*** Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh is set to get on the line with new JUCO DL target Jeffrey M'ba later today. M'ba told me he's excited to chop it up with Harbaugh and get to know him on a personal basis. As I reported yesterday, Michigan defensive line coach Shaun Nua was on the phone with him yesterday. The two are quickly building a relationship ahead of his planned November official visit. Obviously, U-M staffer Biff Poggi has a preexisting connection to M'ba, which is definitely helping the Wolverines. As long as everything gos through with his transcripts, I'm expecting M'ba in the class come December. Right now, Miami, which hosted him for an OV over the weekend, is probably the biggest threat.
*** I put in a FutureCast pick for four-star wide receiver Dane Key to land at Kentucky a couple of days ago. While Michigan made a strong run, I always got the impression that he was going to stay home and got word that it was very likely Tuesday night. While a lot of people assumed the offer to East Carolina commit Kaleb Webb had to do with the decommitment of Tay'Shawn Trent (expected for months), it actually had more to do with Key. On the topic of Webb, he has been a late riser this cycle. While he is a verbal pledge to ECU, Webb is very open. Tennessee has hosted him twice and is the frontrunner, while Louisville got him on campus for an OV. I am expecting Michigan to get him on campus for an OV as well. Again, Tennessee is the most likely to flip him right now, but Michigan has some time to make up ground.
*** Man, I have to give Harbaugh credit. He has been relentless in his personal push for four-star linebacker Lander Barton. Both George Helow and Mike Macdonald have also been aggressive and still have Michigan in play here. In fact, optimism has grown on the Michigan side of things, and there is plenty of positive buzz coming out of Ann Arbor. However, I'm not sure I fully buy it right now. Not to be a negative nancy but there are a couple of reasons. One, it's going to be tough to win over his mom. I've heard she really, really, really would like Barton at Utah — remember, both his parents and brothers are Utah alums. Two, I heard from another school involved in Barton's recruitment that Barton didn't completely love the vibe in Ann Arbor on his official visit. With that said, Barton does love Harbaugh, Macdonald and Helow and knows he is a perfect fit for U-M's defensive scheme. There is A LOT of pressure on Barton to stay home, but Harbaugh, Macdonald and Helow have done as good of a job as anybody.
*** Sticking with Barton, he made an official visit to Utah last weekend. He grew up around the program and feels extremely comfortable there. He has a tight knit relationship with Utah's defensive staff and has bonded with them over their love of ranching. Actually, a reason Barton is high on Texas is because of his interest in being a full-time rancher after football. Barton will make an official visit to Oregon this weekend. There hasn't been much buzz about the Ducks here, so we'll see if that changes moving forward. USC is pushing hard with interim head coach Donte Williams visiting Barton a couple of weeks ago. But USC is obviously a mess. I still think Utah is the safe pick, but maybe Harbaugh can pull aa rabbit out of his hat — it's certainly in the realm of possibilities.
*** I put in a FutureCast pick for four-star wide receiver Dane Key to land at Kentucky a couple of days ago. While Michigan made a strong run, I always got the impression that he was going to stay home and got word that it was very likely Tuesday night. While a lot of people assumed the offer to East Carolina commit Kaleb Webb had to do with the decommitment of Tay'Shawn Trent (expected for months), it actually had more to do with Key. On the topic of Webb, he has been a late riser this cycle. While he is a verbal pledge to ECU, Webb is very open. Tennessee has hosted him twice and is the frontrunner, while Louisville got him on campus for an OV. I am expecting Michigan to get him on campus for an OV as well. Again, Tennessee is the most likely to flip him right now, but Michigan has some time to make up ground.
*** Man, I have to give Harbaugh credit. He has been relentless in his personal push for four-star linebacker Lander Barton. Both George Helow and Mike Macdonald have also been aggressive and still have Michigan in play here. In fact, optimism has grown on the Michigan side of things, and there is plenty of positive buzz coming out of Ann Arbor. However, I'm not sure I fully buy it right now. Not to be a negative nancy but there are a couple of reasons. One, it's going to be tough to win over his mom. I've heard she really, really, really would like Barton at Utah — remember, both his parents and brothers are Utah alums. Two, I heard from another school involved in Barton's recruitment that Barton didn't completely love the vibe in Ann Arbor on his official visit. With that said, Barton does love Harbaugh, Macdonald and Helow and knows he is a perfect fit for U-M's defensive scheme. There is A LOT of pressure on Barton to stay home, but Harbaugh, Macdonald and Helow have done as good of a job as anybody.
*** Sticking with Barton, he made an official visit to Utah last weekend. He grew up around the program and feels extremely comfortable there. He has a tight knit relationship with Utah's defensive staff and has bonded with them over their love of ranching. Actually, a reason Barton is high on Texas is because of his interest in being a full-time rancher after football. Barton will make an official visit to Oregon this weekend. There hasn't been much buzz about the Ducks here, so we'll see if that changes moving forward. USC is pushing hard with interim head coach Donte Williams visiting Barton a couple of weeks ago. But USC is obviously a mess. I still think Utah is the safe pick, but maybe Harbaugh can pull aa rabbit out of his hat — it's certainly in the realm of possibilities.
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