Tag: Eno Benjamin

2017 Recruiting Update: January 11, 2017

Chuck Filiaga with Jim Harbaugh

COMMITMENT

Aledo (TX) Aledo offensive tackle Chuck Filiaga committed to Michigan (LINK).

OFF THE BOARD

Clinton (MS) Clinton running back Cam Akers committed to Florida State at the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. He was considering Ohio State, so this is somewhat of a recruiting win for Michigan. He enrolled early, so there’s no chance of him flipping now, either. Akers looks to me like the best back in the 2017 class.

Bridgeton (NJ) Bridgeton safety Markquese Bell committed to Maryland. This is a pretty good pull for D.J. Durkin. Bell is the 247 Composite #188 player and #7 athlete in the country. He was a Michigan lean at one point, but Michigan supposedly put him on the back burner. He also considered Clemson, Ohio State, and Rutgers. Two of those things are not like the other.

Wylie (TX) East running back Eno Benjamin committed to Arizona State. Benjamin named Michigan to his top six, and I had hoped that the Wolverines would somehow be able to reel him in despite their pursuit of Najee Harris. He seems like a good kid and trained with former Michigan running back David Underwood. However, the Wolverines stopped pursuing him weeks before his final decision.

Hit the jump for several other news bits.

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2017 Recruiting: Upcoming announcement dates

Cheshire (CT) Cheshire Academy WR Tarik Black (image via Eleven Warriors)

With a flurry of recruiting activity coming in the weeks leading up to the early enrollment period, the All-American games, and National Signing Day, I’ll keep a running list here of announcement dates for prospects of interest:

Tarik Black – WR – Cheshire (CT) Cheshire Academy: December 14, 2016 (picked Michigan)

Donovan Peoples-Jones – WR – Detroit (MI) Cass Tech: December 15, 2016 (picked Michigan)

Isaiah Wilson – OT – Brooklyn (NY) Poly: December 16, 2016 (picked (Georgia)

Cesar Ruiz – C – Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy: December 19, 2016 (picked Michigan)

Jordan Anthony – LB – Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy: December 22, 2016 (picked Michigan)

Markquese Bell – S – Bridgeton (NJ) Bridgeton: January 1, 2017 (picked Maryland)

Eno Benjamin – RB – Wylie (TX) East: January 7, 2017

Chuck Filiaga – OT – Aledo (TX) Aledo: January 7, 2017

Deron Irving-Bey – DE – Flint (MI) Southwestern: January 7, 2017 (picked Michigan)

Nico Collins – WR – Pinson (AL) Clay-Chalkville: February 1, 2017

Aubrey Solomon – DT – Leesburg (GA) Lee County: February 1, 2017 or later

Recruiting Down the Stretch: Running Back

Antioch (CA) Antioch RB Najee Harris (#2)

COMMITMENTS

Michigan currently has commitments from three players, and all three are likely to be running backs, not “athletes” who bounce back and forth between positions. The speedster is Los Lunas (NM) Los Lunas runner O’Maury Samuels (4-star, #21 RB, #276 overall), who at one time had the national lead in SPARQ rating. While he was eventually passed up for that honor, he showed that he has the athleticism to be a national recruit. He has continued taking visits while committed to Michigan, perhaps just doing his due diligence while Michigan also explores other options. The bruiser is Groton (MA) Lawrence Academy’s A.J. Dillon (4-star, #19 ATH, #298 overall), who is 6’1″, 230 lbs. and runs a sub-4.6. Dillon broke his leg mid-season and missed a chunk of his senior year. The pinball is Loganville (GA) Grayson’s Kurt Taylor (3-star, #55 RB, #873 overall), a 5’9″, 200-pounder who is neither extremely fast or extremely bruising. He is a notoriously hard worker and has welcomed competition throughout his recruitment, so while he may be a little short on talent, he might just be one of those “Harbaugh guys.”

Hit the jump for more on Michigan’s running back situation.

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2017 Recruiting Update: November 1, 2016

Starkville (MS) Starkville LB Willie Gay (#3, image via Clarion-Ledger)

COMMITMENTS

Beaver Falls (PA) Beaver Falls DT Donovan Jeter committed to Michigan (LINK).

Warwick (RI) Bishop Hendricken DE Kwity Paye flipped from Boston College to Michigan (LINK).

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2017

Wylie (TX) East running back Eno Benjamin decommitted from Iowa. Benjamin is a 4-star, the #10 running back, and #159 overall in the class. He said that he would consider Michigan going forward, but the Wolverines seem to have their sights set a little bit higher on the likes of Cam Akers and Najee Harris. With three running backs already committed, it’s unclear if the Wolverines will recruit Benjamin or not.

Hit the jump for some decommitments from other schools, some commitments to other schools, etc.

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2017 Recruiting Update: April 25, 2016

Baton Rouge (LA) University Lab OT Adrian Ealy

For several years I’ve been keeping a count of the offers Michigan sends out. Under late Lloyd Carr, Rich Rodriguez, and Brady Hoke, the number of reported offers was anywhere between a little over 100 and a max of 195. In Jim Harbaugh’s first full recruiting class, he offered 257 prospects for 2016. This year that number has already exploded to 262 and it’s still over nine months away from National Signing Day. It’s part of the new-era recruiting situation across the country, which is that players just don’t think you’re interested unless you’ve offered them a scholarship.

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2017
Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy wide receiver Jhamon Ausbon was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’2″, 217 lb. prospect with offers from Auburn, Baylor, Georgia, LSU, Miami, and Texas A&M, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #11 wide receiver, and #64 overall. Ausbon is just one of many players from IMG with offers from the Wolverines, who held a few spring practices on their campus in Florida. Ausbon is expected to stay in SEC country.

Sacramento (CA) Sheldon wide receiver Alex Cook was offered by Michigan . . . and committed to Washington two days later. Cook is a 6’2″, 170-pounder who’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #131 wide receiver, and #955 overall. He’s the third Michigan target to pick the Huskies in recent days, joining WR Terrell Bynum and DT Marlon Tuipulotu.

Baton Rouge (LA) University Lab offensive tackle Adrian Ealy was offered by Michigan. He stands 6’7″, 280 lbs. and is a 247 Composite 4-star, the #27 offensive tackle, and #128 overall. He has offers from Auburn, Florida, Florida State, LSU, Mississippi State, Oklahoma, and Tennessee, among others. He is thought to be a lean toward the hometown LSU Tigers.

Hit the jump for a few more offers, a couple commitments elsewhere, and some random bits.

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