1. Staying Home To Curl
I had to will myself not to travel this week. Instead, I'm spending the weekend home with my wife and celebrating Valentines Day as well as catching up on some rest. We're not really big into the whole Valentines thing, but we are going out to eat at some Eastern European place (there are a lot on my side of Chicago) and going curling right after that. Apparently, curling is pretty popular here during the winter, so we're going to give it a go. I've never been curling but like most, I'm always entertained when I watch it on TV during the Olympics. If anyone has any advice on it, let me know. I'm looking forward to it. I will be back on the road next weekend. This time around, I'll be heading out West to see some of the new offers in Cali and surrounding states.
2. Report Card
Since I didn't travel this weekend, and we covered a lot of what happened during the week on The Fort, I thought it would be a good opportunity to use this column to share my final thoughts and close the book on Michigan's 2021 recruiting class. If I haven't been posting as much as usual, it's because we've been hard at work on the magazine side. Yes, The Wolverine is also home to a print edition, and the whole staff has put in a ton of work into this month's recruiting issue, which profiles every member of the 2021 class. You can order it by clicking here. It's only $7!!!! You can also get a 1-year subscription to the magazine (both digital and print) for less than $60. It could even make for a great Valentines gift lol. Anyway, let's go ahead and reflect on the 2021 class one last time. Here are my grades for each position group.
3. Quarterback
Michigan went out and got one of the best best quarterbacks in the country in Rivals100 Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy product JJ McCarthy. A borderline five-star recruit, McCarthy brings the intangibles that you just can't coach at the position. He's a terrific leader, has a ton of charisma, always believes he can win, sets the tone for others with his work ethic and just has that 'it' factor. That's not to mention his ability on the field. McCarthy has elite arm talent and ball placement. He can basically make any throw on the field and trusts his arm. He can also make plays with his legs and has that Johnny Manziel-esque escapability. McCarthy ran a pretty vanilla offense at IMG, but he can be a gunslinger and electrifying playmaker when he's allowed to do so. Expect McCarthy to come in and compete for the starting job right away.
Grade: A
4. Running Back
Since McCarthy was such an early commit, the entire cycle focused in on Rivals100 West Bloomfield (Mich.) High running back Donovan Edwards. The in-state product was always the No. 1 overall target on the board, and Michigan found a way to close with him despite an early run from Ohio State, a push from Georgia, uncertainty around Jim Harbaugh and a poor season. Honestly, Edwards' heart was always with Michigan. He loved the program and wanted to stay closer to home. Still, it was impressive job by Harbaugh and co. considering the circumstances. Edwards is a top end talent and may be the best running back in the country this cycle. Like McCarthy, he should compete for the starting job right away. Oh yeah, Michigan also landed a serviceable two back in Tavierre Dunlap.
Grade: A
5. Wide Receivers
Despite the craziness surrounding the Xavier Worthy recruitment, it still looks like he'll end up at Michigan. Obviously, even now there are a ton of moving parts with Worthy, but from a pure talent standpoint, he's quite the impressive prospect and a terrific fit for Josh Gattis' speed in space offense. Worthy is a burner with a killer 100m time, and his film shows he has the ability to make plays in the open field. He's another freshman that will have a chance to contribute or start right away. Michigan also landed Rivals250 wide receiver Cristian Dixon and three-star wide receiver Andrel Anthony. Both are versatile pass catchers that can be used in various way. It's a nice haul overall, bu Michigan did have a weird ending with four-star wide receiver Markus Allen and never replaced him.
Grade: B +
6. Offensive Line
Michigan did have some misses this cycle. From the Rocco Spindler drama show to finishing second with David Davidkov to failing to keep Garrett Dellinger home, there were some gut punches with the position group. Still, all four of Michigan's offensive line commits are four-star prospects. Rivals100 tackle Giovanni El-Hadi has a low floor, but he also has a massive ceiling and may develop into Michigan's next high NFL Draft pick. Raheem Anderson is a sure thing at center or guard and a future team captain. Tristan Bounds has some of if not the biggest upside in this class. And while I'm not personally very high on Greg Crippen,I do love his technique and feel like he can be a contributor down the line.
Grade: B +
7. Tight End
It's hard to give Michigan a grade here since the Wolverines really wanted two tight ends this cycle and could not find a way to land top target Thomas Fidone. With that said, Michigan is still bringing in one of the top tight ends in the country in Rivals100 Needham (Mass.) St. Sebastian's product Louis Hansen. I feel like Hansen is one of the more undervalued members of this class despite his high ranking. Yes, he's a New England guy, and I know The Fort was sick of Don Brown's recruiting approach, but Hansen is a terrific prospect. He's a plus pass catcher that can also block in-line. Hansen has also bulked up to 240 this offseason and has been consistently running in the 4.7s. He'll be a multi-year starter in Ann Arbor.
