Tag: Alex Malzone

2015 Recruiting Grades: Offense

Zach Gentry (image via Maxpreps)

With the 2015 class about wrapped up, I’ll offer some final takeaways from the recruiting cycle. With something like this, it’s difficult to separate Brady Hoke’s recruiting efforts through early December from Jim Harbaugh’s efforts over the last five weeks of the cycle. So the grades and feedback I provide are geared toward the program’s job of recruiting, not necessarily a specific coach.

Starters are listed in italics.

QUARTERBACK
Lost from 2014: Russell Bellomy (transfer), Devin Gardner (graduation)
Commits: Zach Gentry, Alex Malzone
Grade: A-
Comments: Michigan needed to add talent and numbers to the quarterback position to engender competition, and they did that. Gentry (#8 pro-style quarterback, #175 overall) is the raw talent at 6’7″, 230 lbs. with a reported 4.6 forty and a strong arm. Malzone (#13 pro-style quarterback, #295 overall) is the local field general with good skills all around but nothing that really stands out. Other than getting a truly elite prospect, Michigan did about as well as they could. Toss in the possible arrival of Houston transfer John O’Korn, and all these guys won’t finish their careers at Michigan, but at least one should emerge looking good.

RUNNING BACK
Lost from 2014: Justice Hayes (transfer)
Commit: Karan Higdon
Grade: C
Comments: The unfortunate thing here is that Michigan had two top-150 running back talents committed at different times, and the Wolverines let both of them slip through their fingers. The first one, Damien Harris, ended up signing with Alabama. The second one, Mike Weber, was darn close to flipping from Ohio State to Michigan at the last minute, but he ultimately stuck with the Buckeyes around 10:30 a.m. because Higdon had committed to Michigan at 8:00 a.m. Michigan stole Higdon (#40 running back, #479 overall) himself at the last minute from Iowa, so there’s something to be said for getting someone on the board, at least. Still, this could have looked better.

WIDE RECEIVER
Lost from 2014: Devin Funchess (early NFL draft entrant)
Commits: Brian Cole, Grant Perry
Grade: B+
Comments: Michigan might have hit a home run with Cole (#5 athlete, #75 overall), who was a jack-of-all-trades player in high school and will have to learn the receiver position in college. Perry (#109 wide receiver, #864 overall) is a solid role player plucked from Northwestern at the last minute. Otherwise, both Hoke and Harbaugh swung and missed at the big-timers in the class.

TIGHT END
Lost from 2014: Keith Heitzman (transfer)
Commit: Tyrone Wheatley, Jr.
Grade: B
Comments: Michigan let Chris Clark slip through their fingers, although Clark was wishy-washy and seemed to be all over the place with his recruitment. The Wolverines may have dodged a bullet, because Wheatley – as the son of a coach on staff – might be less likely to flake out if things don’t go smoothly from day one. Wheatley (#12 tight end, #313 overall) has a fair amount of talent himself, although some think he’s better suited for defense. It would have been nice to get two tight ends with Heitzman transferring, A.J. Williams being a senior in 2015, and starter Jake Butt a junior who could possibly go pro if he stays healthy.

OFFENSIVE LINE
Lost from 2014: Kyle Bosch (transfer)
Commits: Grant Newsome, Jon Runyan Jr., Nolan Ulizio
Grade: B
Comments: The offensive line recently went from being “way too young” to being “maybe too old” now that four projected starters will be fifth-year guys (2) or fourth-year guys (2), joined by sophomore left tackle Mason Cole and redshirt junior utility man Erik Magnuson. With a couple backups looking stuck there for a reason, Michigan needed to bring in some fresh talent. Newsome (#22 offensive tackle, #235 overall) is a possible star, whereas Runyan (#122 offensive tackle) and Ulizio (#137 offensive tackle) look like they could be passable players in a few years. This probably isn’t the class that will turn around Michigan’s fortunes immediately, but they’re functional. Michigan essentially ignored a national prospect with high interest (USC-bound Chuma Edoga) and a local, guru-approved guy with high interest (Wisconsin-bound David Moorman), so hopefully they picked the right ones to pursue. If Newsome pans out like I think he should, he’ll make this class look pretty good.

Senior Highlights: Alex Malzone

Visitors: Michigan vs. Maryland

Tampa (FL) Wharton wide receiver Auden Tate

Here’s a list of players who will be visiting Michigan for their game against Maryland this weekend, the final home game of the season.

