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David Reese, Wolverine

Farmington (MI) Farmington fullback David Reese (image via 247Sports.com)

Farmington (MI) Farmington fullback David Reese committed to Michigan on Saturday morning. He was committed to Louisville since early March, and he also holds offers from Cincinnati, Indiana, Pitt, and a bunch of MAC programs.

Reese is a 6’1″, 235 lb. prospect. As a junior in 2014, he made 107 tackles and is already the school’s all-time leading tackler. He also ran for almost 300 yards, including 7 touchdowns.

Hit the jump for more on Reese and his commitment to Michigan.

RATINGS
ESPN: 3-star ILB
Rivals: 3-star, #17 ILB, #11 in-state
Scout: 3-star, #9 MLB
247 Sports: 3-star, 87 grade, #14 ILB, #525 overall, #14 in-state

Reese has visited Michigan numerous times over the past couple years, with an obvious eye toward earning an offer from the Wolverines. For a while, it did not seem as if an offer would come, at least not early in the recruiting cycle. With high school teammate Desmond Fitzpatrick committed to the Louisville Cardinals since last October, Reese followed suit. He committed on March 7, only to be offered by Michigan three weeks later. It took him about a week to pull the trigger on the flip. When he came to Michigan’s spring game on Saturday morning, he committed.

A linebacker to all the recruiting services – and seemingly in his heart – the Wolverines offered Reese as a fullback. That apparently caused some hesitation on his part, but head coach Jim Harbaugh has a history of playing guys both ways or moving them back and forth until they find a home. I am not a huge fan of Reese’s as a linebacker, because he looks like a two-down, 3-4 inside linebacker to me. However, he does a nice job at the fullback position. There aren’t many highlights of him blocking from his fullback spot, but he packs a nice punch as a defender, which should translate to offense. He’s built solidly and low to the ground, which should help him with leverage in his blocking. He also shows some pretty nifty feet with the ball in his hands and does a very good job of keeping his feet moving through contact in order to churn out some extra yardage. Reese looks pretty smooth catching a couple passes out of the backfield.

Reese does not have great speed, but that’s to be expected from a fullback. As a defender, there was a time when recruiting analysts thought he would end up as a defensive end because he was not particularly quick. While he has improved that aspect of his game from his sophomore to junior year, he still isn’t the most athletic linebacker around. His highlights should also be taken with a bit of a grain of salt, because Farmington plays against mediocre competition.

Overall, Reese is a good pickup as a fullback because Michigan loses two senior fullbacks (Joe Kerridge, Sione Houma) after the 2015 season. No other fullback on the roster has any game experience. He should be in the mix to play as a freshman, with competition coming from converted defensive tackle Brady Pallante and some walk-ons.

Michigan now has four commitments in the 2016 class, including two from the spring game weekend (quarterback Brandon Peters is the other). Reese is the first scholarship fullback for the Wolverines since Houma was recruited in the 2012 class. He is also the first Farmington High School recruit since kicker K.C. Lopata, who started his career as a walk-on in 2004. But it would not be surprising if Reese’s offered teammate, wide receiver Fitzpatrick, ends up a part of the class, too. As of right now, the 2016 class is scheduled to be 15 players strong.

TTB Rating: 70 (ratings explanation)

Brandon Peters, Wolverine

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Avon (IN) Avon quarterback Brandon Peters committed to Michigan on Friday evening. He chose the Wolverines over offers from Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, LSU, Nebraska, Virginia Tech, and Wisconsin, among others.

Peters is a 6’5″, 205 lb. prospect. As a junior in 2014, he completed 148/263 passes for 1,876 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions. He also ran 73 times for 244 yards and 5 scores.

Hit the jump for more on Peters and his commitment to Michigan.

RATINGS
ESPN: 4-star, 81 grade, #12 pocket passer, #181 overall, #2 in Indiana
Rivals: 4-star, #5 pro-style QB, #211 overall, #3 in Indiana
Scout: 4-star, #20 QB
247 Sports: 4-star, #7 pro-style QB, #157 overall, #3 in Indiana

Peters was offered by Michigan a few weeks after Jim Harbaugh was hired. Immediately, many recruiting followers pegged him to commit to Michigan. When he scheduled his first visit to campus for the spring game (complete visitor list), many thought that would be the weekend. However, in the days leading up to his visit, he told Rivals that he would not be committing to Michigan at the spring game and would wait until after some upcoming visits to the likes of LSU and Nebraska. He arrived in Ann Arbor on Friday and was committed to the Wolverines by Friday night.

