Tag: 2015 recruiting

Visitors: March 28-30, 2014

Tampa (FL) Plant offensive tackle Jake Fruhmorgen with his father, John,  (image via My Capture)

2015
Jake Fruhmorgen – OT – Tampa (FL) Plant: Fruhmorgen is a 6’5″, 280 lb. prospect with offers from Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Miami, Notre Dame, and Ohio State, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #7 offensive tackle, #74 overall, and #14 in the state of Florida. He claims a 5.4 forty. Fruhmorgen’s father went to Alabama, but Jake is expected to pick soon, and the signs are pointing toward Clemson as the likely destination. Michigan has pursued other prospects from Plant in recent years, including offensive lineman Tony Posada (who signed with Michigan but quit football before his freshman year even began) and running back James Wilder, Jr. (Florida State).

Dre’Mont Jones – DE – Cleveland (OH) St. Ignatius: Jones is a 6’5″, 250 lb. prospect with offers from Cincinnati, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan State, and Ohio State. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #14 strongside end, #294 overall, and #15 in the state.

2016
Stefan Claiborne – S – Clinton Township (MI) Chippewa Valley: Claiborne is a 6’1″, 168 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He could play wide receiver, cornerback, or safety at the next level and will probably be one of the top ten prospects in the state for 2016. He claims a 4.5 forty, a 30″ vertical, a 225 lb. bench, and a 365 lb. squat, which are all pretty good numbers for someone his size and age.

Rex Culpepper – QB – Tampa (FL) Plant: Culpepper is a 6’3″, 210 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He’s the teammate of Fruhmorgen. He is the son of former Chicago Bears, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Brad Culpepper, who played college football at Florida.

Steven Frank – QB – Oswego (IL) Oswego: Frank is a 6’4″, 190 lb. prospect with no offers right now. As a sophomore in 2013, he had 1,952 passing yards and 27 passing touchdowns, along with 5 rushing scores. He claims a 4.7 forty but is definitely a pro-style guy, but he looks like a guy who will have a number of quality offers by the time all is said and done.

Scouting Report: Grant Newsome

Lawrenceville (NJ) Lawrenceville School offensive tackle Grant Newsome (#70, image via NJ.com)

Name: Grant Newsome
Height: 6’7″
Weight: 280 lbs.
High school: Lawrenceville (NJ) Lawrenceville School
Position: Offensive tackle
Class: 2015

Notes: Attends private school at Lawrenceville but originally from McLean, VA . . . Holds offers from Alabama, Boston College, California, Cincinnati, Duke, Georgia, Louisville, LSU, Maryland, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Northwestern, Ohio State, Old Dominion, Penn State, Pitt, Rutgers, South Carolina, Syracuse, Temple, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia, and Wisconsin . . . ESPN 3-star, #26 OT, #275 overall, #14 in Virginia . . . Rivals 4-star OT, #30 OT, #8 in New Jersey . . . Scout 4-star, #20 OT . . . 247 Sports 4-star, #19 OT, #181 overall, #5 in New Jersey

Strengths: Tall with good length . . . Thick upper body, narrow from waist down, which is how I like tackles . . . Good athleticism . . . Good straight-line running speed . . . Quick enough to be an effective blocker on second level . . . Shows enthusiasm for blocking small, quick guys . . . Shows ability to run feet after contact and finish blocks . . . Good lateral quickness . . . Should be an effective zone blocker

Weaknesses: Lacks aggression when pass blocking . . . Keeps hands low and lacks punch in pass sets . . . Opens up hips too quickly against pass rushers . . . Does not show consistent enough motor in finishing blocks . . . Plays high in run game . . . Can get off balance when he chooses not to move his feet . . . Does not use hands effectively control defenders

Projection: Left tackle. Newsome has all the physical skills anyone might want in a tackle – length, size, power, quickness, etc. The mental aspects are where he struggles. I think ESPN has him woefully underranked as a 3-star, but they may be judging him based on his refinement at this stage. Newsome will require some coaching, and not just a little. He needs to lower his pad level, especially in the run game, and he really needs to show more aggression on first-level blocks. For being such a big guy, he doesn’t blow people off the ball like he should. That’s a concern to me, but I think it has a lot to do with technique and a need to get into a college strength program.

Reminds me of: Logan Tuley-Tillman but without as much aggression. The two have similar body types and similar technique issues in high school, but Tuley-Tillman was a nastier player.

Likelihood of committing to Michigan: Newsome is pretty quiet on the recruiting trail, but he thinks highly of LSU, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio State, Penn State, Rutgers, and Virginia. Both of 247 Sports’ Crystal Ball picks are in Michigan’s favor, and other analysts have suggested that Michigan has edged out in front, too. Michigan has done a good job of recruiting both New Jersey and Virginia lately.

Highlights: Newsome’s highlights are available on Hudl.