Grade: B+
8. Defensive Line
What a turnaround. This position group was heading toward a big fat 'F' before National Signing Day. However, Shaun Nua and the Wolverines turned it around and closed with some big targets late. The recruitment of Rivals100 defensive tackle Rayshaun Benny was the best of the cycle and filled a huge need with an elite talent. He should make an early impact for the Wolverines. Adding Rivals250 defensive lineman George Rooks was huge, too. Rooks give the Wolverines a highly touted prospect with versatility upfront. The flip of Colorado commit Ike Iwunnah was just the cherry on top. And oh yeah, I love TJ Guy as one of the biggest sleepers of the class.
Grade: A
9. Linebacker
Michigan is bringing in a monster in Rivals100 Brentwood (Tenn.) Ravenwood linebacker Junior Colson, who I have graded as a five-star prospect. Colson is big, athletic, can cover and will be yet another true freshman that competes for a starting job. Colson is a rare athlete at 6-foot-2, 225 pounds with 4.5 speed. You shouldn't be that big and move that fast. After Colson, however, there is a bit of a drop off. Rivals250 prospect Jaydon Hood has a high ceiling but also has a low floor. He had a really inconsistent senior year. Tyler McLaurin is a bit of a project that may spin down to defensive end. Losing Branden Jennings at the end really hurt.
Grade: B
10. Defensive Back
Had Michigan lost Ja'Den McBurrows to Miami during the early period, this would have been an absolute disaster. That's the only thing that's saving Michigan's grade here. After all, the Wolverines whiffed on several top targets and are only bringing in two players on the back end — McBurrows and three-star safety Rod Moore. McBurrows is a nice, little player. His dog mentality will likely help him outplay his ranking. On the flip side of the coin, Moore is a solid take at the safety position. Overall, it's a lackluster class. It obviously didn't help that Bob Shoop had too much fun during his time in Ann Arbor and wasn't around.
Grade: C -
Bonus: Michigan gets an 'A' on special teams for bringing in Tommy Doman aka The Weapon.
I had to will myself not to travel this week. Instead, I'm spending the weekend home with my wife and celebrating Valentines Day as well as catching up on some rest. We're not really big into the whole Valentines thing, but we are going out to eat at some Eastern European place (there are a lot on my side of Chicago) and going curling right after that. Apparently, curling is pretty popular here during the winter, so we're going to give it a go. I've never been curling but like most, I'm always entertained when I watch it on TV during the Olympics. If anyone has any advice on it, let me know. I'm looking forward to it. I will be back on the road next weekend. This time around, I'll be heading out West to see some of the new offers in Cali and surrounding states.
2. Report Card
Since I didn't travel this weekend, and we covered a lot of what happened during the week on The Fort, I thought it would be a good opportunity to use this column to share my final thoughts and close the book on Michigan's 2021 recruiting class. If I haven't been posting as much as usual, it's because we've been hard at work on the magazine side. Yes, The Wolverine is also home to a print edition, and the whole staff has put in a ton of work into this month's recruiting issue, which profiles every member of the 2021 class. You can order it by clicking here. It's only $7!!!! You can also get a 1-year subscription to the magazine (both digital and print) for less than $60. It could even make for a great Valentines gift lol. Anyway, let's go ahead and reflect on the 2021 class one last time. Here are my grades for each position group.
3. Quarterback
Michigan went out and got one of the best best quarterbacks in the country in Rivals100 Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy product JJ McCarthy. A borderline five-star recruit, McCarthy brings the intangibles that you just can't coach at the position. He's a terrific leader, has a ton of charisma, always believes he can win, sets the tone for others with his work ethic and just has that 'it' factor. That's not to mention his ability on the field. McCarthy has elite arm talent and ball placement. He can basically make any throw on the field and trusts his arm. He can also make plays with his legs and has that Johnny Manziel-esque escapability. McCarthy ran a pretty vanilla offense at IMG, but he can be a gunslinger and electrifying playmaker when he's allowed to do so. Expect McCarthy to come in and compete for the starting job right away.
