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| #73 Juwann Bushell-Beatty and #5 Jabrill Peppers (image via Northjersey.com) |
Due to Easter and spring break, lots of kids will be off this week, too, and have a chance to stop by Michigan’s campus throughout the week.
Trey Barksdale – LB – Clinton (MI) Clintondale: Barksdale is a 6’0″, 190 lb. linebacker prospect with no offers at this time. As a junior in 2012, he had 30 solo tackles, 1 interception, and 1 fumble recovery returned for a touchdown. He looks like a player who would be a ways down in the pecking order for a scholarship offer, and Michigan is reportedly looking for just one more linebacker (in addition to Michael Ferns III) in the 2014 class. UPDATE: Barksdale did not make it to campus on Tuesday but may visit later in the week.
David Beedle – DT – Clarkston (MI) Clarkston: Beedle is a 6’5″, 250 lb. defensive tackle with no offers at this time.
Ray Buford – WR – Southfield (MI) Southfield: Buford is a 6’0″, 170 lb. wideout from the class of 2015. He has no offers at this time. As a sophomore in 2012, he had 52 receptions for more than 500 yards and 5 touchdowns. Buford also visited Michigan for the game against Northwestern back in November. Michigan’s coaching staff seems to want him as a cornerback.
Juwann Bushell-Beatty – OT – Paramus (NJ) Catholic: Bushell-Beatty is a 6’7″, 310 lb. prospect with offers from Florida, Florida State, Miami, Michigan, and Rutgers, among others. The 247 Composite rankings place him as a 3-star, the #35 offensive tackle, and the #456 player nationally.
Cole Chewins – TE – Clarkston (MI) Clarkston: Chewins is a 6’7″, 210 lb. tight end for the class of 2015. He has no offers at this time. Some sites talk about him as if he’s a linebacker, but he looks too long and lanky to be a linebacker; I think he will likely end up at tight end or defensive end.
Rob Dowdy – OT – Westerville (OH) South: Dowdy is a 6’7″, 250 lb. prospect from the class of 2015. He has offers from Indiana and Kentucky so far. He visited Michigan a couple weeks ago, so he appears to be strongly interested in the Wolverines. Westerville South is the high school of Marcus Ball (Arizona State), whom Michigan offered in the 2013 class.
Lawrence Gordon – DE – Saginaw (MI) Arthur Hill: Gordon is a 6’5″, 230 lb. defensive end from the class of 2016, so he just finished his freshman year. He has no offers at this time, but he has recently visited Michigan State and Ohio State.
Jamarco Jones – OG – Chicago (IL) De La Salle: Jones is a 6’5″, 290 lb. prospect with offers from Florida, Florida State, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Tennessee, among many others. He has expressed mild interest in Michigan and seems likely to stay somewhere in the midwest, but he does not seem to be very close to committing anywhere. His 247 Composite ranking (which combines the rankings of Rivals, Scout, and 247 – along with ESPN whenever they rank players) puts him at the #4 offensive tackle and the #53 overall player in the 2014 class.
Evan Mallory – OG – Brownsburg (IN) Brownsburg: Mallory is a 6’4″, 285 lb. prospect for the class of 2015. He has no offers at this point. Mallory has good size but is a little slow afoot, but if he can improve his foot speed, he has a chance to become a legitimate prospect.
Lawrence Marshall – DE – Southfield (MI) Southfield: Marshall is a 6’3″, 215 lb. weakside end prospect with offers from Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State, among others. He was committed to OSU for a few days, but that ended quickly. In 247’s Composite ranking, he’s the #13 weakside end and the #198 player overall.
Malik McDowell – DE – Detroit (MI) Loyola: McDowell is a 6’7″, 290 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, USC, and a host of others. He is a 5-star or high 4-star caliber prospect. Michigan and Notre Dame seemed to be neck and neck, but recent info suggests Michigan might be taking a lead.
Sam Mustipher – OG – Olney (MD) Good Counsel: Mustipher is a 6’4″, 285 lb. offensive guard prospect with offers from Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Maryland, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and West Virginia, among many others; his father played football for the Mountaineers. Good Counsel is the alma mater of Michigan cornerback Blake Countess, as well as the home of several other Michigan targets in recent years, including Stefon Diggs (Maryland), Wes Brown (Maryland), Dorian O’Daniel (Clemson), and Kendall Fuller (Virginia Tech). The 247 Composite ranking places him as the #8 offensive guard and #119 player overall.
Brady Pallante – DT – Naples (FL) Barron Collier: Pallante is a 6’1″, 270 lb. prospect with a scholarship offer from Appalachian State and a greyshirt offer from Michigan. He was very close to committing to Michigan’s greyshirt offer when it happened several weeks ago, but he has decided to wait out the process – at least for a little while – to see what other opportunities arise.
Jabrill Peppers – CB – Paramus (NJ) Catholic: Peppers is a 6’1″, 200 lb. prospect with a top group of schools that includes Alabama, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Stanford. The 247 Composite rankings put him at the #1 athlete prospect (he could also play running back, wide receiver, or safety) and the #5 overall player in the nation. Peppers is the teammate of Bushell-Beatty, mentioned above.
Blaise Stearns – WR – Ann Arbor (MI) Gabriel Richard: Stearns is a 6’2″, 202 lb. receiver from the class of 2013. He will be a student at Michigan in the fall, so it looks like he might be a walk-on in the future. As a senior in 2012, he had 25 receptions for 540 yards and 7 touchdowns. He also had 3 rushing touchdowns, 4 interceptions, and 1 defensive touchdown. I don’t often say this about walk-ons, but based on his film, I think Stearns would have a chance of contributing to the team as a slot receiver or on special teams down the road.
Jared Wangler – LB – Warren (MI) De La Salle: Wangler is a 6’2″, 215 lb. linebacker prospect with offers from Bowling Green, Ohio, Toledo, and Western Michigan. As a junior in 2012, he had 76 tackles, 15 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 1 interception, which was returned for a touchdown. Wangler is the son of former Michigan quarterback John Wangler and the brother of wide receiver Jack Wangler, who will enroll at Michigan in the fall and walk on to the football team.
Maurice Ways – WR – Detroit (MI) Country Day: Ways is a 6’3″, 195 lb. wideout with offers from Iowa, Kansas, and some MAC schools. He’s a 3-star, the #76 wide receiver, and the #591 overall player in 247’s Composite rankings. As a junior in 2012, he had 51 receptions for 957 yards and 9 touchdowns. Ways also visited Michigan last week. He has supposedly struggled with drops at times, but athletically, I like Ways and think he might be headed for some big offers down the road.
K.J. Williams – WR – Bethlehem (PA) Liberty: Williams is a 6’2″, 190 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona, Michigan, Pitt, Rutgers, South Carolina, and UCLA, among others. As a junior in 2012, he had 59 catches for 986 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also plays safety on defense, but Michigan appears to want him as a wideout. His 247 Composite ranking places him as a 4-star, the #15 athlete, and the #184 overall player.