2015
Jack Dunaway – DE – Bloomfield Hills (MI) Brother Rice: Dunaway is committed to Michigan as a preferred walk-on defensive end. He’s the son of former Michigan tight end Craig Dunaway.

John Kelly – S – Oak Park (MI) Oak Park: Kelly is a 5’10”, 194 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Michigan State, and Minnesota, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #62 athlete, and #656 overall. Michigan offered him after cornerback Garrett Taylor decommitted, but the Wolverines are looking at Kelly as a safety. Kelly averaged 10.7 yards/carry as a senior this year, ending up with 1,321 yards and 21 touchdowns.

Alex Malzone – QB – Bloomfield Hills (MI) Brother Rice: Michigan’s quarterback commit for the 2015 class (LINK), Malzone was 211/325 (65%) for 2,998 yards, 38 touchdowns, and 6 interceptions.

Grant Newsome – OT – Lawrenceville (NJ) Lawrenceville School: Newsome committed to Michigan in June (LINK). He’s now rated as a 247 Composite 4-star, the #21 offensive tackle, and #209 overall. This will be his official visit.

Grant Perry – WR – Bloomfield Hills (MI) Brother Rice: Perry is a 6’0″, 185 lb. prospect with offers from a bunch of MAC schools and is angling for a Michigan offer to follow his quarterback teammate, Malzone. Perry is a 247 Composite 3-star, the #130 wide receiver, and #1047 overall.

Auden Tate – WR – Tampa (FL) Wharton: Tate is a 6’4″, 215 lb. prospect who committed to Florida State in August; he also has offers from Florida, Georgia, and Michigan, among others. It always looked like a Michigan vs. Florida State battle with the Seminoles leading. An official visit, this will be Tate’s first time in Ann Arbor.

Hit the jump for 2016, 2017, and 2018 prospects.

2016
John Fitzgerald – WR – Baltimore (MD) Gilman: Fitzgerald is a 6’3″, 210 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.

Devery Hamilton – OT – Baltimore (MD) Gilman: I wrote a fairly comprehensive blurb on Hamilton the other day (LINK) after he was offered by Michigan.

Ellison Jordan – DT – Balitmore (MD) Gilman: Jordan is a 6’0″, 255 lb. prospect with offers from Maryland, Penn State, and Virginia Tech, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #13 defensive tackle, and #167 overall.

Jeremy Larkin – RB – Cincinnati (OH) LaSalle:

Dorian Maddox – RB – Baltimore (MD) Gilman: Maddox is a 5’11”, 205 lb. prospect with no offers at this point. He could also be a strong safety at the next level.

Brian Manuel – DT – Washington (DC) St. John’s Collegiate: Manuel is a 6’5″, 320 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He is a massive human being who could probably afford to shed a little bit of weight, but he will definitely earn some FBS offers soon.

Shamar Shanks – LB – Baltimore (MD) Gilman: Shanks is a 6’1″, 205 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.

Stephen Spanellis – OG – Baltimore (MD) Gilman: You can read more about Spanellis in the Hamilton link above.

Korey Stevens – CB – Baltimore (MD) Gilman:

Abdullah Yaseen – CB – Oak Park (MI) Oak Park: Yaseen is a 5’9″, 166 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.

2017
Troy Brown – WR – Flint (MI) Beecher: Brown is a 6’1″, 200 lb. prospect with no offers at this point. He plays wide receiver, but he also looks like a pretty physical safety for being just a sophomore. He claims a 4.56 forty, a 215 lb. bench, and a 315 lb. squat.

Carter Dunaway – TE – Bloomfield Hills (MI) Brother Rice: Dunaway is the younger brother of Carter Dunaway and a teammate of Malzone and Perry.

Kasim Hill – QB – Baltimore (MD) Gilman: Hill is a 6’2″, 195 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan State and Syracuse.

Corey Malone-Hatcher – DE – Baltimore (MD) Gilman: Malone-Hatcher is a 6’3″, 225 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State. He has visited Alabama several times and has family connections down there, so an Alabama offer may be difficult to ward off.

Camaron Spence – DT – Baltimore (MD) Gilman: Spence is a 6’2″, 275 lb. prospect with an offer from Maryland.

