The latest edition of INSIDE THE FORT, including plenty of Michigan football recruiting, basketball and more …
Michigan wrapped up the early spring visit period in a big way by bringing in 20 official visitors from June 21-23. Things obviously went very well as evidenced by U-M procuring nine commitments since Sunday.
Four-star linebacker William Mohan, three-star defensive end Aaron Lewis, three-star offensive tackle Reece Atteberry, four-star safety Jordan Morant, three-star athlete Eamonn Dennis, four-star all-purpose back/wide receiver AJ Henning, four-star running back Blake Corum, four-star offensive tackle Jeff Persi and four-star linebacker Kalel Mullings all pledged to the Wolverines after successful official visits. All in all, the weekend quite literally could not have gone better for those nine guys.
A group of four commits were also in attendance for their official visits. Three-star tight end Matt Hibner, three-star offensive tackle Micah Mazzccua, four-star outside linebacker Osman Savage and four-star offensive tackle Zak Zinter helped the others realize that Ann Arbor was the place for them.
Two of the visiting prospects have since committed elsewhere. Three-star athlete/running back DJ Jones committed to North Carolina, while three-star wide receiver Jay Brunelle pledged to Notre Dame. After U-M procured commitments from Corum and Dennis as a potential duo in the backfield and Henning who could play various receiver spots, it’s not surprising that Jones and Brunelle picked the Tarheels and Irish respectively.
That leaves five official visitors who reportedly had a really good time in Ann Arbor but remain on the market.
Littleton (Colo.) Columbine four-star offensive tackle Andrew Gentry is a big-time talent at 6-8, 305 pounds and he’s still very high on the Wolverines after his official. After heading back to Colorado, Gentry revealed that he’ll be considering Michigan along with three other schools moving forward. The massive offensive tackle is going to take a Mormon mission before enrolling in college so it would be a while before he’s playing at the next level regardless of where he chooses. It doesn’t feel like U-M is pacing the pack but they’re still in the mix.
Olney (Md.) Good Counsel three-star strongside defensive end Kris Jenkins Jr. has only had his Michigan offer in hand for a couple of weeks so his official visit last weekend obviously indicates that he’s high on the Wolverines. His dad, former NFL standout Kris Jenkins, appeared pretty blown away by The Big House and everything Michigan can offer while checking things out with his son.
At 6-3 and north of 245 pounds, Jenkins could potentially play on the interior of the defensive line, so he’ll continue to be recruited. There was a little bit of buzz coming from people close to the program that Jenkins wanted to pull the trigger but since he didn’t, he’s one to watch closely in July and heading into the fall. Penn State, Maryland and Northwestern are three other schools heavily involved with him.
Jenkins’ teammate at Good Counsel, three-star outside linebacker Mitchell Melton, also had a phenomenal time in Ann Arbor and seemed to be close to committing according to those around him during the trip. At 6-4, 230 pounds, Melton is different enough from the other committed linebackers to remain on the board. He could play in the hybrid role that Josh Uche currently occupies, which is the perfect place for him because of his size, length and ability to rush the passer off the edge. Ohio State is in the mix for Melton, but it definitely feels like a Michigan vs. Notre Dame battle for the versatile defender.
With several versatile offensive linemen committed and one true tackle in the fold, Michigan can be picky and go after exactly who they want even if that prospect’s position is pretty permanent. That seems to be what’s happening with Broken Arrow (Okla.) High four-star offensive guard Andrew Raym. The 6-4, 285-pounder is definitely a guard and is No. 9 in the country at that position. The Oklahoma native reportedly had a great time in Ann Arbor but it definitely feels like Oklahoma and Georgia are out ahead of the Wolverines. Raym is expected to make his decision sometime in the early part of July and as of right now, it won’t be U-M.
Finally, there’s Chandler (Ariz.) Hamilton four-star wide receiver Brenden Rice. The 6-3, 208-pounder looks like he walked out of the same machine that could’ve created Donovan Peoples-Jones, Tarik Black and Nico Collins. He’s big bodied, very fast and just a freak of an athlete at the receiver position. Rice really digs Michigan and has some familiarity with fellow Arizonian and U-M quarterback commit JD Johnson. Rice has a Michigan version of himself as his Twitter picture, which isn’t always significant, but it was in AJ Henning’s case. He’s definitely still a top target for Michigan at wide receiver and should be watched closely moving forward.
