2017 Recruiting Update: February 13, 2017

Tag: Toryque Bateman


13Feb 2017
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2017 Recruiting Update: February 13, 2017

Willie Gay (image via The Clarion-Ledger)

The 2017 recruiting class is in the rear view, but there were naturally a bunch of players who committed on or around National Signing Day. Here’s a wrap-up of all the various goings-on regarding those players who were offered by Michigan.

COMMITMENTS

Iowa City (IA) West wide receiver Oliver Martin committed to Michigan (LINK).

Westerville (OH) South punter Brad Robbins committed to Michigan (LINK).

Leesburg (GA) Lee County defensive tackle Aubrey Solomon committed to Michigan (LINK).

Hit the jump for 26 guys who signed elsewhere.

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20Jan 2017
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If I had My Druthers . . . 2017 Offensive Line

Austin Jackson (image via USA Today)

Last year I took a late look at a few positions that Michigan was recruiting down to the wire. For example, I wanted Devin Asiasi the most out of Michigan’s remaining tight end targets last January (LINK), and he signed with the Wolverines, for whom he played quite a bit as a freshman. (For the record, the other four tight end targets on that list redshirted in 2016.) As a reminder, I feel it’s necessary to mention that I specifically avoid looking at recruiting rankings while working on this piece to avoid being influenced, though this here hobby means I have a fair idea of their general ranking.

1. Austin Jackson – OT – Phoenix (AZ) North Canyon: Jackson is the least physically developed player on this list at 6’6″, 270 lbs. He’s a lithe, athletic offensive tackle/defensive end, and he almost doesn’t look like an offensive tackle prospect. Though he is largely regarded as an offensive line prospect, he almost certainly needs a redshirt to add some size in order to play OL. He’s very good working up to the second level and playing in space, and he moves his feet well in pass protection. Right now he can get overpowered at the line of scrimmage by bigger players, but I do like athletes at offensive tackle who need to fill out rather than big guys who need to learn to be athletic.

Hit the jump for the remainder of the list.

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24Sep 2016
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Visitors: Michigan vs. Penn State




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Detroit (MI) Cass Tech WR Donovan Peoples-Jones (image via 247 Sports)

2017

Toryque Bateman – OT – Gadsden (AL) Gadsden City: Bateman is a 6’8″, 305 lb. prospect with offers from Arizona State, Miami, Michigan, and Tennessee, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 3-star, the #43 offensive tackle, and #408 overall. Bateman was close to committing to Michigan at one point and the Crystal Ball is still 62% in favor of the Wolverines, but there have been rumors that Michigan might back off due to questions about whether he’ll qualify or not. UPDATE: Bateman did not make it to town.

Markquese Bell – WR – Bridgeton (NJ) Bridgeton: Bell is a 6’3″, 194 lb. prospect with offers from Clemson, Florida, Maryland, Michigan, and Rutgers, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #6 athlete, and #179 overall. I did a scouting report on him back in April (LINK). He said several weeks ago that distance would no longer be a factor in his recruitment, which led some to believe that he was leaning away from Rutgers and perhaps toward the Wolverines. UPDATE: Bell is now visiting for the Wisconsin game on October 1.

Ellis Brooks – LB – Richmond (VA) Benedictine:

Nico Collins – WR – Pinson (AL) Clay-Chalkville: Collins is a 6’5″, 195 lb. prospect with offers from Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia, and Michigan, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #13 wide receiver, and #86 overall. Alabama was thought to be the early leader, then Michigan jumped to the front, and now there are rumors that Georgia is in the driver’s seat. This will be his third visit to Michigan in the last few months. The Crystal Ball is 62% in favor of the Wolverines. UPDATE: Collins did not make it to town.

Hit the jump for several more visitors.

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6Aug 2016
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2016 BBQ at the Big House visitors

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Antioch (CA) Antioch RB Najee Harris

The BBQ at the Big House, founded by Rich Rodriguez, has continued through Brady Hoke and now Jim Harbaugh. It has always been a big recruiting weekend with a lot of visitors, although Harbaugh has switched it up a little bit. Instead of having it near the end of July when players are still able to take visits freely, putting it in early August makes it a bit tougher for players to make lengthy travel plans, since a lot of states start practice at the beginning of August. This year’s BBQ at the Big House will supposedly be split up into two events, one on August 6 and one on August 8.

2017

Jordan Anthony – LB – Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy: Anthony is a 6’0″, 220 lb. prospect with offers from Auburn, Clemson, Georgia, LSU, Maryland, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma, and Penn State, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #8 outside linebacker, and #113 overall. A Maryland native, he transferred to IMG prior to his junior year. UPDATE: Anthony is no longer planning to visit.

Henry Bainivalu – OT – Sammamish (WA) Skyline: Bainivalu is a 6’6″, 290 lb. prospect with offers from Michigan, Oregon, UCLA, USC, Washington, and Washington State, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #23 offensive tackle, and #182 overall.

Aaron Banks – OT – El Cerrito (CA) El Cerrito: Banks is a 6’7″, 344 lb. prospect with offers from Cal, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oregon, and USC, among others. He’s a 247 Composite 4-star, the #21 offensive tackle, and #167 overall.

Hit the jump for a ton more players who are attending the BBQ.

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27Jun 2016
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2017 Recruiting Update: June 27, 2016

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Richmond (VA) Collegiate OL Jess Speight

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COMMITMENT

Darien (CT) Darien offensive tackle Andrew Stueber committed to Michigan (LINK).

ADDED TO THE BOARD: 2017

Ellenwood (GA) Cedar Grove linebacker Dennis Bell was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’2″, 217 lb. prospect with offers from Georgia State, Maryland, Miami-OH, and Wake Forest. Information is limited on Bell, who’s a 2-star recruit on Rivals, but I believe he transferred from Decatur (GA) Decatur to Cedar Grove after his junior season. So that would mean he wasn’t technically a teammate of incoming Michigan freshman Elysee Mbem-Bosse. Regardless, Bell is now teammates with several Michigan targets in the 2017, 2018, and 2019 classes, and he camped at Michigan early last week, earning the offer in front of the coaching staff. He’s a big WR/DB who will probably outgrow the defensive back position and turn into a linebacker at the next level. He said that he thought about committing to Michigan immediately, but now he’s going to hold off on committing until later in the summer.

Charlotte (NC) Hough quarterback Jackson Gibbs was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’1″, 185 lb. prospect with no other offers at this time. Gibbs also camped at Michigan and earned the offer, although there has been much speculation and discussion about whether he has anything close to a committable offer. Recruiting guys have dug into it and say that he wasn’t technically offered, but as long as Rivals lists him with one, then I will, too. I’m not in the business of verifying offers. Anyway, Gibbs is a decent looking prospect, but probably not on Michigan’s level. He’s the grandson of former Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs.

Richmond (VA) Collegiate offensive guard Jess Speight was offered by Michigan. He’s a 6’4″, 275 lb. prospect with no other offers at this time. Speight is the brother of Michigan quarterback Wilton Speight. While I’m typically not a fan of under-the-radar offers quite this early in the process, I actually like Speight a little bit. His size is a question mark for me because I don’t know if he matches his listed measurements, but he shows some good athleticism and technique. I wonder if he might be more of a target for the center position.

Hit the jump for several guys who committed elsewhere, some top lists, and some random bits.

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