I wrote a scouting report on Michigan’s offered quarterbacks back in February (LINK). While you can see that I did not have Peters high on my list, it’s also a list of elite quarterbacks – several 5-stars and other high 4-stars. Even before he committed to Michigan, I started to warm up to him a little bit. Not only have I come to appreciate his pocket presence, but I also think he’s a good physical match for what Jim Harbaugh wants in a quarterback. Based on his physical skills, I would move him up to #6 on that list, ahead of Messiah DeWeaver.

When Peters arrives in 2016, he will have to fight his way up the depth chart. If there are no departures, he will be behind senior Shane Morris, redshirt junior John O’Korn, redshirt sophomore Wilton Speight, sophomore Zach Gentry, and sophomore Alex Malzone. It’s unclear right now what that depth chart might look like going into the season, but there will at least be several more experienced guys in Peters’s way. Physically, he is a better athlete than O’Korn, Speight, or Malzone, but they could still have an edge. Peters is probably looking at a redshirt and a season or two on the bench before getting a real shot at the starting gig.

The good thing for Peters – and the rest of the quarterbacks – is that Jim Harbaugh is the coach. Harbaugh took some mediocre recruits at Stanford and made them pretty good, took Andrew Luck and made him great, and took a couple mediocre NFL guys (Alex Smith, Colin Kaepernick) to great heights in the NFL. In fact, Luck and Peters share similar body types, physical skills, etc. If you look back at Luck’s high school highlights, you’ll see a lot of the same traits as you see in Peters, although Luck did it at against better competition in Texas than Peters plays against in Indiana. Luck had a stronger arm, but Peters shows better pocket awareness. This is not to say that Peters will be the next Andrew Luck, because Luck is an elite NFL quarterback with a great football mind, but there is a great deal of potential with the coaching he will get.

Peters is the third commit in the 2016 class, joining offensive tackle Erik Swenson and linebacker Dele’ Harding. He will probably be the only quarterback unless there are other departures at the position or if the class size swells dramatically. Michigan does not often push hard for a lot of players in Indiana, and the last commit from the state was from offensive guard Dan Samuelson in the 2013 class. The last time Michigan recruited Avon High School was when they went after defensive end Elijah Daniel (Auburn) in 2013. Despite it being a pretty strong program, Peters will be Michigan’s first player from the school.

TTB Rating: 86 (ratings explanation)

Five Things to Watch for the 2015 Spring Game

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1. How does the offensive line look?
Michigan was thought to be in pretty decent shape going into 2015 because all five starters were returning, plus a very experienced, versatile Erik Magnuson (who has played tackle, guard, and tight end). Then some funky things happened this spring. Fifth year senior Jack Miller quit football for personal reasons, and classmate Graham Glasgow violated his probation, which earned him some sort of undisclosed suspension. It’s unclear whether Glasgow will play in the spring game, not to mention a possible game suspension for the upcoming season. Now a team with two fifth-year seniors on the line could potentially have zero seniors. The team’s success hinges on the offensive line. Assuming Glasgow is available on Saturday and avoids further trouble, he should be Michigan’s starting center going forward. From left to right, the line should be Mason Cole, Magnuson, Glasgow, Kyle Kalis, and Ben Braden. However, the coaches have been experimenting a bit with Braden at left guard, Cole snapping, and Magnuson at right tackle, so other combinations could appear. Regardless, Michigan is thin on the edge but has several good defensive tackle types (Bryan Mone, Ryan Glasgow, Willie Henry, Chris Wormley) who should put stress on those linemen. This will be a stiff test to see if the offense can run the ball and/or protect the quarterback.

Hit the jump for discussion of quarterbacks, Jabrill Peppers, and more.

