Tag: 2004 Recruiting Review

2004 Offer Board

74 total offers

QUARTERBACK (3)
Chad Henne – West Lawn, PA (Michigan)
Blake Barnes – Baldwyn, MS (Georgia)
Rhett Bomar – Grand Prairie, TX (Oklahoma)

RUNNING BACK (11)
Roger Allison – Lake Orion, MI (Michigan)
Mike Hart – Syracuse, NY (Michigan)
Max Martin – Madison, AL (Michigan)
Greg Coleman – Iowa City, IA (Iowa State)
Derron Thomas – Reserve, LA (Miami)
Bobby Washington – Miami, FL (Miami)
Tony Temple – Kansas City, MO (Missouri)
Erik Haw – Columbus, OH (Ohio State)
Ja’Kouri Williams – Plaquemine, LA (Tennessee)
George Bell – Fayetteville, NC (Virginia Tech)
Purnell Sturdivant – Norfolk, VA (Virginia Tech)

WIDE RECEIVER (11)
Adrian Arrington – Cedar Rapids, IA (Michigan)
Keston Cheatham – Pomona, CA (Michigan)
Doug Dutch – Washington, DC (Michigan)
Morgan Trent – Orchard Lake, MI (Michigan)
Lonnell Dewalt – Bowling Green, KY (Kentucky)
Ted Ginn, Jr. – Cleveland, OH (Ohio State)
Cameron Colvin – Concord, CA (Oregon)
Jaison Williams – Culver City, CA (Oregon)
Desmond Tardy – Indianapolis, IN (Purdue)
Chris Ogbonnaya – Houston, TX (Texas)
Ryan Graves – Venice, CA (UCLA)

TIGHT END (4)
Mike Massey – Cleveland, OH (Michigan)
Kellen Freeman-Davis – Adrian, MI (Michigan State)
Dale Thompson – Corona, CA (USC)
Brad Allen – Venice, FL (Vanderbilt)

OFFENSIVE TACKLE (6)
Micah Jones – Mayfield, KY (Kentucky)
Kellen Heard – Wharton, TX (Miami)
Kyle Mitchum – Erie, PA (Ohio State)
Steve Rehring – West Chester, OH (Ohio State)
Gerald Cadogan – Portsmouth, OH (Penn State)
Chilo Rachal – Compton, CA (USC)

OFFENSIVE GUARD (8)
Jeremy Ciulla – Kennesaw, GA (Michigan)
Grant DeBenedictis – Boca Raton, FL (Michigan)
Brett Gallimore – Riverside, MO (Michigan)
Alex Mitchell – Bay City, MI (Michigan)
Dumaka Atkins – Sarasota, FL (Florida State)
Greg Harrison – Shenandoah, PA (Penn State)
Josh Winchell – Southaven, MS (South Carolina)
Thomas Herring – Los Angeles, CA (USC)

CENTER (0)

DEFENSIVE END (8)
Eugene Germany – Pomona, CA (Michigan)
Tim Jamison – Harvey, IL (Michigan)
Charles Alexander – Breaux Bridge, LA (LSU)
Calais Campbell – Denver, CO (Miami)
Dion Gales – LaPlace, LA (Mississippi)
Vernon Gholston – Detroit, MI (Ohio State)
Ryan Baker – Indianapolis, IN (Purdue)
Jeff Schweiger, Jr. – San Jose, CA (USC)

DEFENSIVE TACKLE (9)
Alan Branch – Albuquerque, NM (Michigan)
Will Johnson – Lake Orion, MI (Michigan)
Marques Walton – Chicago, IL (Michigan)
Dwayne Hendricks – Millville, NJ (Miami)
Corey Mills – Memphis, TN (Mississippi)
A.Q. Shipley – Coraopolis, PA (Penn State)
Craig Bokor – Aliquippa, PA (Pittsburgh)
Williams Morrisey – Silsbee, TX (Texas A&M)
Nick Hayden – Hartland, WI (Wisconsin)

