The latest edition of INSIDE THE FORT, including plenty of football, basketball and recruiting information.
Starting with football this week, and the continuation of the Brandon Peters era (?). We fully expect him to start, with the hope that he continues to play well. Those who have been here long enough know that’s what we want for every kid who signs with Michigan, and that won’t change.
There’s a fine line between reporting what you know, good and bad, and protecting kids. There’s nothing sinister about why Peters hasn’t been playing, and neither head coach Jim Harbaugh (nor anyone else) has implied that there is. It’s easy to wonder, of course, when he’s playing behind a quarterback who is having a hard time protecting the ball like fifth-year senior John O’Korn.
Bottom line … kids mature at different paces. Not speaking of Peters here, but there have been plenty who have come extremely close to losing their privilege of remaining on the team. Some never turn it around (see: Ahmir Mitchell). Others are left for dead (figuratively speaking) and work their way back up the ladder, and it’s incredible to see.
Brian Griese was one of those guys, in fact. There were many — many — who didn’t think he’d grow and learn enough after his stupid, off-field incidents to become the leader he did. We’d have told you then, too, that he had a long road back, and when he proved them wrong, we’d have been the first to praise him for it.
We’ve seen that happen with at least a few guys on this team, and it’s fun when that light goes on.
As we’ve reported for several weeks now, fifth-year senior quarterback Wilton Speight is due back earlier than expected and could be ready to play by the Wisconsin game in two weeks (some have said Maryland, but we think they’ll err on the side of caution, which means it’s not a sure thing he’d play against the Badgers).
What happens then in terms of who plays? A lot will probably depend on what happens the next two weeks, but everyone was obviously thrilled with the way Peters played last Saturday against Rutgers — especially Jack Harbaugh, Jim’s dad.
After the game had ended, he spent some time with a few random tailgaters who had set up shop next to his vehicle, and had nothing but good things to say about the youngster’s performance. He gushed about Peters’ poise in the pocket and the way he felt pressure around him and stepped up to avoid it several times.
What impressed him the most, though, was the way Peters kept his eyes downfield while on the move. Harbaugh singled out the pass play to fifth-year senior running back Ty Isaac along the sideline in the third quarter as a specific example of this.
Before departing, Harbaugh was sure to dish out a few life lessons to the awe-stricken tailgaters. He made clear what the most important lesson in life is though — to marry wisely.
Moving on to bigger (literally) things …
Those very close to it acknowledge that offensive line remains the biggest concern going forward, specifically pass protection. One who has been around and close to it for a couple years, but not familiar with the U-M tradition, asked, ‘has the play up front always been an issue here?’
Which, of course, led to a history lesson. But to think it’s been 10 years since this line has been one of the “Michigan lines of old” is nuts.
We love the progress big Mike Onwenu has made at right guard, and he looks to be a fixture there. He’s still not the fastest guy, but if he loses 20 pounds (which could be tough. He’s big boned), he could be really, really good. As it stands, he’s the most improved guy on this year’s line.
So what about next year? Our guys on the scene have had high praise for freshmen Andrew Stueber and Cesar Ruiz, thinking they’ll be really good after one more offseason. Stueber is a tackle candidate … so is redshirt freshman Stephen Spanellis, who plays with an edge but still needs to get a bit quicker.
Frosh Chuck Filiaga is a monster, but he needs better footwork, according to some of our experts. He is better guard prospect at this point. It takes a while for Onwenu to get up to speed, but he’s still got a half step on Filiaga. Of course, kids improve, and we hope to see him continue to. He’s a great kid and we would like nothing more.
We feel great about the talent on this team going forward, as do those in the building. There’s some up front, too, but how they come together … well, that’s critical, as it always is.
One last bit of good news: redshirt sophomore tackle Grant Newsome continues to get good updates from doctors, and he fully expects to return by spring ball. We don’t know percentages, etc., but he continues to beat the odds and is an incredible kid with unbelievable desire.
****
To football recruiting now …
Michigan just offered Mission Viejo (Calif.) High three-star offensive tackle Jarrett Patterson and may now be the favorite to land him despite him being committed to Arizona State. The 6-5, 275-pounder could not have been more excited about the tender from U-M.
“The Michigan offer is huge. I was really fired up to get it,” Patterson said.