2. Who takes command of the offense?
Random message board chatter aside, I have heard very little positive about redshirt freshman Wilton Speight at the quarterback position. The current battle at quarterback seems to be between freshman Alex Malzone and junior Shane Morris. Malzone was the first quarterback taken in the coaches’ spring game draft, and Morris was taken a little while later. (As I mentioned in my spring game mock draft, a drop for the #2 guy isn’t extremely alarming since it would be somewhat pointless for one team to take two high draft picks at the same position.) Regardless, Malzone has earned a lot of praise for his competitiveness, which is a trait you know Jim Harbaugh loves. Neither quarterback has lit the world on fire this spring, so we shouldn’t expect either one to come out with guns blazing. This will likely be a battle of making the fewest mistakes, because this will have to be a ball control offense. Fumbles and interceptions will not be tolerated.

3. Why is there so much hype about Jabrill Peppers?
We’ve all seen the high school highlights, and maybe we’ve seen clips of him doing backflips in practice. So yes, he’s one of the best high school athletes we’ve seen come to Michigan. In fact, he’s the highest rated Michigan recruit in the Rivals/Scout era. Unfortunately, he tweaked a couple things in his leg early on in 2014 and ended up taking a medical redshirt. Last year Michigan had some players who had displayed their potential and could reasonably claim the mantle of “best player on the team” going into the season, with guys like Jake Ryan, Devin Funchess, and Devin Gardner. This year there are no such front-runners. The team is largely made up of fairly highly touted recruits who haven’t been outstanding in college. Cornerback Blake Countess was All-Big Ten in 2013. That’s about where the accolades stop. In steps Peppers once again, who is playing free safety and moves down into the slot for nickel packages. Reports abound that Peppers is intense and loud on the field, calling out defenses, getting people aligned properly, etc. It’s very possible that the redshirt freshman cornerback-turned-safety with three games of experience might be Michigan’s most outstanding player. I don’t expect that the quarterbacks will test the secondary much, but if they do, watch for Peppers to make some plays on the ball.

4. Who is playing where?
One of the really interesting things about every spring practice – especially when there’s a coaching change – is what position switches have been made. This spring numerous guys have either switched sides or are playing on both sides of the ball. Some of them are small changes, but changes nonetheless. Here’s a list of those guys:

• Mason Cole, OT to C/OT
• Royce Jenkins-Stone, LB to DE/LB
• Erik Magnuson, TE to OG
• Dennis Norfleet, WR to WR/CB
• Brady Pallante, DT to FB
• Jabrill Peppers, CB to S
• Henry Poggi, DE to TE/DE
• Ross Taylor-Douglas, RB to CB
• Chase Winovich, LB to FB/LB

2015 Spring Game Visitors

Houston (TX) Alief Elsik linebacker Dontavious Jackson

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Michigan’s spring game will take place on Saturday, April 4, 2015. Jim Harbaugh has announced plans to draft up teams, which will take place this coming Saturday, March 28. Spring games usually attract a lot of prospects, and Michigan already has some good ones lined up to visit.

2015
Commits: Andrew David, Karan Higdon, Shelton Johnson, Tyree Kinnel, Grant Newsome, Grant Perry, Nolan Ulizio, Keith Washington, Tyrone Wheatley Jr.

2016
Toks Akinribade – RB – Brownsburg (IN) Brownsburg: Akinribade is a 6’0″, 210 lb. prospect with offers from Cincinnati, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, and Michigan, plus a bunch of MAC schools. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #63 running back, and #797 overall. As a junior in 2014, he had 220 carries for 1,579 yards and 15 touchdowns. He won’t be in town for the spring game, but he visited on Tuesday and was offered by the Wolverines while in town. His high school teammate is 2017 quarterback Hunter Johnson (see below).

Austin Anderson – OG – Mineola (TX) Mineola: Anderson is a 6’4″, 285 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona State, Michigan, Mississippi State, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, and TCU, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #74 offensive tackle, and #846 overall.

Riley Anderson – OG – Mineola (TX) Mineola: Anderson, Austin’s twin brother, is a 6’5″, 285 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona State, Michigan, Mississippi State, Oklahoma State, and Ole Miss, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #76 offensive tackle, and #877 overall.

Chris Brown – S – Houston (TX) Alief Elsik: Brown is a 5’11”, 183 lb. prospect with offers from Houston, Louisville, Michigan, Purdue, and others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #56 safety, and #855 overall. As a junior in 2014, he had 45 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 5 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles, and 5 pass breakups. He will be in town with teammate Dontavious Jackson (see below).