Garrett Taylor, Wolverine

Richmond (VA) St. Christopher’s cornerback Garrett Taylor (image via 247 Sports)

Richmond (VA) St. Christopher’s cornerback Garrett Taylor committed to Michigan on Monday afternoon. He chose the Wolverines over offers from Boston College, Clemson, Duke, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisville, LSU, Maryland, Miami, Michigan State, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Penn State, South Carolina, South Florida, Stanford, Tennessee, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

He’s a 6’1″, 188 lb. player who claims a 4.5 forty. As a sophomore in 2012, he had 24 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, and 4 interceptions; he also had 14 catches for 260 yards and 2 touchdowns. I have been unable to find stats from his junior year.

RATINGS
ESPN: 4-star, 82 grade, #7 CB, #73 overall, #4 in-state
Rivals: 4-star, #6 CB, #41 overall, #1 in-state
Scout: 4-star, #36 CB, #282 overall
247 Sports: 4-star, 96 grade, #6 CB, #79 overall, #4 in-state

Taylor, who is friends with Michigan freshman quarterback Wilton Speight, visited Michigan last summer after Speight had already committed to the Wolverines. Despite not having an offer from the Wolverines, Taylor maintained interest. When the offer came a few weeks ago, Taylor promptly scheduled another unofficial to Ann Arbor for mid-March. He decided to commit on that trip and announced it via Twitter.

Taylor is a tall, lanky cornerback who can match up well with the bigger receivers he might face. He uses his long arms well to disrupt receivers and to rake the ball out from receivers who might be able to reel in catches against corners with a shorter wingspan. Taylor also has good leaping ability and times his jumps well, so he can be effective in the redzone and on back-shoulder throws. One of his best qualities is his hitting/tackling ability, which makes him a force off the edge and against wide receiver screens, bubble screens, etc. As a tackler I think he might be on par with the likes of Leon Hall or Ty Law, two Wolverines from yesteryear who were tough to run through.

As for negatives, Taylor has some things to work on and is not a finished product. He plays a little high, which slows down his transition time. He also crosses up his feet sometimes, so there are lots of footwork issues. Fortunately, cornerbacks are typically such good athletes that learning footwork is just something that takes time and repetition. Taylor also lacks great speed and reminds me a little bit of safety Thomas Gordon in his gait. Gordon ran a 4.49 at his recent pro day, but he wasn’t the fastest safety around.

Overall, Taylor is a quality prospect whose physicality and length should make up for a slight deficiency in speed. He would project to boundary corner in a field/boundary system, although Michigan defensive coordinator Greg Mattison went more with a left cornerback/right cornerback system in 2013. He could also play safety with his size and physicality, but I think he has the natural skills to stick at cornerback.

Taylor is the fifth commit in the class of 2015 and joins Shaun Crawford as the two committed cornerbacks. In a class that is roughly 13 strong right now, I doubt that Michigan would take another corner. The Wolverines have had pretty good success in recruiting cornerbacks lately, and there might be two open spots for the 2015 season after Raymon Taylor graduates and with Blake Countess a potential early entrant into the NFL. Of course, Garrett Taylor will also have to contend with talented young players in the form of Channing Stribling, Jourdan Lewis, and Jabrill Peppers. Michigan has had quite a bit of success in Richmond lately with 2013 running back Derrick Green and 2014 quarterback Speight, to go along with past players like David Terrell and Brandon Minor.

TTB Rating: I will not assign TTB Ratings until the 2014 class is completed. So basically, I’m waiting to see what Malik McDowell does.

Recruiting Update: March 24, 2014

Sumter (SC) Crestwood running back Ty’Son Williams (image via SC Now)

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2015
Sumter (SC) Crestwood running back Ty’Son Williams

was offered by Michigan. Williams is a 5’11”, 200 lb. prospect with offers from Clemson, Georgia, North Carolina, North Carolina State, and South Carolina, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #24 running back, and #313 overall. As a junior in 2013, he had 81 carries for 848 yards and 15 touchdowns, plus 8 catches for 118 yards. Williams has some good speed and decent vision, but sometimes he seems to lack the necessary balance for the cuts he wants to make; he’s a little stiff and often seems to be about to fall down.

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2016
Orchard Lake (MI) St. Mary’s linebacker Daelin Hayes was offered by Michigan. Hayes is a 6’3″, 225 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan State and Tennessee. He missed a large part of his sophomore season due to injury. Hayes is the cousin of Michigan redshirt junior running back Justice Hayes, but he’s also teammates with Tyson Smith (class of 2015, committed to Michigan State) and Joshua Ross (class of 2017, uncommitted), so there are pulls in multiple directions. The younger Hayes plays running back, too, but the Wolverines offered him as an outside linebacker.

OFF THE BOARD
Charlotte (NC) South Mecklenburg safety Stephen Griffin committed to Tennessee. Griffin picked up the Michigan offer about a month ago but did not appear to be strongly interested.

Glassboro (NJ) Glassboro wide receiver Juwan Johnson committed to Penn State. Johnson is a tall, physical receiver with pretty good speed, so Michigan will have to contend with him for the next several years. Johnson had expressed passing interest in the Wolverines but was not likely to join the class at any point.

