Tag: Ondre Pipkins

Recruiting Update: October 19, 2011

California WR Jordan Payton

OFF THE BOARD

This guy was already off the board, but Fairless Hills (PA) Pennsbury OT J.J. Denman flipped his commitment from Penn State to Wisconsin.  The 6’6″, 305 lb. lineman would appear to fit in well at Wisconsin.  Frankly, I can’t think of a single reason for an offensive lineman not to choose to attend Wisconsin right now.  The Badgers have churned out solid offensive linemen over the last several years, including first round picks Joe Thomas (Cleveland Browns) and Gabe Carimi (Chicago Bears); they win all the time and put up all kinds of points; and they get to eat whatever they want.  What’s not to like?

POTENTIAL COMMITMENT

Westlake Village (CA) Oaks Christian WR Jordan Payton has set his announcement date for next Tuesday, October 25th.  Payton was formerly committed to USC, and has since been rumored to be a Cal or Michigan lean.  Most recent reports have him leaning toward Michigan.  The 6’2″, 199 lb. wideout will be visiting Notre Dame this coming weekend, but the fact that he set his announcement date for immediately following his visit to South Bend suggests that he has already made his decision.  Payton has decent speed, but perhaps more importantly, he knows how to catch the ball and get upfield.  He understands body positioning and body lean and will get every inch that’s available to him.  He probably won’t be a superstar at the next level, but he could be a very good #2 receiver.

ARMY ALL-AMERICAN BOWL ROSTERS

Since the first waves of offers from the new coaching staff were sent out earlier this year, I noticed that Coach Hoke and Co. seemed to be offering elite players in higher quantities.  That observation has been borne out in numerous ways so far, including the Rivals 250, the Scout 300, the 24/7 Top 247, etc.  To add to the mounting list of evidence, I submit more data for the argument that Michigan is targeting higher quality players than they were under Rich Rodriguez:

Last year 25 of the Army All-American Bowl players sported Michigan offers.  While the 2012 game’s rosters have yet to be completed, 50 of the planned participants have offers to play football in Ann Arbor.  Only five of those 50 have committed to Michigan at this point (OG Kyle Kalis, OT Erik Magnuson, LB Royce Jenkins-Stone, LB James Ross, and DT Ondre Pipkins), but if AAB rosters are any indication of elite talent, then Michigan’s going after it in spades.

Aside from the four aforementioned players, Michigan still has a good shot at landing the following participants:

• OT Zach Banner
• WR Jordan Payton
• CB Yuri Wright

Recruiting Update: October 12, 2011



Laquon Treadwell (in red), Anthony Standifer (in black) (image via ESPN.com)

 ADDED TO THE BOARD

Castle Rock (CO) Valor Christian OG Alex Kozan was offered by Michigan this past week.  Kozan is a class of 2012 recruit, which seems to mean that the coaching staff isn’t confident about their chances with Puyallup (WA) Puyallup OG Joshua Garnett.  Garnett is clearly the superior player.  Kozan looks like an old school Michigan guard, the kind that Lloyd Carr and Gary Moeller would have loved but that Rich Rodriguez wouldn’t have touched.  He’s 6’4″, 295 lbs. and plays with a nice, wide base, but he’s a little bit stiff.  Rivals lists him as the #28 offensive tackle in the country, but he looks to me like a guard all the way.  He’s decently nasty and moves his feet pretty well, but he’s built for a team that wants to pound the ball.

Crete (IL) Crete-Monee WR Laquon Treadwell, a 2013 prospect, was offered by Michigan yesterday.  Treadwell is a 6’3″, 190 lb. receiver who is teammates with 2012 cornerback and Michigan commit Anthony Standifer.  This is Treadwell’s first offer and he has stated several times that Michigan would be his leader if they offered.  Of course, we heard that same type of comment from Chicago (IL) Simeon OL Jordan Diamond earlier this year, and Diamond has so far held off on committing to anyone and looks less and less likely to join Michigan’s class.  There’s very little video of Treadwell on the internet, so it’s tough to get a feel for where he stands as a prospect.  Crete-Monee’s competition level is fairly low when compared to some other areas that Michigan has recruited heavily, so while Treadwell has been very productive this season, his statistics should be taken with a grain of salt. 

OFF THE BOARD

Flint (MI) Powers Catholic DT Danny O’Brien committed to Tennessee.  Before Michigan offered O’Brien, Tennessee was the leader . . . and after Michigan offered, Tennessee never really took a back seat.  Michigan did seem to surpass the other schools that were recruiting him, but not the Volunteers.  O’Brien is a 6’3″, 293 lb. (or more) defensive tackle who could be a 1-tech or 3-tech on the line.  I think he’s a nose tackle all the way, but others feel he’s better suited to a position where he can penetrate.  Rumors have been swirling that Michigan’s coaches cooled on O’Brien and stopped pushing for his commitment; even before those rumors popped up, I had been hearing that he hadn’t been very impressive as a senior.  I will be surprised if this one turns out to haunt Michigan down the road.  While the Wolverines need another body on the interior to go along with Kansas City (MO) Park Hill DT Ondre Pipkins, I don’t imagine O’Brien will be terrorizing the SEC.

