Tag: 2015 recruiting

Shaun Crawford, Wolverine

Cleveland (OH) St. Edward cornerback Shaun Crawford (image via Cleveland.com)

Cleveland (OH) St. Edward cornerback Shaun Crawford committed to Michigan on Friday afternoon. He picked the Wolverines over offers from Arkansas, Cincinnati, Florida State, Miami, Michigan State, Penn State, Tennessee, and West Virginia, among others.

Crawford is a 5’9″, 171 lb. prospect who claims a 4.51 forty. As a sophomore in 2012, he had 66 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 2 interceptions, 3 pass breakups, 2 forced fumbles, and 1 fumble recovery. He also had 24 receptions for 438 yards and 5 touchdowns as a slot receiver.

RATINGS
ESPN: 4-star, 83 grade, #5 athlete
Rivals: N/A
Scout: 4-star, #10 CB
247 Sports: 4-star, 91 grade, #17 CB, #156 overall

Crawford had long yearned for a Michigan offer, but he had to wait a little while to get it. (By “a little while,” I mean after he publicly stated wanting one – anyone who gets an offer during their sophomore year is pretty advanced in the process.) He had claimed that a Michigan offer could very well end his process early, but as we often see, he held off on a commitment after saying that. He took a spring visit to Miami that went well, but it didn’t match up to his Michigan experience, so he ended up committing just prior to his junior season.

I see a lot of good things to like about Crawford. As an offensive player, he’s shifty and fast enough to run right by most high school defensive backs. If he gets in the open field, you can forget about catching him. But he will probably play defensive in college. As a cornerback, the first thing that jumps out is his tackling ability. Unlike, let’s say . . . Cullen Christian or J.T. Floyd, Crawford is a very solid tackler. He does try to throw his shoulder into ball carriers on occasion, which will have to be coached out of him, but generally he wraps up, drives his feet, and gets the most out of his 171 lb. frame. Especially for someone his size, he’s about as good of a tackler as you’ll find. He has fluid hips and changes direction well. With his low center of gravity, he has the ability to break quickly on underneath routes and cause deflections, fumbles, etc. If he gets the ball in his hands, he can burst upfield through small windows and burrow for some extra yards.

I have some questions about his overall ability as a cornerback. We don’t see him much in man coverage; instead, he spends a lot of time in zone, reading plays, coming up to support the run, and causing some havoc underneath. I would like to see whether he can flip his hips to run with receivers in man coverage, and whether he can turn his head to find the ball and make a play. This is not so much a criticism but a curiosity on my part.

In my opinion, Crawford projects best as a nickel corner in Michigan’s defense. He’s excellent in run support and could presumably be a capable blitzer off the edge with his physicality, even if he’s lacking some size. He’s physical enough to reroute receivers and fast enough to stay with some of the smaller guys that teams will throw out there in the slot. I also think he would be great as a Cover 2 corner, but Michigan hasn’t run a ton of Cover 2 during Greg Mattison’s stint as a defensive coordinator. Crawford also has the skills to help out in the return game down the road.

This is Michigan’s fifth commitment in the class of 2015 and the first defensive back. He attends the alma mater of redshirt freshman offensive guard Kyle Kalis.

TTB Rating: I will not rate 2015 prospects until the 2014 class wraps up.

Recruiting Update: August 19, 2013

Jonathan Hilliman

OFF THE BOARD
Jersey City (NJ) St. Peter’s Prep running back Jonathan Hilliman committed to Rutgers. Hilliman long seemed geared toward committing to Ohio State, but staying home proved to be too much of a pull. Michigan had been in his top group at one point, but the Wolverines had stopped recruiting him several months ago.

MISCELLANEOUS
Scout released its top 100 and top 300 players for the class of 2015.

Scout 300 released for 2015

Tyrone Wheatley (left) and Wheatley, Jr. (image via Scout)

I posted the list of top 100 players for Scout the other day, and now they’ve released their top 300. Here’s a look at the rest of that list, particularly players of note for Michigan fans; all players have been offered unless otherwise noted.

112. Anthony McKee – OLB – Ohio*
118. Jaason Lewis – WR – Virginia
120. Darian Roseboro – DE – North Carolina
125. Chuma Edoga – OT – Georgia*
131. C.J. Conrad – TE – Ohio**
136. Matt Jones – OG – Ohio**
140. Tyrone Wheatley – DE – New York
168. David Dowell – WR – Ohio*
173. Kyonta Stallworth – OT – Michigan**
182. Cassius Peat – OLB – Arizona*
186. Tyson Smith – CB – Michigan**
200. Chris Green – MLB – Ohio*
215. Chris Fobbs – CB – Ohio**
220. Tyree Kinnel – CB – Ohio**
239. Mike Weber – RB – Michigan
252. Joshua Alabi – DE – Michigan
265. Tyriq Thompson – OLB – Michigan*
268. Garrett Taylor – CB – Virginia*
272. David Edwards – QB – Illinois*
279. Andrew Dowell – RB – Ohio**
286. Christopher Young – S – Ohio**

*Player has visited or camped at Michigan.
**Player has not visited or been offered, but comes from Michigan’s heavy recruiting area.