In landing Corum, Michigan made yet another splash at St. Frances, which just happens to be one of the most loaded programs in the entire country. Rivals.com Mid-Atlantic recruiting analyst cannot say enough about what the Michigan coaches are doing at SFA.
“It’s a huge connection,” Friedman said. “The benefits that St. Frances has given Michigan are incalculable at this point. If even three of these players pan out, it will have been a huge boon for them. There’s no drop off in sight, either. Which means that Michigan can continue to recruit there, and it seems like they’ll continue to have success.”
The Michigan staff has offered at least 15 prospects at the historic Baltimore academy and could potentially extend more as Biff Poggi continues to recruit studs from all over the country to the DMV.
Port Huron (Mich.) Northern four-star defensive end Braiden McGregor has been one of the most discussed prospects in Michigan’s 2020 class, thanks to a ranking that varies immensely from site to site. He was recently bumped up to a four-star by Rivals.com, but according to reports, didn’t exactly stand out at the Rivals Five-Star Challenge in Atlanta this week.
Grosse Pointe North head coach Joseph Drouin got a firsthand glimpse of McGregor when his club fell to the Huskies, 48-3, last September, and was blown away by his athleticism and stature.
“His size is what impressed me the most,” Drouin recalled. “He was a good head and shoulders above everybody else — you’d see a huddle and then a helmet, and it was him. He was such a massive specimen on the field and not just a super tall kid, but a tall thick kid.”
Because the game between the two was so lopsided, Drouin revealed that McGregor was actually allowed to primarily showcase his offensive skill set when the two met.
“He didn’t play much defense against us,” Drouin said. “We planned for him to be on defense and had looked at plenty of tape, but he only came in as a defensive end on special occasions. It was mainly in third down passing situations — our offense was very bad last year and that may have contributed to them not utilizing him a whole lot against us. I think they gave some other kids a chance to play. We were 1-8, and six of our eight losses came by mercy.
“I respect what they were doing as a coaching staff, because they let McGregor show off his skills on offense instead. He mainly played some wideout and in a split tight end spot against us. In their first series, they got down to the 10-yard line and split him out as a tight end, and we knew the ball was going to go to him. We had a natural mismatch there with a kid who was 5-7 covering him.
“They threw it to him and our kid actually made a great play and blocked it the first time. McGregor grabbed the ball with one hand the second time, and that wound up being the Play of the Week on a local news station. Their camera crew was right in the corner, so we had to relive that moment over and over. It was also in their ‘End of the Year’ high school wrap up video, so it was a nightmare we had to watch time and time again.
“We simply knew he was going to get the ball continuously, but there was just no way to stop it. We knew what they were going to run when they’d line up, and it was a nightmare not being able to do anything.”
Drouin admitted that McGregor was underrecruited due to his location, citing how not many significant talents come out of Port Huron Northern’s conference (the MAC White). He also provided some interesting background info on another sport McGregor used to be interested in.
“I look at him and see a rush defensive end or an outside linebacker in college,” Drouin noted. “He reminds me a lot of the kid Grosse Pointe South had a few years ago that went to Ohio State, Reid Fragel. I coached Reid and know his family pretty well and watched his entire progression, and McGregor is like him except a little more athletic.
“He’ll need to add more muscle weight first. I spoke with their hockey coach and they were actually trying to get him to play hockey. He did summer workouts with their team and was ready to play, but then the football recruiting really took off and he realized that’s where he was going to be able to make a name for himself. The fact that he almost played though shows how athletic he is — it’s one thing for a football player to play basketball or baseball, but to translate to high level hockey shows he’s a phenomenal athlete.”
****
To basketball and recruiting now …
The big news we’re all waiting for — what’s Franz Wagner going to do? Moritz’ little brother has been very much in play for a long time now, even after head coach John Beilien accepted the Cleveland Cavaliers job on the morning the Wagners were leaving for their official visit to Michigan.
Credit the assistant coaches for doing a great job selling them on U-M, not that they needed much convincing. They all love U-M, and as we reported a few weeks ago, even the new staff felt it was likely the younger Wagner would be joining the team.
We still believe that’s the case. The paperwork is in, and should everything go smoothly — and we have every reason to believe it will — we believe Wagner will be in Ann Arbor soon to prepare for his first season at Michigan.
How good is he? You’ve heard all the talk that he’s probably a top 50 kid if he played in the U.S. That’s probably accurate, and folks who have played with him overseas tell us he’s “the real deal.”
