Recruiting Update: January 27, 2016

Recruiting Update: January 27, 2016


January 27, 2016

Netori Johnson has Superman-flavored hair

COMMITMENTS
Wayne (NJ) DePaul Catholic defensive tackle Michael Dwumfour flipped from Penn State to Michigan (LINK).

Ashburn (VA) Stone Bridge offensive guard Andrew Vastardis committed to Michigan as a preferred walk-on (LINK). Also, if you’re looking for a list of preferred walk-on offers, they’re right there on the message board (LINK).

DECOMMITMENT
Cooper City (FL) Cooper City defensive end Rashad Weaver decommitted from Michigan (LINK).

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2017
Anaheim (CA) Servite wide receiver Terrell Bynum was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’1″, 175 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona, Arizona State, Nebraska, Oklahoma, UCLA, and USC, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #17 wide receiver, and #129 overall.

Fort Lauderdale (FL) St. Thomas Aquinas running back Mike Epstein, an Illinois commit, was offered by Michigan. Epstein is a 6’0″, 185 lb. prospect who also has offers from Cincinnati and UCF, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #74 running back, and #894 overall. Epstein committed to the Illinois back in August. The Wolverines have offered several of Epstein’s teammates to the point where there are too many to bother naming. Epstein is a small-ish back who runs tough despite not having great size.

Fort Lauderdale (FL) Dillard defensive tackle Jon Ford was offered by Michigan. Ford is a 6’5″, 240 lb. prospect with offers from Florida State, Miami, Ohio State, and South Carolina, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #10 strongside end, and #282 overall. The Wolverines also offered teammate Jordan Wright (see below), and both join wide receiver Jordan Merrell with Michigan offers, though Merrell is a Cincinnati commit.

Deerfield Beach (FL) Deerfield Beach wide receiver Jerry Jeudy was offered by Michigan. Jeudy is a 6’1″, 174 lb. prospect with offers from Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and USC, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #6 wide receiver, and #36 overall. Jeudy is a speedster who had 28 catches for 345 yards and 7 touchdowns as a junior in 2015. He attends the alma mater of former Michigan star Denard Robinson.

Hit the jump for a lot more news.


Ellenwood (GA) Cedar Grove offensive guard Netori Johnson, an Alabama commit, was offered by Michigan. Johnson is 6’5″, 330 lbs. and also holds offers from Auburn, Georgia, Miami, Ole Miss, and USC, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #5 offensive guard, and #121 overall. A Crimson Tide commit since June of 2015, Johnson – like several others in today’s update – is a teammate of newly minted Michigan commit Elysee Mbem-Bosse. Also, he was sweet hair.

Rancho Santa Margarita (CA) Catholic center Brett Neilon was offered by Michigan. Neilon is a 6’2″, 291 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona State, Cal, UCLA, and Washington, among others. He’s a 247 Composite, the #2 center, and #407 overall. Neilon plays left tackle in high school but will be too short to stay there in college. He has good quickness and athleticism. He was a teammate of 2016 wide receiver Dylan Crawford, who is committed to Michigan, along with QB K.J. Costello (Stanford).

Madison (AL) Bob Jones offensive tackle Kendall Randolph was offered by Michigan. Randolph is a 6’5″, 290 lb. prospect with offers from Alabama, Auburn, and Ole Miss, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #20 offensive tackle, and #133 overall. Randolph is a smooth, athletic left tackle prospect. Unfortunately, he is probably bound for Alabama.

Madison (AL) Clemens defensive end Labryan Ray was offered by Michigan. Ray is a 6’4″, 255 lb. prospect with offers from Duke, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, and Louisville, among others. He’s a 247 Sports 3-star, the #27 weakside end, and #520 overall. Ray is solidly built for a junior in high school and will probably grow into a strongside end or even a defensive tackle in college.

Ellenwood (GA) Cedar Grove offensive guard Justin Shaffer, a Louisville commit, was offered by Michigan. Shaffer is another 6’5″, 330-pounder who’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #74 offensive tackle, and #789 overall. He committed to the Cardinals on January 16 of this year, so his pledge is relatively fresh.

Ellenwood (GA) Cedar Grove cornerback Tre’ Shaw was offered by Michigan. Shaw is a 6’0″, 180 lb. prospect with offers from Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Ole Miss, and Tennessee, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #22 cornerback, and #268 overall. Though he’s listed as a corner, I’m not too enamored with his burst, and I think he might be a safety or nickel corner at the next level.

Ellenwood (GA) Cedar Grove quarterback Jelani Woods was offered by Michigan. Woods is a 6’7″, 225 lb. prospect with an offer from South Florida. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #33 pro-style QB, and #622 overall. Woods is obviously a very large quarterback, but he runs fairly well for a kid his size. He has some issues with mechanics but makes decisions quickly and has a fairly strong arm.

Fort Lauderdale (FL) Dillard defensive end Jordan Wright was offered by Michigan. Wright is a 6’5″, 195 lb. prospect with offers from Arkansas, Miami, North Carolina, and Pitt, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #38 weakside end, and #753 overall. He’s very undersized right now and needs to add a lot of bulk to play defensive end in college.

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2018
Ellenwood (GA) Cedar Grove cornerback Israel Spivey was offered by Michigan. He’s a 5’10”, 165 lb. prospect with no other offers. There is some confusion about whether he’s a 2018 or 2019 prospect (his Hudl page says he’s a sophomore in the 2018 class), but either way, he’s too young for the recruiting services to have done much with him in the way of rankings.

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2019
Deerfield Beach (FL) Deerfield Beach defensive end Ge’mon Eaford was offered by Michigan. Eaford is a 6’2″, 215 lb. prospect with an offer from North Carolina. Along with Jeudy (see above), he attends the same school that Denard Robinson did.

