1. Another Loss
I thought Michigan was going to pull a Texas and win with its back against the wall. With everyone calling for Tom Herman's head a couple of weeks ago, the Longhorns responded with a road win over No. 6 Oklahoma State and quieted some of the speculation. Jim Harbaugh and Michigan had a similar opportunity this week at No. 13 Indiana. However, the Wolverines played an awful, uninspired first half and ultimately lost, 38-21, to fall to 1-2 on the year. The excitement over the win at Minnesota feels like ages ago. Over the last two weeks, Michigan suffered an embarrassing loss to a rival with a roster in desperate need of talent and dropped a game to a team it hadn't lost to since before I was born — I'm 29 years old. The gap with Ohio State is only widening and calls for changes in Ann Arbor are only getting louder. Covering Michigan isn't really fun right now.
2. The ND Win
Notre Dame upset No. 1 Clemson this weekend and could very well reach the College Football Playoff. It's crazy that I'm even typing that. At this time last year, I was in my hotel room in Chicago watching Michigan kick the tar out of the Irish. And I had just seen Rivals100 quarterback commit JJ McCarthy pick up a win in a Saturday afternoon game. The future in Ann Arbor looked extremely bright. Fast forward a year, and now there are more questions than there are answers at Michigan. Meanwhile, Notre Dame crushed Michigan's heart on the recruiting trail this summer by landing in-state Rivals100 offensive lineman Rocco Spindler and is undefeated. Recruits are certainly taking notice of Notre Dame's success. Keep in mind that Notre Dame is one of Michigan's biggest recruiting rivals, and there are some huge battles in 2022, including Tyler Morris and Kaleb Brown. I had clover emojis all over my Twitter timeline last night. Not great. Not great at all.
3. Buzz Around Class
Despite the disappointing results on the field and a bit of uncertainty off of it, I don't get the sense that Michigan is going to see many guys jump ship. Most of the 2021 class seems really solid. I spoke to a parent of a high profile commit today that expressed some uneasiness but said that the family picked Michigan for more than the coaching staff and would be sticking through even the worst of scenarios. Obviously, I caught up with Ja'Den McBurrows on Friday night, and he told me that he is remaining completely locked in. I had a story with Cristian Dixon's mother a few days ago, and she told me they're fully onboard as well. There just hasn't been much negativity in the class other than simple questions about the lack of a Harbaugh extension. Next weekend should be great for the class bond as most of the commits and their families will be on campus.
4. Recruiting Coverage
I get the frustrations. I know page views on my stories are significantly down. As I've stated before, this isn't my first rodeo with this type of situation. I went through it quite a bit on the Texas beat. I know you guys don't care a lot about recruiting right now. And rightfully so. We're kind of in a state of limbo until Michigan starts winning or stability questions are answered. But that's not going to change my approach to covering the beat. Someone on Twitter told me to 'give it a rest.' That would be a disservice to you guys. Whether it's good or bad, and I'm sure we're going to have more bad than good, I'm going to give you my best effort to bring you the best Michigan recruiting coverage possible. It's just going to be rough for a little while. It sucks, but I'm not going to stop doing my job.
5. Dog Mentality
I feel like 'dog' is overused. Everybody claims their son is a dog these days. But that's just not true. A dog is a different breed. A dog doesn't just make plays. A dog makes plays with swagger. A dog brings energy to the field. A dog commands respect from his teammates. A dog is the loudest person on the field and the most humble off of it. A dog plays mean but doesn't make stupid mistakes. A dog has a built-in edge that can't be taught. Ja'Den McBurrows is a dog. The three-star cornerback from Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas really embodies what it means to be from South Florida. He's on the small side, but he plays big. He plays loud. He plays fast. He plays with everything he has on every single play. Michigan needs more dogs on this team. McBurrows is the biggest one in the 2021 class.