Some believe Alba Berlin has yet to come in with its best offer to try to keep Wagner, but others are saying it won’t matter. This one is looking good for the Wolverines, but it ain’t over ‘til it’s over.
New head coach Juwan Howard continues to put out the offers, and one in particular is very intrigued. Georgian Walker Kessler had been trending away from U-M, but the 7-footer, Rivals.com’s No. 19 rising senior nationally, is very intrigued by the Howard hire and has the Wolverines firmly back in the mix.
“Coach Howard having been a big man at the highest level, he's been there before. He knows what it takes,” he said. That means a lot to me."
There have been rumblings he’ll visit again.
“Yessir,” he confirmed. “I definitely want to get up there for another visit.”
Another seven-footer, 7-1 Hunter Dickinson out of Hyattsville (Md.) DeMatha, recently picked up an offer and tweeted it out with a photo of the Fab Five. Many Michigan fans were excited, but the Wolverines are playing catchup here to Notre Dame and Purdue.
Dickinson does want to see the Michigan campus this fall, however, and is in no rush to decide.
“There’s a long way to go here,” Rivals.com’s Corey Evans shared with us.
Time to chip away at the lead.
Also, one of our guys ran into Shareef Abdur-Rahim at the recent NBA Draft, longtime NBA player and father of standout wing Jabri Abdur-Rahim (2020 four-star). He was joking about his son committing to U-M and he winked and said, “Michigan will have a good shot.”
He also offered that John Beilein had been doing such a great job recruiting him that he may have committed already if not for the coaching change, so U-M was in good shape there. We expect Howard to be able to continue that relationship, and for Michigan to have a really good shot.
****
Finally, a note on football …
It’s been a quiet summer, other than Oliver Martin bolting for Iowa. But by all accounts, the offseason has been going great in terms of conditioning. The offensive linemen, specifically, are getting “in the best shape of their lives,” including (again) big right guard Mike Onwenu.
“He looks better each week,” one of our guys on the inside said.
Senior defensive tackle Carlo Kemp has really been one of the catalysts for this. The players have really followed his lead, and though there’s no shortage of captain possibilities on this team, most believe Kemp is a lock.
Michigan wrapped up the early spring visit period in a big way by bringing in 20 official visitors from June 21-23. Things obviously went very well as evidenced by U-M procuring nine commitments since Sunday.
Four-star linebacker William Mohan, three-star defensive end Aaron Lewis, three-star offensive tackle Reece Atteberry, four-star safety Jordan Morant, three-star athlete Eamonn Dennis, four-star all-purpose back/wide receiver AJ Henning, four-star running back Blake Corum, four-star offensive tackle Jeff Persi and four-star linebacker Kalel Mullings all pledged to the Wolverines after successful official visits. All in all, the weekend quite literally could not have gone better for those nine guys.
A group of four commits were also in attendance for their official visits. Three-star tight end Matt Hibner, three-star offensive tackle Micah Mazzccua, four-star outside linebacker Osman Savage and four-star offensive tackle Zak Zinter helped the others realize that Ann Arbor was the place for them.
Two of the visiting prospects have since committed elsewhere. Three-star athlete/running back DJ Jones committed to North Carolina, while three-star wide receiver Jay Brunelle pledged to Notre Dame. After U-M procured commitments from Corum and Dennis as a potential duo in the backfield and Henning who could play various receiver spots, it’s not surprising that Jones and Brunelle picked the Tarheels and Irish respectively.
That leaves five official visitors who reportedly had a really good time in Ann Arbor but remain on the market.
Littleton (Colo.) Columbine four-star offensive tackle Andrew Gentry is a big-time talent at 6-8, 305 pounds and he’s still very high on the Wolverines after his official. After heading back to Colorado, Gentry revealed that he’ll be considering Michigan along with three other schools moving forward. The massive offensive tackle is going to take a Mormon mission before enrolling in college so it would be a while before he’s playing at the next level regardless of where he chooses. It doesn’t feel like U-M is pacing the pack but they’re still in the mix.
Olney (Md.) Good Counsel three-star strongside defensive end Kris Jenkins Jr. has only had his Michigan offer in hand for a couple of weeks so his official visit last weekend obviously indicates that he’s high on the Wolverines. His dad, former NFL standout Kris Jenkins, appeared pretty blown away by The Big House and everything Michigan can offer while checking things out with his son.
