Tag: Ray Vinopal

Ex-Wolverine Updates: Pre-Season 2012

Sam McGuffie is the face of the Rice Owls’ program this fall

Some Michigan fans surely don’t care much what happens to guys after they decommit or transfer from Michigan, but I’m not one of them.  I like to track them and see how they’re doing elsewhere.  Most of the time, they don’t find a ton of success on the football field.  But a few – like Toney Clemons, Anthony Fera, DeQuinta Jones, and Sam McGuffie – have become quality players for other FBS programs.  Here are some of the updates since last year, with more info to be found on the Ex-Wolverine Encyclopedia.

Former Michigan QB commit Shavodrick Beaver: Beaver sat out the 2011 season after transferring from Tulsa to Midwestern State.  He is listed as a 6’3″, 193 lb. redshirt junior quarterback for the Mustangs.

Former Michigan CB Greg Brown: Brown is listed as a 5’11”, 195 lb. defensive back on Findlay’s roster.  He transferred shortly into the 2011 season after enrolling early in January 2011.

Former Michigan TE commit Pharaoh Brown: Brown is listed as a 6’6″, 234 lb. freshman tight end on Oregon’s roster.

Former Michigan CB Cullen Christian: Christian is listed as a 6’0″, 195 lb. defensive back on Pitt’s roster.  He is expected to start at cornerback for the Panthers this year.

Former Michigan WR Toney Clemons: Clemons was a 7th round draft pick out of Colorado in the 2012 NFL Draft.  He remains on the Steelers’ roster at this point but did not have a catch in their first preason game against the Eagles.

Former Michigan CB commit Dallas Crawford: Crawford was Miami’s Scout Team Player of the Year on defense, but he is now listed as a 5’11”, 190 lb. running back on the Hurricanes’ roster.

Former Michigan CB commit Demar Dorsey: Dorsey was supposed to enroll at Hawaii after transferring from Grand Rapids Community College, but he does not appear on Hawaii’s roster for the upcoming season.  UPDATE: Dorsey is transferring to Western Arizona Junior College for the upcoming season.

Former Michigan S Vladimir Emilien: Emilien is listed as a 6’1″, 204 lb. safety at Toledo after sitting out the 2011 season due to transfer rules.  He is expected to start this fall at a hybrid safety/linebacker position.

Former Michigan K commit Anthony Fera: Fera transferred from Penn State to Texas after the PSU sanctions were announced.  He currently has a groin injury and is not practicing with the Longhorns, but he is expected to start when healthy.

Former Michigan OT commit Jake Fisher: Fisher is listed as a 6’6″, 294 lb. offensive lineman on Oregon’s roster.  He is expected to start this year for the Ducks.

Former Michigan QB Tate Forcier: Forcier signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League after leaving San Jose State, but he was released from the team in June.  His current football status is unknown.

Former Michigan K commit Matt Goudis: Goudis is a redshirt freshman kicker at Miami.

Former Michigan FS Carvin Johnson: Johnson supposedly transferred to Hampton but does not appear on the Pirates’ roster for the upcoming season.

Former Michigan DT commit DeQuinta Jones: Jones is listed as a 6’5″, 299 lb. defensive tackle and is expected to start for the Arkansas Razorbacks this fall.

Former Michigan LB Kellen Jones: Jones left Oklahoma for Clemson, but does not appear on the Tigers’ 2012 roster.

Former Michigan RB Sam McGuffie: McGuffie is listed as a 5’11”, 200 lb. redshirt senior running back on the Rice Owls’ roster, though he is expected to contribute mostly at slot receiver this fall.

Former Michigan WR commit Bryce McNeal: McNeal transferred from Clemson to UConn in the middle of last season, but he does not appear on the Huskies’ roster for 2012.  EDIT: McNeal has instead transferred to Louisville, where it looks like he’ll begin this season as a backup.

Former Michigan QB commit Kevin Newsome: Newsome transferred to Temple from Penn State in the offseason.  He will be eligible to play this fall, but will likely be a backup to the incumbent starter.

Former Michigan WR commit DeWayne Peace: Peace is listed as a 6’0″, 190 lb. redshirt junior wide receiver for Houston.  He is expected to start at wide receiver this fall.