6. Recruiting Miami
The Miami-area is full of dogs. There is just something different about kids from South Florida. Yes, they are great athletes. Yes, a lot of them have a ton of speed. But it goes beyond that. Their attitudes are so different. I love watching Miami teams play club 7v7. From Florida Fire to South Florida Express to DefCon (McBurrows' team), these guys show up with portable boom boxes, gold chains, crazy dances and outlandish backpacks. And they back up all the flash with their play on the field. Those three teams usually win the tournaments they play in. Of course, these guys also prove it in pads. South Florida is a true hotbed of recruiting talent. Watching St. Thomas Aquinas vs. American Heritage on Friday night was a true treat. Both sides were absolutely loaded. Michigan, when it doesn't have all these question marks, is more than capable of pulling guys from the area. With Brian Jean-Mary now on staff, I would love to see the Wolverines make Miami even more of a priority.
7. No Interviews
I've never been no interviewed twice in a season. But I once again got the stiff arm on Friday night. After being denied by Greg Crippen earlier this year, three-star linebacker commit Jaydon Hood told me to go kick rocks. Like dude, I flew all the way to Miami to see you and stood in pouring rain for hours. SMH. Anyway, I get it a little more with Hood than I do with Crippen. As I wrote earlier today, he had a really bad game and was benched for the entire second half. It's clear Hood is having a really rough time at St. Thomas Aquinas. He transferred in this offseason, and it looks like he just hasn't been able to adapt. Once thought to be one of the most underrated prospects in the class, Hood may have regressed. There have been question marks about his commitment status, but I just wouldn't see him as a big loss after seeing him live. Plus, Michigan has recruited extremely well at linebacker and is in a great spot with some top 2022 prospects. Meanwhile, McBurrows was so respectful after the game and very appreciative of me coming out. He thanked me like 20 times lol.
8. Fun With Flights
Traveling was an adventure this weekend. I was nervous about just getting to Miami since there were supposed to be storms in the area all day. Luckily, I got there early enough to avoid most of the rain. Like I said, I endured it during the game. Right when I landed, I got like five alerts that the Bergen Catholic vs. St. Peters Prep game got canceled due to COVID. My plan was to fly from Miami to New Jersey on Saturday morning then fly home to Chicago that night. In a rare turn of events, I was able to get credits for those flights and booked the first flight out of Miami to Chicago on Saturday. I only got two hours of sleep Friday night, but I avoided being stranded since Miami is currently being hit by a tropical storm. My new plan is to use my flight credit on Nov. 21. I'm just not sure where I'm going yet. This weekend, I'll be in Ann Arbor for the big visit party. I also plan on being at West Bloomfield vs. Stevenson. If you have any suggestions for my credit usage, let me know.
9. Allen Finds New Home
Former Michigan commit Markus Allen has found a new home. The four-star wide receiver committed to Wisconsin over the weekend. That means Allen gets sone revenge games against Michigan. Honestly, the Allen situation was one of the weirdest of the cycle. I've gotten both sides of the story and still feel like there are missing details that we'll just never know. I really liked Allen as a prospect and love his upside. I have him graded higher than Michigan commit Andrel Anthony, and he was developing good friendships with Xavier Worthy and Cristian Dixon. I was told he wasn't forced out of the class, and I just don't buy that he wasn't getting enough love. Again, it was a weird situation, but I'm happy for Allen, and I think Wisconsin is a great fit. He's going to do well there.
10. 29
As some of y'all noticed, it was my birthday on Thursday. The older you get, the less people care lol. My parents sent me some cash and a big bag of M&M's. My wife got me some new Beats headphones since I lost mine in a Boston hotel earlier this year, and the hotel claimed they went missing from lost and found because of the chaos with COVID (lies!!!). My cat got me a cake. That was pretty much. It was a low key day. I had lunch with my wife in Wicker Park then I took her to her class then I watched the Niners get killed then I woke up early for my flight. I don't feel 29, to be honest. But it's a sad age. I know I only have a good six years left before I get really old in the recruiting world. Recruiting is a young man's game, and I don't want to do team coverage, so I'm starting to get concerned. Maybe The Fort will still like old man EJ on the recruiting trail.