New Rivals 100 Released

Kyle Kalis is Michigan’s top rated recruit at #22 overall

The new Rivals 100 has been released for the class of 2012, and there have been some minor shakeups and one big leap.

Here’s what it looked like back in May . . .

. . . and some of the changes for Michigan commits:

– Kyle Kalis dropped from #18 to #22

– Erik Magnuson dropped from #34 to #44

– Ondre Pipkins jumped from #246 to #53

– Royce Jenkins-Stone dropped from #87 to #97

And if you’re interested in how it looks for Michigan offerees altogether, take a look at the list below:

5-stars:
1. Dorial Green-Beckham – WR – Missouri
2. Mario Edwards – DE – Texas (Florida State)
3. D.J. Humphries – OT – North Carolina (Florida)
4. Eddie Goldman – DT – Washington, D.C.
5. Darius Hamilton – DE – New Jersey
8. Stefon Diggs – WR – Maryland
9. John Theus – OT – Florida (Georgia)
10. Ellis McCarthy – DT – California
11. Nelson Agholor – S – Florida
15. Gunner Kiel – QB – Indiana (Indiana)
16. Noah Spence – DE – Pennsylvania
18. Andrus Peat – OT – Arizona
21. Aziz Shittu – DT – California

4-stars:
22. Kyle Kalis – OG – Ohio (Michigan)
24. Joshua Garnett – OG – Washington
26. Arik Armstead – DE – California (USC)
29. Kyle Murphy – OT – California
36. Jordan Simmons – OG – California
38. Zach Banner – OT – Washington
40. Tommy Schutt – DT – Illinois (Penn State)
43. Durron Neal – WR – Missouri (Oklahoma)
44. Erik Magnuson – OT – California (Michigan)
47. Jonathan Taylor – DT – Georgia (Georgia)
48. Deon Bush – CB – Florida
49. Devin Fuller – QB – New Jersey
50. Avery Young – OT – Florida
51. Yuri Wright – CB – New Jersey
52. Jabari Ruffin – LB – California (USC)
53. Ondre Pipkins – DT – Missouri (Michigan)
55. Kent Taylor – TE – Florida
57. Geno Smith – CB – Georgia (Alabama)
59. Zach Kline – QB – California (Cal)
60. Avery Johnson – WR – Florida (LSU)
61. Ifeadi Odenigbo – DE – Ohio
62. Marcus Maye – S – Florida (Florida)
63. Tee Shepard – CB – California (Notre Dame)
64. Kendall Sanders – CB – Texas (Oklahoma State)
65. Keith Marshall – RB – North Carolina
66. Jordan Jenkins – DE – Georgia (Georgia)
68. Eli Harold – DE – Virginia (Virginia)
71. Tyriq McCord – DE – Florida
74. Adolphus Washington – DE – Ohio
77. Ronald Darby – CB – Maryland (Notre Dame)
78. Jarron Jones – DT – New York
79. Chris Muller – OT – Pennsylvania (Rutgers)
80. Se’von Pittman – DE – Ohio (Michigan State)
84. D.J. Foster – CB – Arizona
85. Brian Poole – CB – Florida (Florida)
89. John Michael McGee – OG – Texas (Oklahoma)
90. Taylor McNamara – TE – California (Arizona)
95. Derrick Woods – WR – California
97. Royce Jenkins-Stone – LB – Michigan (Michigan)
98. Dominique Wheeler – WR – Texas (Texas Tech)
100. Bryce Treggs – WR – California (California)

247 Sports’ Top 100

Michigan commit Kyle Kalis is the #40 player in the nation.

247 Sports re-ranked their top 100 recently, and there are some changes to note (find previous rankings here):

– Michigan commit CB Terry Richardson dropped from #31 out of the top 100.

– Michigan commit (and former Ohio State commit) moved up from #52 to #40.

– Michigan commit LB James Ross dropped from #84 to #100.

– Michigan commit OT Erik Magnuson jumped from #85 to #63.

– Michigan commit DT Ondre Pipkins jumped from #149 to #88.

The new ratings of Michigan offerees:

5-stars
1. Arik Armstead – OT – California (USC)
2. Dorial Green-Beckham – WR – Missouri
3. Eddie Goldman – DT – Washington, DC
5. Andrus Peat – OT – Arizona
7. Kyle Murphy – OT – California
8. John Theus – OT – Florida (Georgia)
9. Keith Marshall – RB – North Carolina
10. Stefon Diggs – WR – Maryland
12. Gunner Kiel – QB – Indiana (Indiana)
14. D.J. Humphries – OT – North Carolina (Florida)
15. Mario Edwards – DE – Texas (Florida State)
16. Noah Spence – DE – Pennsylvania
18. Yuri Wright – CB – New Jersey
20. Devin Fuller – QB – New Jersey
22. Darius Hamilton – DE – New Jersey
23. Jarron Jones – DT – New York