At 6-3 and north of 245 pounds, Jenkins could potentially play on the interior of the defensive line, so he’ll continue to be recruited. There was a little bit of buzz coming from people close to the program that Jenkins wanted to pull the trigger but since he didn’t, he’s one to watch closely in July and heading into the fall. Penn State, Maryland and Northwestern are three other schools heavily involved with him.
Jenkins’ teammate at Good Counsel, three-star outside linebacker Mitchell Melton, also had a phenomenal time in Ann Arbor and seemed to be close to committing according to those around him during the trip. At 6-4, 230 pounds, Melton is different enough from the other committed linebackers to remain on the board. He could play in the hybrid role that Josh Uche currently occupies, which is the perfect place for him because of his size, length and ability to rush the passer off the edge. Ohio State is in the mix for Melton, but it definitely feels like a Michigan vs. Notre Dame battle for the versatile defender.
With several versatile offensive linemen committed and one true tackle in the fold, Michigan can be picky and go after exactly who they want even if that prospect’s position is pretty permanent. That seems to be what’s happening with Broken Arrow (Okla.) High four-star offensive guard Andrew Raym. The 6-4, 285-pounder is definitely a guard and is No. 9 in the country at that position. The Oklahoma native reportedly had a great time in Ann Arbor but it definitely feels like Oklahoma and Georgia are out ahead of the Wolverines. Raym is expected to make his decision sometime in the early part of July and as of right now, it won’t be U-M.
Finally, there’s Chandler (Ariz.) Hamilton four-star wide receiver Brenden Rice. The 6-3, 208-pounder looks like he walked out of the same machine that could’ve created Donovan Peoples-Jones, Tarik Black and Nico Collins. He’s big bodied, very fast and just a freak of an athlete at the receiver position. Rice really digs Michigan and has some familiarity with fellow Arizonian and U-M quarterback commit JD Johnson. Rice has a Michigan version of himself as his Twitter picture, which isn’t always significant, but it was in AJ Henning’s case. He’s definitely still a top target for Michigan at wide receiver and should be watched closely moving forward.
In landing Corum, Michigan made yet another splash at St. Frances, which just happens to be one of the most loaded programs in the entire country. Rivals.com Mid-Atlantic recruiting analyst cannot say enough about what the Michigan coaches are doing at SFA.
“It’s a huge connection,” Friedman said. “The benefits that St. Frances has given Michigan are incalculable at this point. If even three of these players pan out, it will have been a huge boon for them. There’s no drop off in sight, either. Which means that Michigan can continue to recruit there, and it seems like they’ll continue to have success.”
The Michigan staff has offered at least 15 prospects at the historic Baltimore academy and could potentially extend more as Biff Poggi continues to recruit studs from all over the country to the DMV.
Port Huron (Mich.) Northern four-star defensive end Braiden McGregor has been one of the most discussed prospects in Michigan’s 2020 class, thanks to a ranking that varies immensely from site to site. He was recently bumped up to a four-star by Rivals.com, but according to reports, didn’t exactly stand out at the Rivals Five-Star Challenge in Atlanta this week.
Grosse Pointe North head coach Joseph Drouin got a firsthand glimpse of McGregor when his club fell to the Huskies, 48-3, last September, and was blown away by his athleticism and stature.
“His size is what impressed me the most,” Drouin recalled. “He was a good head and shoulders above everybody else — you’d see a huddle and then a helmet, and it was him. He was such a massive specimen on the field and not just a super tall kid, but a tall thick kid.”
Because the game between the two was so lopsided, Drouin revealed that McGregor was actually allowed to primarily showcase his offensive skill set when the two met.
“He didn’t play much defense against us,” Drouin said. “We planned for him to be on defense and had looked at plenty of tape, but he only came in as a defensive end on special occasions. It was mainly in third down passing situations — our offense was very bad last year and that may have contributed to them not utilizing him a whole lot against us. I think they gave some other kids a chance to play. We were 1-8, and six of our eight losses came by mercy.
“I respect what they were doing as a coaching staff, because they let McGregor show off his skills on offense instead. He mainly played some wideout and in a split tight end spot against us. In their first series, they got down to the 10-yard line and split him out as a tight end, and we knew the ball was going to go to him. We had a natural mismatch there with a kid who was 5-7 covering him.