Hit the jump for lots and lots more prospects.


Tony Butler – CB – Lakewood (OH) St. Edward’s: Butler is a 6’2″, 195 lb. prospect who committed to Pitt in March; he also has offers from Arizona State, Maryland, and Rutgers, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #57 cornerback, and #611 overall. He is visited Michigan on Thursday, so he will not be in Ann Arbor for the spring game, but his former high school coach is Rick Finotti, who was recently hired as Michigan’s director of football operations.

Jalen Cochran – OLB – Plymouth (MI) Canton: Cochran is a 6’4″, 225 lb. prospect with offers from Iowa and several MAC schools. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #72 outside linebacker, and #994 overall. He claims a 4.79 forty. Cochran could be in line for a Michigan offer sooner or later.

Donnie Corley – WR – Detroit (MI) King: Corley is a 6’2″, 180 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Ole Miss, and Tennessee, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #20 wide receiver, and #110 overall. I have him rated as the #1 player in the state. This will be Corley’s fifth visit to Michigan since Jim Harbaugh was hired..

Kingston Davis – RB – Prattville (AL) Prattville: Davis is a 6’1″, 225 lb. prospect with offers from Louisville, Michigan, Mississippi State, and Ole Miss, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #3 fullback, and #981 overall. As a junior in 2014, he had 1,407 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns on his way to a state championship. The quarterback on his team was incoming freshman Keith Washington, who plans to play corner at Michigan. On a related note, Michigan will be holding a summer camp in Prattville, which will likely attract Davis and others from a pretty strong football area.


Terrance Davis – OG – Hyattasville (MD) DeMatha: Davis is a 6’4″, 305 lb. prospect with offers from Alabama, Maryland, Michigan State, Penn State, and others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #3 offensive guard, and #170 overall. [Side note: Former teammate, offensive tackle J.P. Urquidez, also holds a Michigan offer but transferred from DeMatha to Copperas Cove (TX) Copperas Cove in January.]

Camilo Eifler – LB – Oakland (CA) Bishop O’Dowd: Eifler is a 6’2″, 210 lb. prospect with offers from Cal, Michigan, and Washington, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #16 outside linebacker, and #196 overall. His high school head coach is former Washington running back Napoleon Kaufman, who went on to play for the Oakland Raiders. Eifler’s travel plans do not have him arriving in Ann Arbor until Monday, so he will miss the spring game but will see campus on April 6-7.

Matt Falcon – RB – Southfield (MI) Southfield: Falcon is a 6’1″, 215 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Ohio State, and Tennesee, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #13 running back, and #235 overall. He has proclaimed Tennessee as his outright leader, although he has been making pretty regular visits to Michigan.

Desmond Fitzpatrick – WR – Farmington (MI) Farmington: Fitzpatrick is a 6’2″, 194 lb. prospect who committed to Louisville last October; he has since earned more offers, including one from the Wolverines. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #57 wide receiver, and #336 overall. Despite being committed to the Cardinals, area recruiting analysts believe it’s only a matter of time until Fitzpatrick (and his offered teammate, David Reese) commit to Michigan.

Jaqui “J.J.” Givens – S – Mechanicsville (VA) Atlee: Givens is a 6’2″, 170 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona State, Michigan, Virginia Tech, and West Virginia, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #46 safety, and #693 overall. This will be his first visit to Michigan, and most have him pegged for Virginia Tech.

Dele’ Harding – LB – Elkton (MD) Eastern Christian Academy: Harding committed to Michigan under Brady Hoke, and this was his first visit to campus since Jim Harbaugh was hired.

Daelin Hayes – LB – Ann Arbor (MI) Skyline: Hayes is a 6’4″, 250 lb. prospect who is committed to USC; he also holds offers from Michigan and numerous others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #6 outside linebacker, and #82 overall. Hayes says he is 100% committed to USC, and he was visiting with his whole high school team for the game, a team that includes Hunter Rison (see below).

Lavert Hill – CB – Detroit (MI) King: Hill is solidly committed to Penn State, but his brother – Michigan safety Delano Hill – likely drew him to see the spring game.