We joked with him and said, “You sound like a player that’s going to end up at Michigan,” and he said, “I guess we’ll have to wait and see,” with a big laugh. That’s not usually the response one gets when a commit is asked to comment on their status and their future with a different program.
Patterson is being recruited as an offensive tackle with position versatility. He could definitely play guard at the next level, but is being looked at as an edge protector for now.
“They said they were in need of some good linemen and Coach [Jim] Harbaugh said I really caught his eye when he watched my film,” Patterson explained. “I’ll do what it takes to help the team win. If that means playing inside I will do that. I feel my best position is tackle since I am very athletic and how my frame is but I’ll play anything.”
Patterson now plans to take an official visit to Michigan after the season. Smart money would be on him giving a very, very hard look and potentially flipping from the Sun Devils to the Wolverines.
Michigan isn’t expected to host a ton of recruits for tomorrow’s contest, but Franklin (Tenn.) High 2020 offensive guard Jake Wray is going to be in attendance.
The 6-5, 275-pounder doesn’t hold an offer from Michigan but does have options from Alabama, Georgia, Louisville, LSU, Miami, Ohio State, Oregon, Tennessee and Texas along with a few others. There’s a very good chance he’ll pick up a tender from the Wolverines this weekend and that would immediately put U-M in a good spot with him.
“I’ve always wanted to go to a Michigan game,” he said.
His affinity for Michigan is noteworthy since his older brother, 2018 four-star tackle Max Wray, is an Ohio State commit. Most people around the Wray brothers believe that Jake will end up being the better prospect and that’s already coming to fruition based on his offer list.
Ohio State obviously has a bit of an inside track with big bro committed, but if Jake picks up the Michigan offer this weekend he’ll have another top-flight program to consider.
Earlier this week, Michigan commit Cameron McGrone tweeted out that he is 100 percent committed to U-M. Of course, Twitter ran with this and assumed something was afoot with McGrone’s pledge, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. The four-star from Indianapolis Lawrence Central was simply trying to make sure that everyone knew that Emil Ekiyor’s de-commitment would have no effect on him.
“I just know that people know Emil and I are pretty good friends and didn’t want them to think just cause he left I would think about leaving,” McGrone explained.
McGrone and other commits tried hard to convince Ekiyor to remain with U-M, but it was not to be. Ekiyor has bonded extremely well with the staff at Alabama while the staff at Michigan seemed to have cooled on the four-star guard.
As we’d been saying for weeks, that one had been trending away from the Wolverines, even when it was being reported he was ‘100 percent committed’ to the Wolverines.
****
To basketball now, and several notes before tonight’s exhibition with Grand Valley.
Reading the tea leaves and what we’re hearing behind the scenes, this team is definitely a work in progress. Head coach John Beilein talks about how guys play ‘when the lights go on’ … well, all eyes are going to be on wing Charles Matthews tonight, and we’ll see how the redshirt sophomore Kentucky transfer responds. He was great in practice last year, but now there’s a lot expected of him.
We expected a lot out of redshirt freshman big man Austin Davis, too, based heavily on what Beilein said about him last year heading into the offseason (both on and off the record). It’s clear he’s got the body, great hands, etc., and Beilein seemed almost apologetic that his big man hadn’t made a similar leap this year when called upon to step up his game.
And again, that doesn’t meant he can’t, or won’t.
“I’m just telling you … last year the scout team would score 16 points and he might score 12 of them,” Beilein said. “Now , accountability and defense and all these other things are all things he's got to get better at. He's a guy whose body has really changed. He's got to play like his body has really changed and I know he will.
“But there's another level. He's one of those guys that when he gets to 212 degrees, when he's boiling, he's going to be really good, but he's got to get there first. He's shown that in stages. I love the kid. He’s going to be very good once we get that little bit more intensity from him.”
In other words, a little more S.O.B. would be helpful. Same for sophomore Jon Teske, who has made strides but still has to play with more confidence. So please don't shoot the messenger, ronnie, if Davis doesn't score 20 tonight
.We still think he has the potential to be very good, and so does Beilein.