2018
Dan Bolden – LB – Cincinnati (OH) Colerain:

Taron Vincent – DT – Baltimore (MD) Gilman: Vincent is the son of former Wisconsin (and Miami Dolphins and Philadelphia Eagles) cornerback Troy Vincent, as well as the brother of Troy, Jr. (North Carolina State), whom Michigan recruited in the class of 2014.

Visitors: Michigan vs. Minnesota

Reisterstown (MD) Franklin offensive tackle Patrick Allen is a Georgia commit (image via 247Sports.com)

2015
Patrick Allen – OT – Reisterstown (MD) Franklin: Allen is a 6’5″, 286 lb. prospect who committed to Georgia in early August. He also holds offers from Arkansas, Florida, Florida State, LSU, Miami, Ohio State, and USC, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #27 offensive tackle, and #277 overall. This is his official visit to Michigan, the school that supposedly finished #2 to the Bulldogs, despite the fact that he has never been to Ann Arbor before.

Jack Dunaway – DE – Bloomfield Hills (MI) Brother Rice: Dunaway is a 6’3″, 212 lb. prospect who committed to Michigan as a preferred walk-on. His father, Craig, is a former Michigan tight end.

Alex Malzone – QB – Bloomfield Hills (MI) Brother Rice: Malzone committed to Michigan back in May (LINK).

Tyrone Miller – S – Saline (MI) Saline: Miller is a 6’0″, 178 lb. prospect with offers from Buffalo, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, and Western Michigan, among others. He camped at Michigan back in June.


Grant Perry – WR – Bloomfield Hills (MI) Brother Rice: Perry is a 6’0″, 185 lb. prospect with offers from several MAC schools. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #130 wide receiver, and #1054 overall. He would almost certainly commit to Michigan if an offer comes, but the Wolverines have a small projected class and a pretty good stable of receivers at this point. Statistically, he’s currently the state’s top receiver.


Mike Weber – RB – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: Weber committed to Michigan in August (LINK).

Hit the jump for 2016 and 2017 prospects.

2016
Stefan Claiborne – WR – Clinton Township (MI) Chippewa Valley: Claiborne is a 6’1″, 168 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. Even so, he’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #4 safety, #54 overall, and #1 in the state, mainly due to his ESPN ranking. I have watched his sophomore film and came away impressed, so I think it’s only a matter of times before big schools throw their hats in the ring.

Bailey Edwards – WR – Chelsea (MI) Chelsea: Edwards is a 6’0″, 145 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. He’s the younger brother of Braylon Edwards and Berkley Edwards (Minnesota), and he’s the son of former Michigan RB Stan Edwards.

Daelin Hayes – LB – ???????: Hayes is a 6’3″, 225 lb. prospect who committed to USC in July. He originally went to school at Orchard Lake (MI) St. Mary’s and was primed to commit to Michigan in April, but a fleeting move to California and a nice visit to USC earned his commitment. Now Hayes is returning to an as-yet-undecided school Michigan, though he will probably have to sit out his junior season due to transfer rules. That’s not a good thing for a kid who missed most of his sophomore year due to injury, but big schools will continue to pursue him because of his size and athleticism.

Josh Jackson – QB – Saline (MI) Saline: Jackson is a 6’2″, 180 lb. prospect with no offers right now. He’s the son of running backs coach Fred Jackson and the brother of former Michigan wideout Jeremy Jackson. Jackson sat out a portion of last season after transferring from Ann Arbor (MI) Huron.

Thiyo Lukusa – OT – Traverse City (MI) West: Lukusa is a 6’5″, 300 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, and Wisconsin, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #24 offensive tackle, #272 overall, and #8 in-state. Lukusa plans to commit on December 1, and Michigan has reportedly been his leader for most of the process.

Blake Roe – DT – Haslett (MI) Haslett: Roe is a 6’2″, 290 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.


2017
Corey Malone-Hatcher – DE – St. Joseph (MI) St. Joseph: Malone-Hatcher is a 6’3″, 225 lb. prospect with an offer from Ohio State.

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, #53 overall, and #2 in-state. He’s the younger brother of Michigan junior linebacker James Ross III.

Visitors: Michigan vs. Utah

Donnie Corley

2015
Deshawn Baker-Williams – DT – Westland (MI) John Glenn: Baker-Williams is a 6’4″, 300 lb. prospect who committed to Central Michigan in June. That was and is his only offer so far.

