance, if a kid really loves mexican food, I can imagine that would be a tick in the USC/UCLA column as opposed to, say, Minnesota. What and how well you can eat for 4 years isn't an insignificant thing to a lot of people. It wasn't a significant factor for me back in the day, but I was cognizant of it.
October 26th, 2015 at 4:49 PM ^
So if food is the difference between us getting the #1 recruit in the country or not, then for God's sake spend some of that BTN $$$ and hire a personal chef to follow the kid around 7x24 and make him whatever the hell he wants.
We ARE NOT losing the #1 recruit in the country because of a freaking jalapeno cheesburger.
October 27th, 2015 at 12:54 PM ^
a school for the next 3-5 yars include food. The priorities anyway. I love food as much as the next guy, maybe more, but that would never occur to me.
October 27th, 2015 at 3:23 PM ^
October 26th, 2015 at 10:26 PM ^
October 26th, 2015 at 3:35 PM ^
So--this guy is on full scholarship but still counts as a walk on? I guess I don't really understand what is to prevent boosters from creating "scholarship organizations" that they fund and get to decide who it goes to, and then awarding these scholarships to prospective football stars.
TL;DR I'm not sure that you can play football and not count as one of the 85 scholarship slots if you are on ANY type of scholarship
October 26th, 2015 at 5:12 PM ^
But very documentable that athletics has nothing to do with his scholarship, which is from an outside organization--he gets one based on being in the Kalamazoo Public Schools.
October 26th, 2015 at 5:42 PM ^
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October 26th, 2015 at 5:49 PM ^
He doesn't have to go through tryouts in the fall. A grayshirt won't be on scholarship for his first semester. They can either pay their own way or delay their enrollment. They count as members of the following class.
October 27th, 2015 at 12:07 AM ^
As having a real big Rotary club scholarship
October 26th, 2015 at 3:42 PM ^
Anyone else remember the ironically named Michigan Promise Scholarship?
I qualified for that and then the state discontinued it after my freshmen year.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan_Promise_Scholarship
October 26th, 2015 at 3:54 PM ^
Same here. I was also supposed to get $1,000 for being a safety at my school in 5th grade.
October 26th, 2015 at 5:57 PM ^
<--- 5th grade safety captain right here
October 26th, 2015 at 4:10 PM ^
In 1999, Michigan legislature enacted in Public Act 94 the Michigan Merit Award. Designed to benefit graduating seniors between 2000 and 2006, it granted up to $3,000.00 to students who performed exceptionally well on the Michigan Educational Assessment Program tests.[3] On December 21, 2006, Governor Granholm signed Public Act 479 establishing the Michigan Promise Scholarship to replace that award.[4]
That's from Wikipedia and I thinki t may be off. I was awarded it, then when Granholm came into offic e it was cut to $500 or nothing, then my senior year as I was graduating I got a very fancy letter telling me I could now get the new one(except for I was done with school).
It was the biggest F U the government doesn't actually give a F about education I've ever received. Between that and tuition rising 30% from Freshman to Senior year, my working full time during Junior and Senior year of high school and 3 jobs during the summer didn't mean jack and still ended up with a ton of loans. So much for being responsible, I should have done the american\politician thing and been born into money or something.
October 26th, 2015 at 5:03 PM ^
It got cancelled literally right when those freshman were moving in / just starting their first year. Granholm went on a tour to various universities to speak about it's cancellation. When she spoke at my school, she didn't offer solutions, or reasons why it's cut, she literally just blamed it on Republicans. Like SHE WAS THE ONE THAT SIGNED THE BILL THAT CUT THE FUNDING!
October 27th, 2015 at 12:09 AM ^
And A1-state recession, you don't always get what you want.
October 26th, 2015 at 4:00 PM ^
How do we upgrade our food game??
October 26th, 2015 at 4:10 PM ^
I can't possibly imagine we need to, I mean, maybe a food truck near the practice facility or something but other than that........I think we're covered.
October 26th, 2015 at 4:33 PM ^
But if a kid is into barbecue or soul food, Auburn (along with many other SEC schools) is going to beat us every time.
October 26th, 2015 at 4:37 PM ^
Isn't Auburn in an area that may not, demographically speaking, have a whole lot of good BBQ and soul food within easy travelling distance?
October 26th, 2015 at 4:57 PM ^
I always laugh at these statements.
It's all about knowing how to prepare the food, not where you prepare it.
New York has great bagels, but they don't grow the wheat in New York. In fact none of the ingredients even come from New York. It's because you have lots of people that have been preparing them well for 100+ years. Those people are going to prepare bagels well if they do it in San Fransisco too.
You can get good BBQ in Ann Arbor if you get people who know how to do it.
Get some good chefs for the football team dining tables and you'll be able to give them good food.
October 26th, 2015 at 10:32 PM ^
Disclaimer; I have not been to an SEC campus but North Carolina has awesome BBQ spots all over, and I assume by proxy the rest of the south does as well.
October 26th, 2015 at 4:05 PM ^
Those useless all-star games are going to be appointment televsion for UM again, apparently.
October 26th, 2015 at 4:09 PM ^
I'd love it if Michigan could get him. He's listed as a DT, but in the highlight video he lines up as a DE. Interesting. But, at 6-5 and 300, I'd say DT is where he'd be here.
October 26th, 2015 at 4:24 PM ^
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October 26th, 2015 at 11:50 PM ^
October 26th, 2015 at 4:27 PM ^
October 26th, 2015 at 5:00 PM ^
It's been boring the last few years. We haven't had much NSD excitement since Big Will Campbell. Looks like it's going to be interesting again.
October 26th, 2015 at 4:32 PM ^
With this and the new plan to give scholarships to kids in Southfield and Ypsilanti who complete a multi-year program, could this be the beginning of a loophole to bring in top in-state athletes in as "preferred walk-ons" while saving the scholarships for out of state kids and some in-state kids who are not in those types of programs?
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