With junior Moritz Wagner a strong possibility as an NBA Draft candidate, U-M needs a starter at the center position next year. Clarkston big man Taylor Currie had reclassified to 2018, but he didn’t appear to be an early contributor. We saw him at the Michigan camp and many other times this summer, while Beilein was watching him, and it was clear he still had a long way to go as a competitor. There was one particular instance in one-on-one competition when Beilein called him out (not specifically) for not attacking a kid who was about 5-8 and probably only played ball at the YMCA, settling for a long, missed three and being eliminated ... it was clear it irked him, and he told the group the importance of competing on every play.
Beilein and Co. switched gears in their 2018 pursuit and went after Daytona Beach (Fla.) big man Colin Castleton, with the thought that if Currie was going to remain a Wolverine, it would have to be 2019. They weren’t the ones who had asked him to reclassify.
Regardless, Beilein made the tough call, and this class looks incredible, especially on the front line. As our @sane1 posted today, Johns is now up close to 6-10, and assistant Saddi Washington should take a victory lap on that one. He did an incredible job in helping land the Lansing native from his area.
As poster masuofmfan wrote, imagine a front court of East Lansing four-star Johns, then-soph Isaiah Livers and 6-7 four-star wing Iggy Brazdeikis in a few years … all guys who can shoot, all very athletic.
This year’s team should be solid, but the future is ridiculously bright (and that’s NOT to say Matthews or anyone else won’t have a say. To be clear).
Of Brazdeikis, Michigan’s own Nik Stauskas, a friend of the kid’s for years, told us, ‘he’s a pro. Two or three years, but the kid is going to be a pro.’
Would love to see three.
Finally, we’re still not sure what to expect at point guard tonight. Grad transfer Jaaron Simmons came here intent on starting, and the coaches probably thought he would. Sophomore Zavier Simpson has done some really good things, though, and freshman Eli Brooks is going to be really, really good, probably sooner than later.
We’ll see how this one plays out, but it’s clear Brooks will be a factor this year, on and off the ball. Minutes at the point will be one of the closest things we watch in the first month here … and how will kids respond if they aren’t playing? That’s one of the things Beilein said he’d watch, too, noting chemistry is great, but sometimes that means teammates don’t hold each other accountable.
This team is still a mystery, Beilein said, but the program isn’t. There’s a lot of young talent for now and in the immediate future.
Starting with football this week, and the continuation of the Brandon Peters era (?). We fully expect him to start, with the hope that he continues to play well. Those who have been here long enough know that’s what we want for every kid who signs with Michigan, and that won’t change.
There’s a fine line between reporting what you know, good and bad, and protecting kids. There’s nothing sinister about why Peters hasn’t been playing, and neither head coach Jim Harbaugh (nor anyone else) has implied that there is. It’s easy to wonder, of course, when he’s playing behind a quarterback who is having a hard time protecting the ball like fifth-year senior John O’Korn.
Bottom line … kids mature at different paces. Not speaking of Peters here, but there have been plenty who have come extremely close to losing their privilege of remaining on the team. Some never turn it around (see: Ahmir Mitchell). Others are left for dead (figuratively speaking) and work their way back up the ladder, and it’s incredible to see.
Brian Griese was one of those guys, in fact. There were many — many — who didn’t think he’d grow and learn enough after his stupid, off-field incidents to become the leader he did. We’d have told you then, too, that he had a long road back, and when he proved them wrong, we’d have been the first to praise him for it.
We’ve seen that happen with at least a few guys on this team, and it’s fun when that light goes on.
As we’ve reported for several weeks now, fifth-year senior quarterback Wilton Speight is due back earlier than expected and could be ready to play by the Wisconsin game in two weeks (some have said Maryland, but we think they’ll err on the side of caution, which means it’s not a sure thing he’d play against the Badgers).
What happens then in terms of who plays? A lot will probably depend on what happens the next two weeks, but everyone was obviously thrilled with the way Peters played last Saturday against Rutgers — especially Jack Harbaugh, Jim’s dad.
After the game had ended, he spent some time with a few random tailgaters who had set up shop next to his vehicle, and had nothing but good things to say about the youngster’s performance. He gushed about Peters’ poise in the pocket and the way he felt pressure around him and stepped up to avoid it several times.
What impressed him the most, though, was the way Peters kept his eyes downfield while on the move. Harbaugh singled out the pass play to fifth-year senior running back Ty Isaac along the sideline in the third quarter as a specific example of this.