“They threw it to him and our kid actually made a great play and blocked it the first time. McGregor grabbed the ball with one hand the second time, and that wound up being the Play of the Week on a local news station. Their camera crew was right in the corner, so we had to relive that moment over and over. It was also in their ‘End of the Year’ high school wrap up video, so it was a nightmare we had to watch time and time again.
“We simply knew he was going to get the ball continuously, but there was just no way to stop it. We knew what they were going to run when they’d line up, and it was a nightmare not being able to do anything.”
Drouin admitted that McGregor was underrecruited due to his location, citing how not many significant talents come out of Port Huron Northern’s conference (the MAC White). He also provided some interesting background info on another sport McGregor used to be interested in.
“I look at him and see a rush defensive end or an outside linebacker in college,” Drouin noted. “He reminds me a lot of the kid Grosse Pointe South had a few years ago that went to Ohio State, Reid Fragel. I coached Reid and know his family pretty well and watched his entire progression, and McGregor is like him except a little more athletic.
“He’ll need to add more muscle weight first. I spoke with their hockey coach and they were actually trying to get him to play hockey. He did summer workouts with their team and was ready to play, but then the football recruiting really took off and he realized that’s where he was going to be able to make a name for himself. The fact that he almost played though shows how athletic he is — it’s one thing for a football player to play basketball or baseball, but to translate to high level hockey shows he’s a phenomenal athlete.”
****
To basketball and recruiting now …
The big news we’re all waiting for — what’s Franz Wagner going to do? Moritz’ little brother has been very much in play for a long time now, even after head coach John Beilien accepted the Cleveland Cavaliers job on the morning the Wagners were leaving for their official visit to Michigan.
Credit the assistant coaches for doing a great job selling them on U-M, not that they needed much convincing. They all love U-M, and as we reported a few weeks ago, even the new staff felt it was likely the younger Wagner would be joining the team.
We still believe that’s the case. The paperwork is in, and should everything go smoothly — and we have every reason to believe it will — we believe Wagner will be in Ann Arbor soon to prepare for his first season at Michigan.
How good is he? You’ve heard all the talk that he’s probably a top 50 kid if he played in the U.S. That’s probably accurate, and folks who have played with him overseas tell us he’s “the real deal.”
Some believe Alba Berlin has yet to come in with its best offer to try to keep Wagner, but others are saying it won’t matter. This one is looking good for the Wolverines, but it ain’t over ‘til it’s over.
New head coach Juwan Howard continues to put out the offers, and one in particular is very intrigued. Georgian Walker Kessler had been trending away from U-M, but the 7-footer, Rivals.com’s No. 19 rising senior nationally, is very intrigued by the Howard hire and has the Wolverines firmly back in the mix.
“Coach Howard having been a big man at the highest level, he's been there before. He knows what it takes,” he said. That means a lot to me."
There have been rumblings he’ll visit again.
“Yessir,” he confirmed. “I definitely want to get up there for another visit.”
Another seven-footer, 7-1 Hunter Dickinson out of Hyattsville (Md.) DeMatha, recently picked up an offer and tweeted it out with a photo of the Fab Five. Many Michigan fans were excited, but the Wolverines are playing catchup here to Notre Dame and Purdue.
Dickinson does want to see the Michigan campus this fall, however, and is in no rush to decide.
“There’s a long way to go here,” Rivals.com’s Corey Evans shared with us.
Time to chip away at the lead.
Also, one of our guys ran into Shareef Abdur-Rahim at the recent NBA Draft, longtime NBA player and father of standout wing Jabri Abdur-Rahim (2020 four-star). He was joking about his son committing to U-M and he winked and said, “Michigan will have a good shot.”
He also offered that John Beilein had been doing such a great job recruiting him that he may have committed already if not for the coaching change, so U-M was in good shape there. We expect Howard to be able to continue that relationship, and for Michigan to have a really good shot.
****
Finally, a note on football …
It’s been a quiet summer, other than Oliver Martin bolting for Iowa. But by all accounts, the offseason has been going great in terms of conditioning. The offensive linemen, specifically, are getting “in the best shape of their lives,” including (again) big right guard Mike Onwenu.
“He looks better each week,” one of our guys on the inside said.
Senior defensive tackle Carlo Kemp has really been one of the catalysts for this. The players have really followed his lead, and though there’s no shortage of captain possibilities on this team, most believe Kemp is a lock.