LINEBACKER (5)
Chris Graham – Indianapolis, IN (Michigan)
Chris Rogers – Wexford, PA (Michigan)
John Thompson – Detroit, MI (Michigan)
Marcus Freeman – Huber Heights, OH (Ohio State)
Dan Connor – Wallingford, PA (Penn State)

CORNERBACK (2)
Charles Stewart – Farmington Hills, MI (Michigan)
Rod Council – Charlotte, NC (Louisville)

SAFETY (5)
Jamar Adams – Charlotte, NC (Michigan)
Kyle Jackson – Neptune Beach, FL (Florida)
Craig Steltz – New Orleans, LA (LSU)
Devon Lyons – Pittsburgh, PA (Ohio State)
Sirjo Welch – Columbus, OH (Ohio State)

KICKER (2)
David Lonie – Iowa Falls, IA (California)
Dave Brytus – Imperial, PA (Purdue)

2004 Recruiting: Tight Ends and Wide Receivers

The recruiting class of 2004 has run out of eligibility. It’s sad to see some of these guys go. Others…not so much. Here’s part two of a breakdown of the 2004 recruiting class.

Wide Receivers

Adrian Arrington: 6’4″, 180 lbs. – Cedar Rapids, IA – Rivals: ****
Arrington was a strong contributor to Michigan’s team for a couple years. He played as a true freshman but then suffered an injury that caused him to redshirt as a sophomore. When he returned in 2006, he was the second option in the passing game to Mario Manningham. Arrington reminded many Michigan fans of the steady stream of big, athletic receivers at Michigan – Amani Toomer, Mercury Hayes, David Terrell, Marquis Walker, etc. He had the athleticism and the big play ability of those players, but never passed Manningham for team supremacy. Quarterback Chad Henne often looked to Arrington on fades and jump balls near the end zone, and Arrington responded with excellent, acrobatic catches. He would have been the #1 receiver in 2008 if he had waited around, but he was scared off by the graduation of Henne and the transfer of Ryan Mallett to Arkansas. Without an established quarterback to throw him the ball when he would have been a senior, Arrington took a chance on the NFL and was drafted in the seventh round.
Career statistics: 100 receptions, 1285 yards, 14 TD’s

Doug Dutch: 5’11”, 204 lbs. – Bowie, MD – Rivals: ****
Dutch was rather highly regarded coming out of high school, ranking as the #10 wide receiver and #98 player overall for Rivals. Unfortunately for Michigan fans, Dutch never became a significant contributor. He redshirted as a freshman and then spent two years attempting to become a reliable wide receiver. He caught four passes for 34 yards as a redshirt freshman and returned a couple punts for nine yards that same year. Going into the 2007 season, Dutch accepted a position switch to cornerback due to Michigan’s shortage of defensive backs. He made one tackle against Notre Dame in 2007 but played sparingly for the rest of his career. Simply based on his recruiting ranking, Dutch was one of the biggest few disappointments of the Carr recruiting years.
Career statistics: 4 receptions, 34 yards; 2 punt returns, 9 yards; 1 solo tackle

Keston Cheathem: 6’3″, 195 lbs. – Pomona, CA – Rivals: ***
Cheathem was recruited as Rivals’ #44 wide receiver. Cheathem lasted only one season in Ann Arbor after being converted to safety. He then returned closer to home and played at Fresno City Community College for two seasons before transferring again to Bowling Green State University. He played two seasons at BGSU, but caught only two passes for 32 yards.
Career stats (at Michigan): None.

Position grade: C+. In a traditional Michigan offense, Arrington could have been the reincarnation of Marquis Walker or Jason Avant. Michigan did a good job of getting him on board and he would have been great, if not for the change in offensive philosophy. Cheathem turned out to be a wasted scholarship, and Dutch was only slightly better than that.