Former Michigan LB Davion Rogers: Rogers left the Youngstown State program after the 2011 season.  His current playing status is unknown.

Former Michigan QB commit Kevin Sousa: Sousa is listed as a 6’3″, 230 lb. redshirt freshman on Wake Forest’s roster.

Former Michigan OL commit Caleb Stacey: Stacey decommitted from Michigan and signed with Cincinnati instead, but he left the team prior to the beginning of fall camp.

Former Michigan CB commit Anthony Standifer: Standifer is listed as a 6’1″, 180 lb. defensive back on Ole Miss’s roster.

Former Michigan WR Je’Ron Stokes: Stokes is listed as a 6’1″, 198 lb. redshirt junior wide receiver for the Bowling Green State University Falcons.  He is in the mix to start this fall.

Former Michigan CB Justin Turner: Turner is listed as a 6’3″, 204 lb. defensive back for Scottsdale Community College, where he started last season.

Former Michigan S Ray Vinopal: Vinopal is listed as a 5’10”, 190 lb. redshirt sophomore safety on Pitt’s roster.  He is expected to start for the Panthers this season.

Former Michigan CB commit Adrian Witty: Witty is listed as a 5’10”, 182 lb. cornerback for the Cincinnati Bearcats.  He is in the mix to start this fall.

Ex-Wolverine Updates: The Class of 2010

Former Michigan signee Demar Dorsey played for Grand Rapids Community College during the 2011 season (image via MLive)

Former Michigan cornerback Cullen Christian redshirted at Pitt this past season due to NCAA transfer rules.  He transferred to Pitt in order to follow former Michigan defensive backs coach Tony Gibson, who has since been hired for the same role at Arizona.  Christian made several negative comments on Twitter about Gibson and Pitt head coach Todd Graham for leaving Pitt so soon.  Christian will presumably remain at Pitt with new head coach Paul Chryst, since he’s already transferred once and he’s near home.

Former Michigan signee Demar Dorsey spent this past season at Grand Rapids Community College in Michigan.  He played in just seven games and ended the season with 10.5 tackles, 1 interception (for 51 yards), 4 pass breakups, and 2 kickoff returns for 51 yards.  He’s going to need a new place to play, though, because GRCC disbanded its football program this past week.

Former Michigan commit Tony Drake spent 2010 as a wide receiver/running back at Colorado State, but was declared academically ineligible for the 2011 season.  It’s unclear if he will return to the program.

Former Michigan safety Carvin Johnson left the football program in the middle of the 2011 season.  He was enrolled at Michigan throughout the fall semester.  Prior to his departure, he played in eight games for the Wolverines and made 14 tackles, 1 pass breakup, and 1 fumble recovery.

Former Michigan signee Conelius Jones was academically ineligible to play at Marshall this past season.  Since graduating in 2010, he has yet to appear on a college roster.  His current status is unknown.

Former Michigan signee Antonio Kinard attended Hargrave Military Academy in 2010, then signed with Miami in 2011 . . . and was declared academically ineligible at Miami, too.  He is headed to Arizona Western to play football in fall 2012.

Former Michigan center Christian Pace injured his shoulder during practice in 2010 and left the team this past off-season on a medical scholarship.  He is still enrolled at the University of Michigan.

Former Michigan linebacker Davion Rogers spent the 2011 season as a 6’6″, 215 lb. linebacker at Youngstown State.  He played in 11 games and made 45 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 5 pass breakups, and 1 interception (which was returned 27 yards for a touchdown).  He also blocked 2 kicks.

Former Michigan safety Ray Vinopal sat out the 2011 season at Pitt due to NCAA transfer rules.  In much the same situation as Cullen Christian (minus the childish Twitter rant), he will be a redshirt sophomore in fall 2012.

Former Michigan running back Austin White sat out the 2011 season at Central Michigan due to NCAA transfer rules.  He will be a redshirt sophomore at CMU in fall 2012.

The current whereabouts of former Michigan defensive tackle Terry Talbott and wide receiver D.J. Williamson are unknown.

Class of 2011 Bonus: Former Michigan offensive lineman Tony Posada is no longer playing football.  Thanks for yet another wasted scholarship, Rich Rodriguez!

For further updates on ex-Wolverines and former commits, check out the Ex-Wolverine Encyclopedia.