4-stars
24. Nelson Agholor – S – Florida
26. Jordan Jenkins – DE – Georgia
28. Ellis McCarthy – DT – California
30. Dan Voltz – OT – Illinois (Wisconsin)
32. Geno Smith – CB – Georgia
34. Eli Harold – DE – Virginia (Virginia)
39. Joshua Garnett – OG – Washington
40. Kyle Kalis – OG – Ohio (Michigan)
45. Javonte Magee – DE – Texas
46. Tee Shepard – CB – California (Notre Dame)
49. Ifeadi Odenigbo – DE – Ohio
54. Dillon Lee – LB – Georgia (Alabama)
56. Chris Wormley – DE – Ohio (Michigan)
58. Kwon Alexander – LB – Alabama
59. Armani Reeves – CB – Massachusetts
60. Jordan Diamond – OT – Illinois
63. Erik Magnuson – OT – California (Michigan)
64. Jonathan Taylor – DT – Georgia (Georgia)
66. Ronald Darby – CB – Maryland (Notre Dame)
70. Zach Kline – QB – California (Cal)
72. Brock Stadnik – OT – North Carolina (South Carolina)
73. Sheldon Day – DT – Indiana (Notre Dame)
74. Durron Neal – WR – Missouri (Oklahoma)
77. Jabari Ruffin – LB – California (USC)
78. Elijah Shumate – S – New Jersey
80. Connor Brewer – QB – Arizona (Texas)
81. Dominique Wheeler – WR – Texas (Texas Tech)
87. Aaron Burbridge – WR – Michigan (Michigan State)
88. Ondre Pipkins – DT – Missouri (Michigan)
89. Cyrus Jones – CB – Maryland
90. Jordan Simmons – OG – California
92. LaDarrell McNeill – S – Texas
93. Tommy Schutt – DT – Illinois (Penn State)
96. Drew Harris – RB – Pennsylvania
98. Zeke Pike – QB – Kentucky (Auburn)
99. Bryce Treggs – WR – California
100. James Ross – LB – Michigan (Michigan)

Ondre Pipkins, Wolverine

Missouri defensive tackle Ondre Pipkins

Defensive tackle Ondre Pipkins from Park Hill High School in Kansas City, MO, committed to Michigan on Monday.  He selected the Wolverines over Alabama, Florida, Iowa, Michigan State, Missouri, Ohio State, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.  His ratings:

ESPN: 3-star, #45 DT
Rivals: 4-star, #19 DT, #246 overall
Scout: 4-star, #12 DT, #102 overall
24/7 Sports: 4-star, #16 DT, #147 overall

Pipkins stands 6’3″ and 320-ish pounds.  He has a 5.15 forty yard dash, benches 385 lbs., and squats 520.  He spent some time as a youth in Michigan, attending high school in Rochester Hills for a while before moving to Kansas City for his junior year.  He had a particular attraction to Saginaw, a city that produced one of his idols (LaMarr Woodley) and a family friend/mentor (Roy Manning).  Pipkins even hopes to wear Woodley’s #56 in Ann Arbor.

There’s not much of a question where Pipkins will play in college.  The answer is pretty clear: nose tackle.  With his height and girth, he will be very difficult for interior linemen to root him out and overpower him.  Height is the main reason William Campbell has struggled at defensive tackle so far in his career, because being a 6’5″ nose tackle is extremely difficult.  Pipkins should have no such issue.  The first thing I see that I like about Pipkins is his stance.  He puts a lot of weight on his front hand and sticks his butt slightly up in the air.  With his weight distributed that way, he has no choice but to fire off low and fast.  Beyond that first step, he continues to stay low, moves his feet well, and uses a variety of moves to rush the passer.  Reports indicate that he has been nearly unstoppable at camps this summer and should make a leap upward when rankings are redone.

I would like to see Pipkins work on delivering a better initial punch with his hands.  He often lets offensive linemen make first contact with his chest, which slows him down a little bit.  He makes up for it after initial contact by using swim moves, the push-pull technique, ripping, etc., but the first move is the most important.  If a defensive lineman’s first move isn’t effective, the quarterback should be able to get rid of the ball if one of his first couple reads is open.  Pipkins will also need to keep an eye on his weight.  He seemed to put on some bad weight over the winter, although recent reports and photographs suggest he’s turned some of that flab back into muscle.  The new coaching staff seems less concerned about having underwear models at all 22 positions, so having a couple extra pounds shouldn’t be as big of a hurdle as it once was.

Pipkins has a good frame, pretty solid technique, and good athleticism.  He doesn’t have the overall quickness that current Michigan nose tackle Mike Martin possesses, but he’s bigger and offers the same kind of leverage advantage (Martin is 6’2″).  Getting big athletes to play low is such a difficult technique to learn, and Pipkins already seems comfortable with that aspect, which is a huge bonus.  With Martin graduating after the 2011 campaign and a dearth of options behind him (Quinton Washington and Richard Ash will be a redshirt junior and a redshirt sophomore, respectively, in 2012), Pipkins has a chance to be a four-year starter at nose tackle.  By the time he graduates, he ought to be somewhere between good and very good.

This is the first pure defensive tackle of the class, and Pipkins gives Michigan 22 recruits in the class of 2012. The last Michigan recruit to come from the state of Missouri was Brett Gallimore, an offensive lineman in the class of 2004.

TTB Rating: 82