I thought Michigan was going to pull a Texas and win with its back against the wall. With everyone calling for Tom Herman's head a couple of weeks ago, the Longhorns responded with a road win over No. 6 Oklahoma State and quieted some of the speculation. Jim Harbaugh and Michigan had a similar opportunity this week at No. 13 Indiana. However, the Wolverines played an awful, uninspired first half and ultimately lost, 38-21, to fall to 1-2 on the year. The excitement over the win at Minnesota feels like ages ago. Over the last two weeks, Michigan suffered an embarrassing loss to a rival with a roster in desperate need of talent and dropped a game to a team it hadn't lost to since before I was born — I'm 29 years old. The gap with Ohio State is only widening and calls for changes in Ann Arbor are only getting louder. Covering Michigan isn't really fun right now.
2. The ND Win
Notre Dame upset No. 1 Clemson this weekend and could very well reach the College Football Playoff. It's crazy that I'm even typing that. At this time last year, I was in my hotel room in Chicago watching Michigan kick the tar out of the Irish. And I had just seen Rivals100 quarterback commit JJ McCarthy pick up a win in a Saturday afternoon game. The future in Ann Arbor looked extremely bright. Fast forward a year, and now there are more questions than there are answers at Michigan. Meanwhile, Notre Dame crushed Michigan's heart on the recruiting trail this summer by landing in-state Rivals100 offensive lineman Rocco Spindler and is undefeated. Recruits are certainly taking notice of Notre Dame's success. Keep in mind that Notre Dame is one of Michigan's biggest recruiting rivals, and there are some huge battles in 2022, including Tyler Morris and Kaleb Brown. I had clover emojis all over my Twitter timeline last night. Not great. Not great at all.
3. Buzz Around Class
Despite the disappointing results on the field and a bit of uncertainty off of it, I don't get the sense that Michigan is going to see many guys jump ship. Most of the 2021 class seems really solid. I spoke to a parent of a high profile commit today that expressed some uneasiness but said that the family picked Michigan for more than the coaching staff and would be sticking through even the worst of scenarios. Obviously, I caught up with Ja'Den McBurrows on Friday night, and he told me that he is remaining completely locked in. I had a story with Cristian Dixon's mother a few days ago, and she told me they're fully onboard as well. There just hasn't been much negativity in the class other than simple questions about the lack of a Harbaugh extension. Next weekend should be great for the class bond as most of the commits and their families will be on campus.
4. Recruiting Coverage
I get the frustrations. I know page views on my stories are significantly down. As I've stated before, this isn't my first rodeo with this type of situation. I went through it quite a bit on the Texas beat. I know you guys don't care a lot about recruiting right now. And rightfully so. We're kind of in a state of limbo until Michigan starts winning or stability questions are answered. But that's not going to change my approach to covering the beat. Someone on Twitter told me to 'give it a rest.' That would be a disservice to you guys. Whether it's good or bad, and I'm sure we're going to have more bad than good, I'm going to give you my best effort to bring you the best Michigan recruiting coverage possible. It's just going to be rough for a little while. It sucks, but I'm not going to stop doing my job.
5. Dog Mentality
I feel like 'dog' is overused. Everybody claims their son is a dog these days. But that's just not true. A dog is a different breed. A dog doesn't just make plays. A dog makes plays with swagger. A dog brings energy to the field. A dog commands respect from his teammates. A dog is the loudest person on the field and the most humble off of it. A dog plays mean but doesn't make stupid mistakes. A dog has a built-in edge that can't be taught. Ja'Den McBurrows is a dog. The three-star cornerback from Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) St. Thomas Aquinas really embodies what it means to be from South Florida. He's on the small side, but he plays big. He plays loud. He plays fast. He plays with everything he has on every single play. Michigan needs more dogs on this team. McBurrows is the biggest one in the 2021 class.