Scout 100 for 2015 released

Tarpon Springs (FL) East Lake wide receiver George Campbell, a 5-star to Scout

Scout released its top 100 players for the class of 2015. There are lots of Michigan offers on the list, including a couple current commits. I also included a couple unoffered players of note. (All players listed have been offered unless otherwise noted.)

5-stars:
1. Tim Settle – DT – Virginia*
2. Malik Jefferson – OLB – Texas
4. Mitch Hyatt – OT – Georgia
5. Kevin Tolliver – CB – Florida (LSU)
7. Sotonye Jamabo – RB – Texas
10. Ricky DeBerry – OLB – Virginia#
13. George Campbell – WR – Florida (Michigan)
14. Josh Rosen – QB – California
17. Iman Marshall – CB – California

4-stars:
22. Damien Harris – RB – Kentucky (Michigan)
30. Shy Tuttle – DT – North Carolina
33. Jeffrey Holland – OLB – Florida
34. L.J. Scott – RB – Ohio**

40. Terry Beckner – DE – Illinois
47. Jashon Cornell – DE – Minnesota
48. Osa Masina – OLB – Utah
53. Kamonte Carter – DE – Maryland
54. Justin Hilliard – OLB – Ohio
55. Chris Warren – RB – Texas#
59. Brian Cole – WR – Michigan
62. Sterling Jenkins – OT – Pennsylvania
67. Eric Glover-Williams – RB – Ohio**
68. Devonaire Clarington – TE – Florida
73. Hjalte Froholdt – DE – Ohio (but moving back to Denmark)
86. Jacques Patrick – RB – Florida
87. Jerome Baker – OLB – Ohio
88. Anthony Wheeler – MLB – Texas

90. Kevin Dillman – QB – California^
98. Shaun Crawford – CB – Ohio
99. Cameron Townsend – OLB – Texas

*Plans to visit for the Notre Dame game this fall with his friend Da’Shawn Hand.
**Not offered, but from Ohio which Michigan recruits heavily.
#Not offered, but visited Michigan this spring.
^Not offered, but is reportedly high on Michigan’s list of potential offerees.

Recruiting Update: August 5, 2013

George Campbell, Jr.

COMMITMENTS
Tarpon Springs (FL) East Lake wide receiver George Campbell, Jr. committed to Michigan.

Berea (KY) Madison Southern running back Damien Harris committed to Michigan.

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2014
Warren (MI) De La Salle linebacker Jared Wangler was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’1″, 218 lb. prospect who’s committed to Penn State and has offers from Cincinnati, Indiana, Michigan State, and a bunch of MAC schools. He’s also the son of former Michigan quarterback John Wangler and the brother of incoming freshman walk-on wideout Jack. As a junior in 2012, he had 76 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, and 1 interception, which was returned for a touchdown. 247’s Composite ranking places him as a3-star, the #69 overall player, and the #844 player overall. He will play in the Under Armour All-American Game. Michigan is recruiting him as a SAM linebacker, but he’s a little short for the position.

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2015
Huber Heights (OH) Wayne safety Tyree Kinnel was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’0″, 190 lb. prospect with offers from Arkansas and Kentucky, too. He has visited Michigan several times this offseason and was clearly angling for an offer from Michigan, even mentioning that he was a little bit upset that they hadn’t offered. He attends the alma mater of former Michigan players Terrence and Terry Talbott, two brothers who didn’t last long in Michigan uniforms, and current Ohio State quarterback Braxton Miller. This is a bit of an odd offer because Kinnel is smaller than most of the guys Michigan offers at safety, but he’s a solid tackler with decent ball skills. He’s a little bit reminiscent of current starting safety Thomas Gordon.

OFF THE BOARD

Scottsdale (AZ) Desert Mountain wide receiver Mark Andrews committed to Oklahoma. The 6’6″, 230-pounder really wanted to play wide receiver in college and was a little bit put off by Michigan’s intention to turn him into a tight end. The coaches did eventually tell him that he could play wide receiver, but he just wasn’t that interested.

New Castle (PA) New Castle safety Malik Hooker committed to Ohio State. Hooker was being recruited as a cornerback by Michigan and could also play wide receiver, but the Buckeyes are taking him as a safety.

Fort Worth (TX) All Saints Episcopal offensive guard Demetrius Knox committed to Ohio State. Knox had previously been committed to Texas, but the chance to get arrested play for Urban Meyer was too enticing.

Lee’s Summit (MO) Lee’s Summit outside linebacker Jimmie Swain IV committed to TCU. Michigan was recruiting Swain even after the commitment of Noah Furbush, and the offer to Jared Wangler may be the result of Swain committing elsewhere.

Fort Lauderdale (FL) University School defensive end/outside linebacker Richard Yeargin III committed to Notre Dame. Along with Hooker and Swain, Yeargin had Michigan in his small group of finalists.