Brian Cole – WR – Saginaw (MI) Heritage: Cole recently was awarded his Under Armour All-American jersey (LINK), although he was suspended for Heritage’s most recent game after receiving two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties last game. He is committed to Michigan.

Jack Dunaway – DE – Bloomfield Hills (MI) Brother Rice: Dunaway, a teammate of Alex Malzone’s, is a 6’3″, 212 lb. prospect who recently committed to be a walk-on at Michigan. His father was a tight end at Michigan in the mid-1980’s.

Alex Malzone – QB – Bloomfield Hills (MI) Brother Rice: On Friday night, Malzone went 14/20 for 208 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 28-21 win over Shane Morris’s old team, the Warren (MI) De La Salle Pilots. He is committed to Michigan.

Jalen Martin – WR – Harper Woods (MI) Chandler Park Academy: Martin is a 6’1″, 192 lb. prospect with offers from Akron, Eastern Michigan, and Western Michigan. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #65 wide receiver, and #390 overall. He attends the alma mater of former Michigan wide receiver Csont’e York.

Jon Runyan, Jr. – OG – Philadelphia (PA) St. Joseph’s: Runyan, Jr. committed to Michigan in June 2013 (LINK).

Mike Weber – RB – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: Weber sat out last night’s 50-0 win over Detroit (MI) Douglass. He is committed to Michigan.

Hit the jump for 2016, 2017, and 2018(!) visitors.

2016
Donnie Corley – WR – Detroit (MI) King: Corley is a 247 Composite 4-star who has recently picked up offers from Michigan State and Pitt. He transferred from Wyandotte to King in the off-season, and things have paid off nicely in the first few games.

Matt Falcon – RB – Southfield (MI) Southfield: Falcon is a 6’1″, 215 lb. prospect with offers from Akron, Northern Illinois, Ohio State, Toledo, and Wake Forest. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #25 running back, and #274 overall. He missed last season with a torn ACL but was a teammate of Michigan freshman defensive end Lawrence Marshall.

Brendan Ferns – LB – St. Clairsville (OH) St. Clairsville: Ferns is a 6’3″, 223 lb. prospect with offers from Maryland, Michigan State, Ohio State, Oklahoma, and Penn State, among others. He’s the younger brother of Michigan freshman linebacker Michael Ferns, but the Wolverines have not shown a ton of interest in Brendan yet. The feeling is that if the Wolverines offered now, they would still have a serious uphill battle for Brendan’s services.

Michael Jordan – OT – Plymouth (MI) Plymouth: Jordan is a 6’5″, 278 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan and Ohio State. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #36 offensive tackle, and #478 overall.

Kalebb Perry – WR – Mt. Pleasant (MI) Mt. Pleasant: Perry is a 6’2″, 180 lb. prospect with offers from Central Michigan and Western Michigan. He appears to be a notch below Corley, but he’s still a 247 Composite 3-star and the #87 wide receiver in his class.

Nik Urban – OG – Willoughby (OH) South: Urban is a 6’4″, 280 lb. prospect with offers from Duke and a few MAC schools. He camped at Michigan last summer. He might be a fine player, but his name is “Urban.” Ick.

2017
Johnathan Berghorst – DE – Zeeland (MI) East: Berghorst is a 6’2″, 215 lb. prospect with no offers at this point. He has visited Michigan several times and camped in Ann Arbor this past June.

Andre Jackson – CB – Bridgeport (MI) Bridgeport: Jackson is a 5’10”, 170 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.

Corey Malone-Hatcher – DE – St. Joseph (MI) St. Joseph: Hatcher is a 6’3″, 235 lb. prospect with an offer from Ohio State. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #3 weakside end, and #104 overall.

Bruce Mann – QB – Bay City (MI) Western: Mann is a 6’2″, 180 lb. prospect with no offers at this time. His father recently moved to the outskirts of Chicago to take on a new job, so it may be just a matter of time before the younger Mann becomes an out-of-state prospect.

Willie Rodgers – DE – Saginaw (MI) Arthur Hill: Rodgers is a 6’4″, 205 lb. prospect with no offers at this time.

2018
Jimmy Bell – OT – Saginaw (MI) Arthur Hill: Bell is a 6’7″, 310 lb. ninth grader. He has no offers at this time, but he is very large.