6. Recruiting Miami
The Miami-area is full of dogs. There is just something different about kids from South Florida. Yes, they are great athletes. Yes, a lot of them have a ton of speed. But it goes beyond that. Their attitudes are so different. I love watching Miami teams play club 7v7. From Florida Fire to South Florida Express to DefCon (McBurrows' team), these guys show up with portable boom boxes, gold chains, crazy dances and outlandish backpacks. And they back up all the flash with their play on the field. Those three teams usually win the tournaments they play in. Of course, these guys also prove it in pads. South Florida is a true hotbed of recruiting talent. Watching St. Thomas Aquinas vs. American Heritage on Friday night was a true treat. Both sides were absolutely loaded. Michigan, when it doesn't have all these question marks, is more than capable of pulling guys from the area. With Brian Jean-Mary now on staff, I would love to see the Wolverines make Miami even more of a priority.
7. No Interviews
I've never been no interviewed twice in a season. But I once again got the stiff arm on Friday night. After being denied by Greg Crippen earlier this year, three-star linebacker commit Jaydon Hood told me to go kick rocks. Like dude, I flew all the way to Miami to see you and stood in pouring rain for hours. SMH. Anyway, I get it a little more with Hood than I do with Crippen. As I wrote earlier today, he had a really bad game and was benched for the entire second half. It's clear Hood is having a really rough time at St. Thomas Aquinas. He transferred in this offseason, and it looks like he just hasn't been able to adapt. Once thought to be one of the most underrated prospects in the class, Hood may have regressed. There have been question marks about his commitment status, but I just wouldn't see him as a big loss after seeing him live. Plus, Michigan has recruited extremely well at linebacker and is in a great spot with some top 2022 prospects. Meanwhile, McBurrows was so respectful after the game and very appreciative of me coming out. He thanked me like 20 times lol.
8. Fun With Flights
Traveling was an adventure this weekend. I was nervous about just getting to Miami since there were supposed to be storms in the area all day. Luckily, I got there early enough to avoid most of the rain. Like I said, I endured it during the game. Right when I landed, I got like five alerts that the Bergen Catholic vs. St. Peters Prep game got canceled due to COVID. My plan was to fly from Miami to New Jersey on Saturday morning then fly home to Chicago that night. In a rare turn of events, I was able to get credits for those flights and booked the first flight out of Miami to Chicago on Saturday. I only got two hours of sleep Friday night, but I avoided being stranded since Miami is currently being hit by a tropical storm. My new plan is to use my flight credit on Nov. 21. I'm just not sure where I'm going yet. This weekend, I'll be in Ann Arbor for the big visit party. I also plan on being at West Bloomfield vs. Stevenson. If you have any suggestions for my credit usage, let me know.
9. Allen Finds New Home
Former Michigan commit Markus Allen has found a new home. The four-star wide receiver committed to Wisconsin over the weekend. That means Allen gets sone revenge games against Michigan. Honestly, the Allen situation was one of the weirdest of the cycle. I've gotten both sides of the story and still feel like there are missing details that we'll just never know. I really liked Allen as a prospect and love his upside. I have him graded higher than Michigan commit Andrel Anthony, and he was developing good friendships with Xavier Worthy and Cristian Dixon. I was told he wasn't forced out of the class, and I just don't buy that he wasn't getting enough love. Again, it was a weird situation, but I'm happy for Allen, and I think Wisconsin is a great fit. He's going to do well there.
10. 29
As some of y'all noticed, it was my birthday on Thursday. The older you get, the less people care lol. My parents sent me some cash and a big bag of M&M's. My wife got me some new Beats headphones since I lost mine in a Boston hotel earlier this year, and the hotel claimed they went missing from lost and found because of the chaos with COVID (lies!!!). My cat got me a cake. That was pretty much. It was a low key day. I had lunch with my wife in Wicker Park then I took her to her class then I watched the Niners get killed then I woke up early for my flight. I don't feel 29, to be honest. But it's a sad age. I know I only have a good six years left before I get really old in the recruiting world. Recruiting is a young man's game, and I don't want to do team coverage, so I'm starting to get concerned. Maybe The Fort will still like old man EJ on the recruiting trail.