Dontavious Jackson – LB – Houston (TX) Alief Elsik: Jackson is a 6’2″, 248 lb. prospect with offers from Alabama, Florida State, Michigan, Oklahoma, Texas, and Texas A&M, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #4 inside linebacker, and #123 overall. He is a teammate of Chris Brown (see above). Brown and Jackson bought airline tickets to Michigan specifically, so this is not a multiple-stop trip through the midwest. That would seem to indicate a strong interest in attending Michigan.

Khalid Kareem – DE – Farmington Hills (MI) Harrison: Kareem is a 6’4″, 252 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, and Ohio State, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #14 strongside end, and #226 overall. He has visited Michigan numerous times, despite being a short-lived commit to Michigan State back in February.

Quinn Nordin – K – Rockford (MI) Rockford: Nordin is a 6’1″, 200 lb. prospect with offers from Iowa, Miami-OH, Penn State, and Western Michigan. He’s currently unranked by the major recruiting sites, but he is #1 in his class according to Chris Sailer. This is his first visit to Michigan. The Wolverines only have one scholarship kicker scheduled to be on the roster in 2015, and that will be true freshman placekicker Andrew David. UPDATE: Nordin was offered by Michigan on Saturday.

Brandon Peters – QB – Avon (IN) Avon: Peters is a 6’5″, 205 lb. prospect with offers from Arkansas, Indiana, LSU, Michigan, and Wisconsin, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #10 pro-style quarterback, and #272 overall. Back in February I wrote up a scouting report on Michigan’s 2016 quarterback targets (LINK), so check that out for the scoop on his game. As for his recruitment, the 247 Sports Crystal Ball is 86% in favor of Michigan, and he seems to be the most likely QB for Michigan’s class with K.J. Costello choosing between Stanford and USC this afternoon. UPDATE: Peters committed to Michigan on Friday night (LINK).

David Reese – FB – Farmington (MI) Farmington: Reese committed to Michigan on Saturday morning (LINK).

Josh Sills – OG – Byesville (OH) Meadowbrook: Sills is a 6’5″, 319 lb. prospect who earned a Michigan offer on his visit; he also has several MAC offers. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #70 offensive guard, and #1279 overall.

Will Small – LB – Southfield (MI) Southfield: Small is a 6’0″, 205 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.

Darrius Stokes – WR – Oak Park (MI) Oak Park: Stokes is a 6’0″, 160 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.

Abdullah Yaseen – CB – Oak Park (MI) Oak Park: Yaseen is a 5’10”, 170 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.

2017


Carter Dunaway – TE – Bloomfield Hills (MI) Brother Rice: Dunaway is a 6’6″, 225 lb. prospect who was offered by Michigan on Saturday at the spring game. He is the brother of incoming freshman preferred walk-on defensive end Jack Dunaway, and he is also the son of tight end Craig Dunaway, who played for Michigan in the mid-1980s.

A.J. Epenesa – DE – Edwardsville (IL) Edwardsville: Epenesa is a 6’5″, 230 lb. prospect with offers from Florida State, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, and USC, among others. He’s a 247 Sports 5-star, the #1 strongside end, and #2 overall. He has claimed Iowa as his early leader. This will be his first visit to Michigan.

Jordan George-Nwogu – DE – Ann Arbor (MI) Pioneer: George-Nwogu is a 6’2″, 215 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He claims a 4.85 forty.

JaRaymond Hall – OT – Oak Park (MI) Oak Park: Hall is a 6’5″, 255 lb. prospect with no offers right now.

Rodney Hall – QB – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: Hall is a 6’3″, 185 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He was Cass Tech’s quarterback this past season and led them to the state championship game.

Derrick Hubbard – LB – Ann Arbor (MI) Pioneer: Hubbard is a 6’2″, 202 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. As a sophomore in 2014, he made 58 tackles, 5 sacks, and 1 fumble recovery. He claims a 4.69 forty.

Donovan Johnson – WR – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech:

Hunter Johnson – QB – Brownsburg (IN) Brownsburg: Johnson is a 6’3″, 197 lb. prospect with offers from Northwestern, Notre Dame, Penn State, and Tennessee, among others. He’s a 247 Sports 4-star, the #1 pro-style quarterback, and #9 overall in the 2017 class. Along with Akinribade (see above), Johnson visited Ann Arbor on Tuesday but won’t be present for the spring game. As a sophomore in 2014, he completed 122/226 passes for 1,434 yards, 10 touchdowns, and 8 interceptions.