Are these things connected?

Was Cullen Christian lonely?

Today at MGoBlog, Brian posted an e-mail from a former walk-on who said:

I talked with Bruce Madej for a while as well as Paul Schmidt.  I was surprised to learn that RR did not force freshman/sophomores to live in the dorm.  The only players who HAD to live in the dorm were the early enrollees, and they only had to stay there until after spring semester. Think about that. An 18 year old kid is going right from living at his folks place and attending high school to instantly living on his own, with rent and phone bills, gas bills, grocery shopping, etc ALL THE WHILE trying to maintain his athletics AND play for a demanding coach. There’s no way an 18 year should be put in that situation. It’s overwhelming.  Schmitty told me that was the first thing he told Hoke when he arrived.  Hoke immediately switched the policy back to freshman and sophomores MUST live in the dorm.

I found this interesting, since this information comes on the heels of some crippling attrition that included true freshman starter Ray Vinopal and highly rated cornerback Cullen Christian.  In an article on The Wolverine, Christian was quoted as saying:

I didn’t come up here for the new coaching staff. So when Coach Gibson left, it got crazy; I wanted to be with somebody who recruited me, somebody who knows me and knows what I’m about.  That’s why I picked Michigan in the first place, and if it was a different coaching staff, I wouldn’t have committed there. It’s a good school with a big name and everything, and they reeled me in. The main thing was Coach Gibson; that was the big thing in getting me to Michigan. I didn’t really like it up here.  I didn’t like the campus, and really, I’ve miserable since I’ve been up here. I think it was just about me and what I’m used to being around; there’s a difference between living in Pittsburgh and Ann Arbor. A big difference. A lot of kids like it here, and some don’t. It just wasn’t for me.  So once the coaches left, there wasn’t much holding me here. I was like, ‘Why am I here? I don’t know these coaches and they didn’t recruit me.

The combination of these things makes me wonder if Rodriguez’s rule about living situations had anything to do with the departures of Vinopal and Christian, among others.  I did not realize that the players were allowed to live elsewhere on campus, and obviously, it’s difficult to know exactly how many freshmen in the past couple years took advantage of living off campus.  It had always been my understanding that freshman and sophomore athletes were required to live in the dorms, and I figured that was just the way of the world forever and ever.

But I do ascribe to the notion that living in a dorm is a key part of the maturation process for college students. I am not naive enough to think that kids can’t get in trouble when living in the dorms.  However, it does alleviate some of the stress of buying groceries, paying bills, meeting new people, etc.  When students are forced to live in such close quarters, there are surely clashes of personalities, dustups, etc.  But long-lasting friendships are also forged.  I know many people whose friendships with their freshman year roommates turned into relationships that lasted beyond college.

Christian and Vinopal very well could have ended up transferring whether they lived in South Quad/West Quad or not.  But when Christian says, “Once the coaches left, there wasn’t much holding me here,” I start to wonder how many friends he had.  What should have been present is a strong bond with one or two of his teammates, guys who could have repeated the mantra “Those who stay will be champions” or fellow freshmen who were also struggling to climb their way up the depth chart.  We often hear recruits or recruits’ mentors saying, “Don’t go somewhere just because of the coaches, because they could be gone in a year.”  That’s exactly what happened to Christian, and now he’ll be starting anew as a Pitt Panther.

Regardless, Brady Hoke has apparently returned to making freshmen and sophomores live in dorms, so all is right in the world.  Unless kids start transferring in droves.  Then we can blame it on something else.

Ray Vinopal, ex-Wolverine

Ray Vinopal makes a tackle against Illinois

Safety Ray Vinopal, who just finished his freshman season at Michigan, has left the team due to personal reasons.  Coach Brady Hoke did not elaborate on the reason for Vinopal’s departure.

When Vinopal was recruited out of Cardinal Mooney (Youngstown, OH) last year, I was not a fan.  I pegged him as a probable backup and special teamer, but Vinopal ascended to the starting free safety role halfway through the season.  His rapid ascension was at least partially due to the ineffectiveness of early-season starter Cam Gordon; the departures of Vlad Emilien and Justin Turner; and injuries to J.T. Floyd and Troy Woolfolk.  My guess is that one of the latter three would have moved ahead of Vinopal at free safety once Gordon proved he wasn’t up to the task.  And yet we saw #20, a 2-star recruit, find his way into the starting lineup.