Grade: A
4. Running Back
Since McCarthy was such an early commit, the entire cycle focused in on Rivals100 West Bloomfield (Mich.) High running back Donovan Edwards. The in-state product was always the No. 1 overall target on the board, and Michigan found a way to close with him despite an early run from Ohio State, a push from Georgia, uncertainty around Jim Harbaugh and a poor season. Honestly, Edwards' heart was always with Michigan. He loved the program and wanted to stay closer to home. Still, it was impressive job by Harbaugh and co. considering the circumstances. Edwards is a top end talent and may be the best running back in the country this cycle. Like McCarthy, he should compete for the starting job right away. Oh yeah, Michigan also landed a serviceable two back in Tavierre Dunlap.
Grade: A
5. Wide Receivers
Despite the craziness surrounding the Xavier Worthy recruitment, it still looks like he'll end up at Michigan. Obviously, even now there are a ton of moving parts with Worthy, but from a pure talent standpoint, he's quite the impressive prospect and a terrific fit for Josh Gattis' speed in space offense. Worthy is a burner with a killer 100m time, and his film shows he has the ability to make plays in the open field. He's another freshman that will have a chance to contribute or start right away. Michigan also landed Rivals250 wide receiver Cristian Dixon and three-star wide receiver Andrel Anthony. Both are versatile pass catchers that can be used in various way. It's a nice haul overall, bu Michigan did have a weird ending with four-star wide receiver Markus Allen and never replaced him.
Grade: B +
6. Offensive Line
Michigan did have some misses this cycle. From the Rocco Spindler drama show to finishing second with David Davidkov to failing to keep Garrett Dellinger home, there were some gut punches with the position group. Still, all four of Michigan's offensive line commits are four-star prospects. Rivals100 tackle Giovanni El-Hadi has a low floor, but he also has a massive ceiling and may develop into Michigan's next high NFL Draft pick. Raheem Anderson is a sure thing at center or guard and a future team captain. Tristan Bounds has some of if not the biggest upside in this class. And while I'm not personally very high on Greg Crippen,I do love his technique and feel like he can be a contributor down the line.
Grade: B +
7. Tight End
It's hard to give Michigan a grade here since the Wolverines really wanted two tight ends this cycle and could not find a way to land top target Thomas Fidone. With that said, Michigan is still bringing in one of the top tight ends in the country in Rivals100 Needham (Mass.) St. Sebastian's product Louis Hansen. I feel like Hansen is one of the more undervalued members of this class despite his high ranking. Yes, he's a New England guy, and I know The Fort was sick of Don Brown's recruiting approach, but Hansen is a terrific prospect. He's a plus pass catcher that can also block in-line. Hansen has also bulked up to 240 this offseason and has been consistently running in the 4.7s. He'll be a multi-year starter in Ann Arbor.
Grade: B+
8. Defensive Line
What a turnaround. This position group was heading toward a big fat 'F' before National Signing Day. However, Shaun Nua and the Wolverines turned it around and closed with some big targets late. The recruitment of Rivals100 defensive tackle Rayshaun Benny was the best of the cycle and filled a huge need with an elite talent. He should make an early impact for the Wolverines. Adding Rivals250 defensive lineman George Rooks was huge, too. Rooks give the Wolverines a highly touted prospect with versatility upfront. The flip of Colorado commit Ike Iwunnah was just the cherry on top. And oh yeah, I love TJ Guy as one of the biggest sleepers of the class.
Grade: A
9. Linebacker
Michigan is bringing in a monster in Rivals100 Brentwood (Tenn.) Ravenwood linebacker Junior Colson, who I have graded as a five-star prospect. Colson is big, athletic, can cover and will be yet another true freshman that competes for a starting job. Colson is a rare athlete at 6-foot-2, 225 pounds with 4.5 speed. You shouldn't be that big and move that fast. After Colson, however, there is a bit of a drop off. Rivals250 prospect Jaydon Hood has a high ceiling but also has a low floor. He had a really inconsistent senior year. Tyler McLaurin is a bit of a project that may spin down to defensive end. Losing Branden Jennings at the end really hurt.
Grade: B
10. Defensive Back
Had Michigan lost Ja'Den McBurrows to Miami during the early period, this would have been an absolute disaster. That's the only thing that's saving Michigan's grade here. After all, the Wolverines whiffed on several top targets and are only bringing in two players on the back end — McBurrows and three-star safety Rod Moore. McBurrows is a nice, little player. His dog mentality will likely help him outplay his ranking. On the flip side of the coin, Moore is a solid take at the safety position. Overall, it's a lackluster class. It obviously didn't help that Bob Shoop had too much fun during his time in Ann Arbor and wasn't around.
Grade: C -
Bonus: Michigan gets an 'A' on special teams for bringing in Tommy Doman aka The Weapon.
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