Tight Ends

Mike Massey: 6’4″, 225 lbs. – Cleveland, OH – Rivals: ****
Massey was the #5 strongside defensive end in the 2004 class, but Michigan used him at tight end from day one. But when I say “used him,” I mean they put him on the field occasionally throughout his career but really didn’t do anything with him. Perhaps Massey would have served himself and the team better by being kept at defensive end. He was always a little too tentative to be a good blocker and lacked the speed and agility to be a areal threat in the passing game. He was beaten out by the hot-headed and mistake-prone Carson Butler and the 2008 true freshman Kevin Koger and tallied only 20 receptions throughout his career. Mike’s older brother, Pat, was a captain of the Michigan squad in 2005, but neither player really stood out as an excellent football player; both were respected for their leadership, though. And all the girlies think Mike is hot, so there’s that.
Career statistics: 20 receptions, 161 yards, 2 TD’s

Position grade: C-. The class did produce a starter, but that position was generally considered a weakness and was eventually lost.

2004 Recruiting: Offensive Backfield

The recruiting class of 2004 has run out of eligibility. It’s sad to see some of these guys go. Others…not so much. Here’s the beginning of a breakdown of the 2004 recruiting class.

Quarterback

Chad Henne: 6’2″, 210 lbs. – West Lawn, PA – Rivals: *****
Henne was the prize of the 2004 recruiting class. Ranked #13 overall by Rivals, he was the second-best recruit from Pennsylvania…behind Anthony Morelli. Henne came to Michigan and started from Day 1 of his freshman season. The presumed starter, Matt Gutierrez, hurt his shoulder and couldn’t be the player Michigan expected. Henne came in and immediately started chucking the ball to senior Braylon Edwards, providing Edwards with the opportunities to win the Biletnikoff Award as the nation’s best receiver. Henne continued to improve through his junior year. He hit a speed bump as a senior, playing poorly against Appalachian State and Oregon before injuring his knee. He ended his career as Michigan’s leading passer in many categories, but he went 0-4 against Ohio State, which hurt his legacy. The Miami Dolphins picked him with their 2nd round pick in 2008.
Career stats: 828/1387, 59.7% completions, 87 TD’s, 37 INT’s

Position Grade: A. Michigan got perhaps the school’s all-time best passer and a four-year starter.

Running Back

Max Martin – 6’2″, 210 lbs. – Madison, AL – Rivals: ****
In a relatively weak running back class, Martin was the #15 running back behind a bunch of no-names other than Adrian Peterson and Marshawn Lynch. Still, it was hoped that Max Martin could step in for the graduated Chris Perry and contribute alongside senior David Underwood. Both Martin and Underwood were beaten out by another no-name kid. Martin played at Michigan for two years, rushing for only 358 yards. Seeking more playing time, he transferred to Alabama. Alabama didn’t like his attitude, so Martin transferred to Alabama State. He’s probably working in a shoelace factory now. Seen as a savior for the position, he quickly faded into anonymity.
Career stats (at Michigan): 85 carries, 358 yards, 3 TD’s

Michael Hart – 5’10”, 175 lbs. – Syracuse, NY – Rivals: ***
Okay, Hart was listed at 5’10”, but the only way he was 5’10” coming out of high school was if he contracted progeria as a freshman at Michigan. We all know how this turned out, though. The undersized, unheralded running back became perhaps Michigan’s greatest running back ever. Since he didn’t have much speed, he used superior vision, balance, and cutting ability to become the all-time leading Wolverine rusher and a 4th round selection by the Indianapolis Colts.
Career stats: 1015 carries, 5040 yards, 41 TD’s

Roger Allison – 6’2″, 230 lbs. – Lake Orion, MI – Rivals: ***
Allison was the #9 fullback coming out of high school, behind players such as Peyton Hillis (recently seen playing tailback for the Denver Broncos) and Jordan Dizon (a 2007 second round pick by the Detroit Lions as a linebacker). Going into 2005 Allison was thought to be the leader for the fullback job. But a career-ending nerve injury prevented him from ever playing for the Wolverines. Mark Moundros has done an excellent job at fullback, but if Allison had remained healthy after redshirting in 2004, he may have been Michigan’s version of Owen Schmitt in Rich Rodriguez’s offense.
Career stats: None

Position Grade: A. It would have been nice to get a second contributor, but getting the school’s all-time leading rusher makes for a pretty good haul.