Vinopal exceeded my expectations, but his play was nothing special.  He ended the season with 33 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 1 interception, and 3 pass breakups.  He made a couple decent plays throughout the season (a pick against Bowling Green, a critical tackle on Mikel Leshoure of Illinois), but he was outmatched by the majority of Michigan’s 2010 opponents – too small, a step too slow, or both.

Regardless of his shortcomings, he may have been the frontrunner for the starting free safety job in 2011.  Now Michigan will probably be in the same position it has been for the past few seasons – starting a very inexperienced youngster at the secondary’s most critical position.  It was Jordan Kovacs, Mike Williams, and Woolfolk in 2009, Gordon and Vinopal in 2010, and . . . someone else in 2011.  Options include sophomores Carvin Johnson, Marvin Robinson, and Cullen Christian; freshman Tamani Carter; or a converted cornerback like Woolfolk or Floyd.  The situation is less than ideal.

As for the 2010 recruiting class, this is yet another blow to its quality and numbers.  Twenty-seven kids signed National Letters of Intent in February 2010, and only 21 remain.  Safety Demar Dorsey (now at Grand Rapids Community College), quarterback Conelius Jones (Marshall), linebacker Antonio Kinard (Miami), linebacker Davion Rogers (Youngstown State), and running back Austin White (Central Michigan) preceded Vinopal in leaving the program.

Vinopal has not announced a destination, although rumors have floated around that he might be headed to play at Pitt.  His former position coach at Michigan, Tony Gibson, is now the cornerbacks coach for the Panthers.  For those of you who are wondering, Pittsburgh is about one hour and fifteen minutes from Vinopal’s hometown of Youngstown.  Ann Arbor is three hours and thirty minutes away.

So about all these offers . . .

5-star receiver Stefon Diggs

Many Michigan fans seem worried that the new coaching staff has thrown out offers with what fans deem to be reckless abandon over the last couple months.  At last count Michigan has verbally offered 130 prospects from the class of 2012.

The key word there is “verbally.”  Due to a new rule for this recruiting cycle, high schoolers cannot receive official, written offers until August 1 of their senior year.  That means someone like Stefon Diggs (pictured above) won’t be 100% sure of who’s recruiting him until a little over four months from now.  In the olden days, kids could receive written offers on September 1 of their junior years, meaning Diggs would have been offered several months ago.

One thing to watch is how many kids actually accept offers this early in the process.  Since they can’t have official offers in hand for another several months, kids may be feeling out the process a little longer.  It seems that there have been fewer early commitments in the class of 2012 overall.  Only 19 of the 130 offered have already committed to a particular program.

While offers are coming at a much faster rate this year, they seem to be going to higher level athletes.  Of the 130 offers, 84 of them (56%) are on the Rivals 250 to Watch list, which means they are likely to be 4-stars or higher.  In my opinion, many of the other 46 players have a very good chance of being 4-stars, as well.

By about this time in the past few recruiting classes, Michigan not only had offers out to some lower level guys, but actual commitments from guys like Teric Jones (buried on the bench at RB), Antonio Kinard (a non-qualifier who ended up at Miami), Isaiah Bell (buried on the bench at LB), and Delonte Hollowell (who ended up as a middling 3-star prospect).  This is not to say that those guys won’t end up being solid players at some point, but early offers and commitments should be elite kids.  You can find the Teric Joneses and Antonio Kinards of the world late in the recruiting game, like Michigan has with Ray Vinopal, Jake Ryan, and Russell Bellomy.

Additionally, Michigan’s midwest recruiting base is pretty talented this season, which means the coaches – and recruits – don’t have to travel far.  Forty-four of the 130 offers (34%) are to kids from Big Ten states.

I was not a huge fan of the Brady Hoke hire, so this is not coming from the we-need-a-Michigan-Man-to-right-the-ship perspective:  I am legitimately not concerned with the number of offers the Wolverines have put out there.  This coaching staff seems to have a better grasp on the type of talent Michigan can and should recruit.  I will voice my concern if and when Hoke starts tossing out offers like candy to MAC-level and Big East-level talent, but so far that’s not the case.