Ex-Wolverines: Class of 2011

Tag: Kevin Sousa


13Apr 2021
Blog, homepage no comments

Ex-Wolverines: Class of 2011

Blake Countess (image via Alchetron)

Here’s a look back at the recruits who did not pan out for Michigan in 2011, the transition class between Rich Rodriguez and Brady Hoke.

TRANSFERS

Chris Barnett – Tight end – Hurst (TX) L.D. Bell
Barnett was an outstanding tight end coming out of high school.  He tore his ACL during his senior year and struggled to regain his playing shape.  When he arrived at Michigan in the summer of 2011 for his freshman season, he weighed 278 lbs.  By late August the distance from home, the summer classwork, and the required physical conditioning forced him to leave the program and re-evaluate his options.  He enrolled at a Texas junior college, but left that program.
Current status: Unknown

Russell Bellomy – Quarterback – Arlington (TX) Martin
After the decommitment of Kevin Sousa in December 2010 (see below), Michigan was scrambling for a more traditional quarterback, whereas Sousa had been a dual-threat guy. He was previously committed to Purdue, but that changed when Michigan came calling. He redshirted in 2011. Then he played in five games in 2012, including stepping in for Denard Robinson against Nebraska, which was an ugly performance (3/16, 38 yards, 0 TD, 3 INT), and stuck around through 2014. Altogether, he was 4/23 for 46 yards and 4 interceptions at Michigan. He transferred to UTSA as a senior in 2015, completing 4/10 passes for 39 yards and rushing 7 times for 21 yards.
Current status: Out of football

Greg Brown – Cornerback – Fremont (OH) Ross
Brown was the first commitment of the 2011 class after choosing the Wolverines in September of 2009.  He enrolled early in January 2011, but was one of those kids who was caught in the middle between Rich Rodriguez and Brady Hoke.  Rodriguez recruited him, but he wasn’t fired until January, when Brown was already on campus.  The cornerback received mixed reviews in spring practices and played sparingly on special teams at the beginning of the 2011 season, but decided to transfer mid-season.  He played sparingly for Findlay in 2012, then transferred to Iowa Central Community College prior to the 2013 season.
Current status: Out of football

Hit the jump for more.

read more
24Aug 2015
Blog, homepage 2 comments

Ex-Wolverine Updates: Pre-season 2015

Former Michigan running back commit Damien Harris is battling for playing time at Alabama

Well, the making of this post included my baptism into the annoying world of WordPress. There are some nice things about WordPress, but I really missed Blogger yesterday morning when I worked on this post from approximately 5:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. – with intermittent breaks for necessities – only to have 50% of it disappear into the ether.

Former QB Russell Bellomy: Bellomy’s coach at the University of Texas-San Antonio, Larry Coker, says that Bellomy is in the running . . . to win the #2 job (LINK). That says a lot about Bellomy’s talent level. If you disagree, consider that the entrenched starter, Blake Bogenschutz, went 22/39 (56.4%) for 282 yards, 0 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions last year.

Former OG Kyle Bosch: Bosch, who received a waiver to play this year after transferring to West Virginia in the off-season, is in a battle to start at offensive guard or potentially tackle this fall.

Former TE commit Pharaoh Brown: Brown, who suffered a nasty knee injury last season, will likely be the starter at tight end again this fall for Oregon. As a junior in 2014, he made 25 catches for 420 yards and 6 touchdowns.

Hit the jump for news and notes on 19 more former Michigan commits, signees, and players.
read more

8Jan 2012
Uncategorized 7 comments

Ex-Wolverine Updates: The Class of 2011

Oklahoma’s Kellen Jones (#52) and Tony Jefferson bring down Iowa C.J. Fiedorowicz in the endzone
(image via Greenwich Time)

Former Michigan cornerback Greg Brown left the program mid-season and has transferred to Findlay, a D-II school.

Former Michigan commit and current Miami Hurricane defensive back Dallas Crawford redshirted this past season.

Former Michigan commit and current Oregon Duck offensive tackle Jake Fisher played a backup role in 13 games this season.