Bellflower (CA) St. John Bosco quarterback Josh Rosen committed to UCLA. His pledge was not a surprise at all, but he had made a surprise visit to Ann Arbor the weekend before announcing his commitment. The visit went well but he was always someone who wanted to stay close to home and disavowed the cold weather he would face in Michigan. Some sources have suggested that if Jim Mora, Jr. leaves for another job or if Bruins starter Brett Hundley sticks around for his senior year in 2015, Michigan (and others) might be back in the hunt for Rosen’s services. By the time any of that transpired, however, the Wolverines would likely already have a commitment from another quarterback prospect.

MISCELLANEOUS
Here’s a list of visitors who made it to Ann Arbor this past week/weekend.

I did a scouting report on Detroit (MI) Cass Tech running back Michael Weber.

Richmond (VA) St. Christopher’s cornerback Garrett Taylor is announcing his college decision at 12:30 p.m. today via Twitter. Most people expect him to choose Michigan with Stanford being the other possibility.

Last week I posted profiles on Trevon Avery, Khari Willis, Dior Johnson, Junior McMullen, and Grant Perry on Recruiting Season.

Visitors: March 21-23, 2014

Indianapolis (IN) Ben Davis LB Asmar Bilal and Indianapolis (IN) Warren Central LB Darrin Kirkland, Jr. on their unofficial visit a couple weekends ago

2015
Rashod Berry – DE – Lorain (OH) Digital: Berry is a 6’5″, 230 lb. prospect with offers from Akron, Bowling Green, Illinois, Iowa, Kent State, and Toledo. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #31 weakside end, and #685 overall. He also had a kick return for a touchdown last season, a rarity for a defensive end.

Chris Clark – TE – Avon (CT) Old Farms: The big tight end had planned a visit to Michigan for this weekend, but he up and committed to North Carolina last weekend and canceled his other planned visits.

Chris Green – LB – Toledo (OH) Central Catholic: Green is a 6’0″, 226 lb. prospect who has some quality offers but does not have one from Michigan. He was here for a Tom Lemming event.

Darrin Kirkland, Jr. – LB – Indianapolis (IN) Lawrence Central: Kirkland is a 6’2″, 228 lb. prospect with offers from Illinois, Indiana, Louisville, Maryland, Northwestern, Penn State, Purdue, Tennessee, and Virginia Tech, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #7 inside linebacker, and the #205 player overall. As a junior in 2013, he had 110 tackles and 8 sacks. Coming off a visit to Penn State, his recruitment is heating up and other teams are catching up to the Wolverines, so if they want an inside linebacker, it would behoove them to offer him soon. However, Michigan has mostly been courting outside linebackers during the 2015 cycle, so it’s unclear whether they plan to take an inside guy or not. Kirkland will actually be visiting on Tuesday of this week.

Tyson Smith – CB – Orchard Lake (MI) St. Mary’s: Smith is a Michigan State commit who’s on campus for a Tom Lemming event.

Tyriq Thompson – LB – Detroit (MI) King: I wrote up a scouting report on Thompson at the end of January.

Michael Weber – RB – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: I wrote up a scouting report on Weber a couple days ago.

2016

Jonathan Cooper – DE – Gahanna (OH) Lincoln: Cooper is a 6’3″, 215 lb. prospect with offers from Illinois and Kentucky.

Donnie Corley – WR – Wyandotte (MI) Roosevelt: Corley is a 6’2″, 170 lb. prospect with no offers right now. He was also in town for the Tom Lemming event.

Daelin Hayes – LB – Orchard Lake (MI) St. Mary’s: Hayes is a 6’2″, 210 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan State and Tennessee. He’s the cousin of Michigan running back Justice Hayes.

Lavert Hill – CB – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: Hill is a 5’11”, 165 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He’s the younger brother of Michigan safety Delano Hill.

Josh King – DE – Hinsdale (IL) South: King is a 6’6″, 250 lb. prospect with offers from Illinois and Iowa. As a junior in 2013, he had 25 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, and 5 sacks.

Jalen Martin – WR – Harper Woods (MI) Chandler Park: Martin is a 6’3″, 190 lb. prospect with an offer from Eastern Michigan. He attends the same high school as Michigan WR Csont’e York and basketball point guard Derrick Walton, Jr. He also attended the Tom Lemming event.

Ostell Martin – OT – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: Martin is a 6’5″, 315 lb. prospect with no offers right now.

Martell Pettaway – RB – St. Clair Shores (MI) South Lake: Pettaway is a 5’10”, 170 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He was in town for the Tom Lemming event but has had quite a bit of contact with Michigan’s staff, too.

David Reese – LB – Farmington (MI) Farmington: Reese is a 6’1″, 235 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He’s the teammate and classmate of highly touted wide receiver Desmond Fitzpatrick.

Demetric Vance – WR – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: Vance is a 6’1″, 170 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.

Devin Waldon – LB – Detroit (MI) East English Village: Waldon is a 6’1″, 215 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He is visiting campus on Wednesday.

2017
Donovan Peoples-Jones – WR – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: Peoples-Jones is a 6’1″, 170 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He has earned quite a reputation for his athleticism and might be one of the top prospects in the state for his class.

Joshua Ross – LB – Orchard Lake (MI) St. Mary’s: Ross is a 6’2″, 190 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Michigan State, and Oklahoma. He’s the younger brother of Michigan junior linebacker James Ross III.