2017 Recruiting Update: April 25, 2016

2017 Recruiting Update: April 25, 2016


April 25, 2016
Adrian Ealy 877x

Baton Rouge (LA) University Lab OT Adrian Ealy

For several years I’ve been keeping a count of the offers Michigan sends out. Under late Lloyd Carr, Rich Rodriguez, and Brady Hoke, the number of reported offers was anywhere between a little over 100 and a max of 195. In Jim Harbaugh’s first full recruiting class, he offered 257 prospects for 2016. This year that number has already exploded to 262 and it’s still over nine months away from National Signing Day. It’s part of the new-era recruiting situation across the country, which is that players just don’t think you’re interested unless you’ve offered them a scholarship.

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2017
Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy wide receiver Jhamon Ausbon was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’2″, 217 lb. prospect with offers from Auburn, Baylor, Georgia, LSU, Miami, and Texas A&M, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #11 wide receiver, and #64 overall. Ausbon is just one of many players from IMG with offers from the Wolverines, who held a few spring practices on their campus in Florida. Ausbon is expected to stay in SEC country.

Sacramento (CA) Sheldon wide receiver Alex Cook was offered by Michigan . . . and committed to Washington two days later. Cook is a 6’2″, 170-pounder who’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #131 wide receiver, and #955 overall. He’s the third Michigan target to pick the Huskies in recent days, joining WR Terrell Bynum and DT Marlon Tuipulotu.

Baton Rouge (LA) University Lab offensive tackle Adrian Ealy was offered by Michigan. He stands 6’7″, 280 lbs. and is a 247 Composite 4-star, the #27 offensive tackle, and #128 overall. He has offers from Auburn, Florida, Florida State, LSU, Mississippi State, Oklahoma, and Tennessee, among others. He is thought to be a lean toward the hometown LSU Tigers.

Hit the jump for a few more offers, a couple commitments elsewhere, and some random bits.

West Linn (OR) West Linn offensive guard Alex Forsyth was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’5″, 280 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona, Arizona State, Oregon, Oregon State, and USC, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #65 offensive tackle, and #581 overall. I think he’s miscast as an offensive tackle, and he projects more to offensive guard or even center at the next level. He will probably end up committing to the Ducks.

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Buena Park (CA) Buena Park CB Elijah Gates

Buena Park (CA) Buena Park cornerback Elijah Gates was offered by Michigan. He’s a 5’10”, 170 lb. prospect with offers from Cal, Notre Dame, Oregon, and UCLA, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #30 cornerback, and #287 overall. His film shows him playing some cornerback, but he’s also a dynamic with the ball in his hands as a receiver and reminded me a bit of Rutgers’s Janarion Grant.

James Hodgins

Walnut Creek (CA) Berean Christian wide receiver Isaiah Hodgins was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’3″, 190 lb. prospect with offers from Boise State, Colorado, Oregon State, Washington, and Washington State, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #55 wide receiver, and #376 overall. As a junior in 2015, he caught 84 passes for 1,483 yards and 23 TDs. He does not have great speed, but he uses his size well against players who are smaller than him. He’s the son of former San Jose State and Rams/Cardinals/Jets fullback James Hodgins, who played in the NFL from 1999-2006.

Flint (MI) Southwestern defensive end Deron Irving-Bey was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’5″, 271 lb. prospect with offers from Cincinnati, Iowa State, and Michigan State, among others. He’s a 247 Sports 4-star, the #13 strongside end, and #287 overall. Irving-Bey is relatively new on the big-time recruiting scene. He moves well for a player his size, but he might end up moving to defensive tackle, and he also has a body that looks like a potential offensive lineman’s, too. It looks like the Spartans are probably the early leaders.

Lancaster (TX) Lancaster wide receiver Omar Mannning was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’3″, 203 lb. prospect with offers from Alabama, Auburn, Baylor, Florida, Texas, and Texas A&M, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #21 wide receiver, and #151 overall. As a junior in 2015, he caught 33 passes for 671 yards (over 20 yards/catch) and 12 TDs. Manning is a strong player who has good long speed and uses his hands very well to watch the ball. He reminds me a little bit of former Detroit Lions wideout Roy Williams. And like Williams, Manning is expected to play college ball in the state of Texas.

OFF THE BOARD
Mansfield (OH) Madison safety Tyrell Ajian committed to Kentucky. Michigan offered him over a year ago, and he had visited the Wolverines previously, but mutual interest did not appear to be there in recent months.

Wylie (TX) East running back Eno Benjamin committed to Iowa. Benjamin, whose trainer is former Michigan running back David Underwood, had long held Iowa as his leader, even after he visited Ann Arbor. Some Michigan fans refused to believe that a player could like Iowa more than Michigan; however, even with three running backs committed, Benjamin reported that the Wolverines coaching staff would still take his commitment if he chose them. Ultimately, the Army All-American looks to become a Hawkeye. It’s noteworthy that he’s ranked higher than any of Michigan’s three commitments at the position (O’Maury Samuels, A.J. Dillon, and Kurt Taylor).

MISCELLANEY
Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy defensive end Joshua Kaindoh named a top four that includes Michigan, along with Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Penn State. This was a disappointment to fans of his home-state Maryland Terrapins, who thought the Terps’ recent run of success on the recruiting trail would carry over to Kaindoh.

Here are some visitors from this past weekend (LINK).

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