Jaylen Kelly-Powell – S – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: Kelly-Powell is a 6’0″, 183 lb. prospect with offers from Miami-OH and Northwestern. He claims a 4.49 forty and has visited Michigan a couple times recently.

Donovan Peoples-Jones – WR – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: Peoples-Jones is a 6’1″, 170 lb. prospect with offers from LSU, Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State, among others. He’s a 247 Sports 4-star, the #2 wide receiver, and #12 overall. Peoples-Jones claims a 4.4 forty and is the son of former Wolverine Shonte Peoples.

Isaiah Pryor – S – Lawrenceville (GA) Archer: Pryor is a 6’2″, 190 lb. prospect with offers from Clemson, Florida State, LSU, Michigan, and Michigan State, among others. He’s a 247 Sports 4-star, the #5 safety, and #70 overall. He visited Michigan the last weekend in March with 2017 cornerback teammate Jamyest Williams, who also holds a Michigan offer, and Pryor plans to return for the spring game with his family. Archer is also the home of 2016 offensive tackle E.J. Price, who has named Michigan his leader.

Hunter Rison – WR – Ann Arbor (MI) Skyline: Rison is a 5’11”, 183 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He transferred to Ann Arbor from Arizona. He claims a 4.5 forty. Rison is the son of Andre Rison, the former Michigan State and NFL wide receiver; he now coaches at Skyline.

Josh Ross – LB – Orchard Lake (MI) St. Mary’s: Ross is a 6’1″, 210 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, and Oklahoma. He’s a 247 Sports 4-star, the #2 inside linebacker, and #56 overall. Ross is the younger brother of Michigan senior linebacker James Ross III.

Todd Sibley, Jr. – RB – Akron (OH) Hoban: Sibley is a 5’11”, 205 lb. prospect with offers from Kentucky, Michigan, and Ohio State, among others. He is currently unranked by the recruiting services since he’s a 2017 prospect. As a sophomore in 2014, he ran for 1,576 yards and 17 touchdowns. Sibley was excited about his Michigan offer but Ohio State still probably holds a lead.

Antjuan Simmons – RB – Ann Arbor (MI) Pioneer: Simmons is a 6’1″, 205 lb. prospect with an offer from Miami-OH. He is currently unranked and claims a 4.55 forty. Simmons is the best skill player I’ve seen in the 2017 class, as he could be a running back or linebacker at the next level.

Taurus Simpson – LB – Saginaw (MI) Heritage: Simpson is a 5’10”, 178 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He was a high school teammate of Michigan freshman Brian Cole.

Dylan Stackhouse – RB – Oak Park (MI) Oak Park:

Allen Stritzinger – RB – Warren (MI) De La Salle: Stritzinger is a 6’0″, 180 lb. prospect with offers from Cincinnati, Toledo, and Western Michigan. As a sophomore in 2014, he ran the ball 244 times for 1,356 yards and 20 touchdowns, plus he caught 9 passes for 238 yards and 1 touchdown. Along with Simmons, he’s one of several outstanding in-state skill players for 2017. He attends the alma mater of junior quarterback Shane Morris.

2018
Robert Daniel, Jr. – CB – Oak Park (MI) Oak Park:

Emil Ekiyor – OG – Indianapolis (IN) Cathedral: Ekiyor is a 6’3″, 285 lb. prospect with an offer from Michigan. He visited Ann Arbor the last weekend of March and came away with his lone offer so far. He is the son of former UCF and Atlanta Falcon defensive end Emil Ekiyor.

Kalon Gervin – CB – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech:

Marquan McCall – OG – Oak Park (MI) Oak Park: McCall is a 6’3″, 280 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.

Ovie Oghoufo – WR – Farmington Hills (MI) Harrison:

Taron Vincent – DT – Baltimore (MD) Gilman: Vincent is a 6’3″, 285 lb. prospect with offers from Maryland, North Carolina State, and Ohio State; he also reported a Michigan offer at one point. His father is Troy Vincent, who played cornerback at Wisconsin and then in the NFL for the Dolphins and Eagles. Taron’s brother, Troy Jr., plays cornerback for North Carolina State. One Michigan connection is that Taron plays for Biff Poggi, Henry Poggi’s dad, at Gilman.