Ellenwood (GA) Cedar Grove wide receiver Jaydon Haselwood was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’4″, 190 lb. prospect with offers from Illinois, Kentucky, and West Virginia.

OFF THE BOARD
Delray Beach (FL) Atlantic cornerback Antwaine Richardson committed to Maryland. Richardson decommitted from Michigan last week after the Wolverines made it clear that they would not have room for him in the 2016 class.

Citra (FL) North Marion defensive end Jordan Woods committed to Georgia Tech. Woods was offered by Brady Hoke’s staff, but the offer was not reaffirmed by Jim Harbaugh.

MISCELLANEOUS
McKeesport (PA) McKeesport safety Khaleke Hudson will announce his college decision via Twitter at 3:00 p.m. today. I posted a scouting report on him last Thursday (LINK), and the choice is likely to be Michigan.

Here’s a list of visitors for this week/weekend (LINK).

Here’s a handy dandy list of 2016 prospects and their announcement dates, or at least the ones I could find (LINK).

Yesterday, I posted my preferences out of the remaining 2016 tight end targets (LINK).

8 comments

  1. Comments: 71
    Joined: 8/11/2015
    umfarnn
    Jan 27, 2016 at 9:10 AM

    I thought the Richardson decommitment was a surprise to the coaching staff. First I’m hearing that he was told no room.

    • Comments: 27
      Joined: 9/2/2015
      BigSouthFork
      Jan 27, 2016 at 12:57 PM

      I was under the same impression.

  2. Comments: 29
    greggoblue
    Jan 27, 2016 at 5:01 PM

    What do you think about Uche at OLB, not DE? (although I think he’ll play with his hand down in some sets)

    • Comments: 3844
      Joined: 7/13/2015
      Jan 27, 2016 at 5:04 PM

      I think it’s just a difference in terminology. Was Mario Ojemudia an outside linebacker or a defensive end this past year? The position was a Buck “linebacker” but he played like a defensive end a big chunk of the time. I’ve mentioned Von Miller as a comparison, and Von Miller is a linebacker who rushes the passer and sets the edge.

  3. Comments: 1356
    Joined: 8/13/2015
    Roanman
    Jan 27, 2016 at 5:56 PM

    Let’s say, just for fun, we lose four as is being suggested will happen at several different places. And, we take a total of 28. This leaves 6 takes. Who do you want?

    I’m picking:
    Rashan Gary ….. of course.
    Jordan Fuller ….. I think he’s every bit the athlete that Hardman is ….. only bigger.
    Asiasi ….. Beast
    Boss Tagaloa ….. Plenty beastly in his own right.
    Either redheaded kid, I like them both.
    Quinn Nordin ….. never forget Mike Lantry ….. never, I was there ….. BOTH GAMES!!!!!!

    • Comments: 295
      Joined: 12/19/2015
      Extrajuice
      Jan 27, 2016 at 9:33 PM

      Roanman, I know you probably don’t care what I think but I agree with most of your “wants”. The only one I don’t really care for is Connor Murphy. I mentioned that earlier this week after watching his film. I would like to see what more people think after watching it too. He looks SLOW and not very athletic. Doesn’t seem to stand out much at all. Not many big plays made and most tackles are after the ball carrier makes a decent gain. Like I said, interested what others think after looking at his tape again.

      Do want: Gary, Fuller, Asiasi, Hill, Tagaloa. Kicker is important so I’d take Nordin but his attitude makes him come across as a diva. Still take him though. If we miss out, there is always another kicker who can probably step in for 2017.

      • Comments: 1356
        Joined: 8/13/2015
        Roanman
        Jan 28, 2016 at 6:45 AM

        First of all, for some reason I can’t get his vids to run on HUDL. So, I don’t know if you are seeing the same thing. i’ve been watching this one which doesn’t always do a great job of identifying Murphy pre snap. You have to watch it with a lot of intent. He’s pretty disruptive, is breaking down pockets and is a pretty consistent reason stuff is running amok in the offensive back field.

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6zpIctjrsc

        What I see is a 6’7″, 250 lb., 18 year old kid that is really agile at that size. He’s pretty quick, runs, and he gets off his feet pretty quickly to bat down balls, I guess in this case a ball. He looks like bare minimum he’s not afraid of contact, and may like it.

        I agree with your criticism in the sense that he’s not out of this world physically dominant at the defensive end position like Rashan Gary, or even close for that matter. Neither is he a bone rattler like Uriche and Hudson or some of the other kids we’ve got to watch over the last couple weeks. But I’ll take big and mobile for my football team, particularly if it comes with some NFL pedigree like Murphy’s does.

        Actually, I kind of liked the idea of Murphy at offensive tackle when that one got floated a week or so ago. His feet work pretty good, if he can add the weight, teach him to punch. Drevno …..

        Nordin is starting to wear thin with me too. I might prefer both red headed kids, but 30-1-2 and no bowl games. It still works on me.

        • Comments: 295
          Joined: 12/19/2015
          Extrajuice
          Jan 28, 2016 at 11:07 AM

          I watched the youtube link and I think that’s his Junior year highlights because it says it was posted in June 2015. I’ll even say, that the junior highlight are WAY better than the senior year ones. It looks like he grew a couple inches and lost a step over the last year. Most of his sacks from senior year are coverage sacks. He stands right up out of his stance and is able to use his size to work for him but it’s not that impressive. Especially compared against junior year. Is this because he didn’t have much to prove? Is he regressing? I understand the lineage factor but I’m much more excited about lower ranked players like Uche than I am about Murphy. Obviously, I’ll trust Harbaugh but I was curious to what others thought.

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