Before departing, Harbaugh was sure to dish out a few life lessons to the awe-stricken tailgaters. He made clear what the most important lesson in life is though — to marry wisely.
Moving on to bigger (literally) things …
Those very close to it acknowledge that offensive line remains the biggest concern going forward, specifically pass protection. One who has been around and close to it for a couple years, but not familiar with the U-M tradition, asked, ‘has the play up front always been an issue here?’
Which, of course, led to a history lesson. But to think it’s been 10 years since this line has been one of the “Michigan lines of old” is nuts.
We love the progress big Mike Onwenu has made at right guard, and he looks to be a fixture there. He’s still not the fastest guy, but if he loses 20 pounds (which could be tough. He’s big boned), he could be really, really good. As it stands, he’s the most improved guy on this year’s line.
So what about next year? Our guys on the scene have had high praise for freshmen Andrew Stueber and Cesar Ruiz, thinking they’ll be really good after one more offseason. Stueber is a tackle candidate … so is redshirt freshman Stephen Spanellis, who plays with an edge but still needs to get a bit quicker.
Frosh Chuck Filiaga is a monster, but he needs better footwork, according to some of our experts. He is better guard prospect at this point. It takes a while for Onwenu to get up to speed, but he’s still got a half step on Filiaga. Of course, kids improve, and we hope to see him continue to. He’s a great kid and we would like nothing more.
We feel great about the talent on this team going forward, as do those in the building. There’s some up front, too, but how they come together … well, that’s critical, as it always is.
One last bit of good news: redshirt sophomore tackle Grant Newsome continues to get good updates from doctors, and he fully expects to return by spring ball. We don’t know percentages, etc., but he continues to beat the odds and is an incredible kid with unbelievable desire.
****
To football recruiting now …
Michigan just offered Mission Viejo (Calif.) High three-star offensive tackle Jarrett Patterson and may now be the favorite to land him despite him being committed to Arizona State. The 6-5, 275-pounder could not have been more excited about the tender from U-M.
“The Michigan offer is huge. I was really fired up to get it,” Patterson said.
We joked with him and said, “You sound like a player that’s going to end up at Michigan,” and he said, “I guess we’ll have to wait and see,” with a big laugh. That’s not usually the response one gets when a commit is asked to comment on their status and their future with a different program.
Patterson is being recruited as an offensive tackle with position versatility. He could definitely play guard at the next level, but is being looked at as an edge protector for now.
“They said they were in need of some good linemen and Coach [Jim] Harbaugh said I really caught his eye when he watched my film,” Patterson explained. “I’ll do what it takes to help the team win. If that means playing inside I will do that. I feel my best position is tackle since I am very athletic and how my frame is but I’ll play anything.”
Patterson now plans to take an official visit to Michigan after the season. Smart money would be on him giving a very, very hard look and potentially flipping from the Sun Devils to the Wolverines.
Michigan isn’t expected to host a ton of recruits for tomorrow’s contest, but Franklin (Tenn.) High 2020 offensive guard Jake Wray is going to be in attendance.
The 6-5, 275-pounder doesn’t hold an offer from Michigan but does have options from Alabama, Georgia, Louisville, LSU, Miami, Ohio State, Oregon, Tennessee and Texas along with a few others. There’s a very good chance he’ll pick up a tender from the Wolverines this weekend and that would immediately put U-M in a good spot with him.
“I’ve always wanted to go to a Michigan game,” he said.
His affinity for Michigan is noteworthy since his older brother, 2018 four-star tackle Max Wray, is an Ohio State commit. Most people around the Wray brothers believe that Jake will end up being the better prospect and that’s already coming to fruition based on his offer list.
Ohio State obviously has a bit of an inside track with big bro committed, but if Jake picks up the Michigan offer this weekend he’ll have another top-flight program to consider.
Earlier this week, Michigan commit Cameron McGrone tweeted out that he is 100 percent committed to U-M. Of course, Twitter ran with this and assumed something was afoot with McGrone’s pledge, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. The four-star from Indianapolis Lawrence Central was simply trying to make sure that everyone knew that Emil Ekiyor’s de-commitment would have no effect on him.
“I just know that people know Emil and I are pretty good friends and didn’t want them to think just cause he left I would think about leaving,” McGrone explained.