Former Michigan commit and current Miami Hurricane kicker Matt Goudis redshirted this past season.

Former Michigan signee and current Oklahoma Sooner linebacker Kellen Jones played as a backup and special teamer in 11 games this past season, making 9 total tackles.

Former Michigan commit and current Wake Forest Demon Deacon quarterback Kevin Sousa redshirted this past season.

The future plans of former Michigan tight end Chris Barnett and former offensive lineman Tony Posada are unknown.  Both decided to leave the program after they were already enrolled at Michigan this past fall.

For recaps of these players and more, check out the Ex-Wolverine Encyclopedia.

21Sep 2011
Uncategorized 2 comments

Ex-Wolverine Encyclopedia Update

Vladimir Emilien intends to play for Toledo in 2012

Former Michigan safety Vladimir Emilien still remains at Toledo, contrary to what I reported previously.  In an exchange with TTB Andrew, he said, “I’m still on the team. This is just my sit out year NCAA rule for transferring. But since I have to sit out this year, I am more focused on school rather than worrying about games every Saturday. But I still have to practice and workout with the team.  Until I’m eligible my main focus is focusing on my grades and making this football program successful with my help.”

Former kicker/punter commit Anthony Fera is having a solid season at Penn State.  He’s averaging 44.6 yards on eight punts and 64.4 yards on five kickoffs.  Essentially, he’s Will Hagerup.  Except Fera’s not suspended right now.

Former defensive tackle commit DeQuinta Jones has 7 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, and 2 quarterback hurries on the season for Arkansas.

Former wide receiver commit Marquis Maze has 15 catches for 186 yards and 1 touchdown on the season for Alabama.

Former quarterback commit Kevin Sousa is currently redshirting for Wake Forest.

Former Michigan running back Austin White is currently redshirting for Central Michigan.  Because he began the fall semester in 2010 at Michigan, he must sit out for the 2011 season.

7Dec 2010
Uncategorized 9 comments

Shawn Conway, ex-Wolverine . . . sort of

Michigan fans won’t be seeing these hops on the football field anytime soon.

I received a message from a reputable source a couple weeks ago that this would happen, but it was being kept on the down-low.  Now it has become public.  Class of 2011 wide receiver recruit Shawn Conway will not qualify by NCAA Clearinghouse standards.  He still plans to play football at Michigan in the future, but he’ll have to attend junior college before doing so.

I am not counting on Conway playing at Michigan anytime in the future.  I am certainly a fan of his abilities, but junior college players rarely are recruited or accepted to Michigan.  Conway would have to earn his associate’s degree at said junior college before even having a shot to transfer to the Ann Arbor campus.  Michigan is historically a difficult school into which to transfer, which is why not many JUCO recruits are pursued by the coaching staffs.  The last JUCO transfer to get into Michigan was linebacker Austin Panter in 2007, but he was the first since the early ’90s.  It is possible, however, that since Conway knows he wants to attend Michigan, he can find a JUCO academic program whose credits will transfer to U of M.  I’m not holding my breath, though.

This leaves Michigan with zero outside wide receivers in the 2011 recruiting class.  It has been apparent that the coaches wanted at least two receivers in the class, and the news about Conway was probably the reason that Michigan offered California wide receiver Devin Lucien in recent weeks.  It might also be why Justice Hayes was welcomed into the fold with such open arms when he decommitted from Notre Dame a couple weeks ago; Hayes is more of a slot receiver, but has the size and ability to play outside, too.

Conway is the second subtraction from the 2011 class within a week.  Over this past weekend, quarterback Kevin Sousa changed his verbal pledge from Michigan to Wake Forest.  This also continues a disturbing trend of Rich Rodriguez recruiting academic question marks.  Class of 2009 cornerback Adrian Witty failed to qualify, and four players disappeared from the Class of 2010 due to grade issues (Demar Dorsey, Antonio Kinard, Conelius Jones, and Davion Rogers).

I expect that Michigan will continue to recruit Lucien and North Carolinian Kris Frost, who doubles as a linebacker prospect.  Florida slot receiver Prince Holloway is also a potential option.