Jake Rudock, Wolverine

Jake Rudock

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Dan Murphy and Bruce Feldman are both reporting that Iowa quarterback Jake Rudock has been granted a waiver from the Big Ten to transfer to Michigan. As a fifth-year transfer, he was also considering Boise State. Graduate transfers must enroll at a school in which their intended course of study is not available at the original institution.

Rudock is a 6’3″, 208 lb. quarterback who has started the majority of games for the Hawkeyes over the past two seasons. He sat behind James Vandenberg through 2012, but Rudock completed 204/336 (59.0%) of his passes in 2013 for 2,383 yards, 18 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions. He also ran 67 times for 218 yards and 5 touchdowns. As a redshirt junior in 2014, he completed 213/345 passes (61.7%) for 2,436 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions. He ran 67 times for 176 yards and 3 scores.

Hit the jump for more on Rudock.

Rudock attended Fort Lauderdale (FL) St. Thomas Aquinas. In the 2011 class, he was a Rivals 3-star and the #29 pro-style quarterback. He chose the Hawkeyes over offers from Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, among others. St. Thomas Aquinas is a Florida powerhouse that has produced numerous big-time recruits over the years, including Joey Bosa (Ohio State), Lamarcus Joyner (Florida State), and Corey Holmes (Notre Dame). Coincidentally, Michigan is also accepting a transfer from John O’Korn, a University of Houston quarterback who was two years behind Rudock at St. Thomas Aquinas. Michigan hasn’t had a player from Aquinas in more than a decade, and now two are transferring in from other schools in the same year at the same position (O’Korn is a redshirt sophomore and will not be eligible to play in 2015). Perhaps even stranger is that cornerback transfer Wayne Lyons also comes from Fort Lauderdale, FL, although he went to Dillard. Here are Rudock’s senior highlights:

When I watch Rudock in both high school and college, I see a kid who has adequate football athleticism. He is not particularly tall. He has solid speed for a pro-style quarterback, but he won’t be the type to break open the game with his legs. More likely, he’s a guy who can pick up some short first downs or run bootlegs and threaten the edge. He’ll be able to outrun the occasional defensive end or linebacker, but he’s no match for most defensive backs. His arm strength is nothing spectacular, and he has to have his feet under him to make the deep throws. He won’t be able to throw posts or outs off of his back foot.

What I think Rudock can bring to the team is a steady hand at the quarterback position. He was a pre-med student at Iowa and wants to be a pediatric surgeon. Obviously, he has already earned his degree, and he has been a near full-time starter for a Big Ten team for two seasons. He did lose some time to C.J. Beathard this past season, but a 16-to-5 touchdown-to-interception ratio and 61.7% completions is pretty solid. Michigan fans would have gladly taken that kind of production over the past year, if not two. For a coach in Jim Harbaugh who wants to run the ball, use play action, and manage the game well, this is a pretty good fit. Harbaugh has had success with those types of players before, and Rudock should have a pretty seamless transition from one pro-style offense to another.

My early guess is that Rudock will be Michigan’s starter in 2015. (He finished fourth in a TTB poll last month about who would start.) Harbaugh has not been impressed by what Michigan already has in the program. Junior Shane Morris, the only returnee with experience, is 43/87 for his career with 389 yards, 0 touchdowns, and 5 interceptions. Otherwise, Michigan has redshirt freshman Wilton Speight, true freshman early enrollee Alex Malzone, and true freshman Zach Gentry coming over the summer. This also may not be the worst thing for Morris’s psyche, since the potential usurper is a fifth year senior with two years of Big Ten starting experience, and not a freshman who has never seen the field.

Rudock will give Michigan five eligible quarterbacks on the 2015 roster (with Morris, Speight, Malzone, and Gentry), and since he has just this one year remaining, he will not affect the 2016 recruiting efforts. Michigan has typically avoided transfers, but along with O’Korn, the Wolverines also recently announced that Stanford cornerback Wayne Lyons will be at Michigan this coming season (LINK).

TTB Rating: 75 (ratings explanation)