McGrone and other commits tried hard to convince Ekiyor to remain with U-M, but it was not to be. Ekiyor has bonded extremely well with the staff at Alabama while the staff at Michigan seemed to have cooled on the four-star guard.
As we’d been saying for weeks, that one had been trending away from the Wolverines, even when it was being reported he was ‘100 percent committed’ to the Wolverines.
****
To basketball now, and several notes before tonight’s exhibition with Grand Valley.
Reading the tea leaves and what we’re hearing behind the scenes, this team is definitely a work in progress. Head coach John Beilein talks about how guys play ‘when the lights go on’ … well, all eyes are going to be on wing Charles Matthews tonight, and we’ll see how the redshirt sophomore Kentucky transfer responds. He was great in practice last year, but now there’s a lot expected of him.
We expected a lot out of redshirt freshman big man Austin Davis, too, based heavily on what Beilein said about him last year heading into the offseason (both on and off the record). It’s clear he’s got the body, great hands, etc., and Beilein seemed almost apologetic that his big man hadn’t made a similar leap this year when called upon to step up his game.
And again, that doesn’t meant he can’t, or won’t.
“I’m just telling you … last year the scout team would score 16 points and he might score 12 of them,” Beilein said. “Now , accountability and defense and all these other things are all things he's got to get better at. He's a guy whose body has really changed. He's got to play like his body has really changed and I know he will.
“But there's another level. He's one of those guys that when he gets to 212 degrees, when he's boiling, he's going to be really good, but he's got to get there first. He's shown that in stages. I love the kid. He’s going to be very good once we get that little bit more intensity from him.”
In other words, a little more S.O.B. would be helpful. Same for sophomore Jon Teske, who has made strides but still has to play with more confidence. So please don't shoot the messenger, ronnie, if Davis doesn't score 20 tonight
.We still think he has the potential to be very good, and so does Beilein.With junior Moritz Wagner a strong possibility as an NBA Draft candidate, U-M needs a starter at the center position next year. Clarkston big man Taylor Currie had reclassified to 2018, but he didn’t appear to be an early contributor. We saw him at the Michigan camp and many other times this summer, while Beilein was watching him, and it was clear he still had a long way to go as a competitor. There was one particular instance in one-on-one competition when Beilein called him out (not specifically) for not attacking a kid who was about 5-8 and probably only played ball at the YMCA, settling for a long, missed three and being eliminated ... it was clear it irked him, and he told the group the importance of competing on every play.
Beilein and Co. switched gears in their 2018 pursuit and went after Daytona Beach (Fla.) big man Colin Castleton, with the thought that if Currie was going to remain a Wolverine, it would have to be 2019. They weren’t the ones who had asked him to reclassify.
Regardless, Beilein made the tough call, and this class looks incredible, especially on the front line. As our @sane1 posted today, Johns is now up close to 6-10, and assistant Saddi Washington should take a victory lap on that one. He did an incredible job in helping land the Lansing native from his area.
As poster masuofmfan wrote, imagine a front court of East Lansing four-star Johns, then-soph Isaiah Livers and 6-7 four-star wing Iggy Brazdeikis in a few years … all guys who can shoot, all very athletic.
This year’s team should be solid, but the future is ridiculously bright (and that’s NOT to say Matthews or anyone else won’t have a say. To be clear).
Of Brazdeikis, Michigan’s own Nik Stauskas, a friend of the kid’s for years, told us, ‘he’s a pro. Two or three years, but the kid is going to be a pro.’
Would love to see three.
Finally, we’re still not sure what to expect at point guard tonight. Grad transfer Jaaron Simmons came here intent on starting, and the coaches probably thought he would. Sophomore Zavier Simpson has done some really good things, though, and freshman Eli Brooks is going to be really, really good, probably sooner than later.
We’ll see how this one plays out, but it’s clear Brooks will be a factor this year, on and off the ball. Minutes at the point will be one of the closest things we watch in the first month here … and how will kids respond if they aren’t playing? That’s one of the things Beilein said he’d watch, too, noting chemistry is great, but sometimes that means teammates don’t hold each other accountable.
This team is still a mystery, Beilein said, but the program isn’t. There’s a lot of young talent for now and in the immediate future.
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