Recruiting Update: August 14, 2011

COMMITMENT

Kansas City (MO) Park Hill NT Ondre Pipkins committed to Michigan privately last Thursday and publicly on Monday (Touch the Banner profile here).  Pipkins is 6'3", 325 lbs. and has been unstoppable at camps this summer.  Considered to be one of the top 20 defensive tackles in the country, he has a chance to be a four-year starter for Michigan at the nose tackle position. 

ADDED TO THE BOARD

Nobody.

OFF THE BOARD

New Jersey WR Leonte Carroo committed to Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights have some kind of force field around New Jersey. Maybe it's just Snooki's gravitational pull, but between Carroo, high school teammate Darius Hamilton (who's expected to commit to Rutgers as well), and guys like RB Savon Huggins, DT Marquise Wright, and WR Miles Shuler last year, the team is getting littered with 4-star recruits who have a strong desire to play for a mediocre program.

Utah DE Troy Hinds committed to BYU. I hate to say anything bad about Mormons, but if their honor code was in place at Michigan . . . well, let's just say I would have broken it. At least half of one time. Am I right or am I right?

North Carolina OT D.J. Humphries committed to Florida. He never showed interest in Michigan's offer and seemed a shoe-in to Florida for awhile.

Georgia FS Tray Matthews, a 2013 prospect, committed to Georgia. He never made a peep about his Michigan offer and appeared not to explore much outside of his area. If 2013 prospect Dymonte Thomas, from Alliance, OH, turns his "Michigan is my #1" proclamations into a commitment, this shouldn't be a concern.

Massachusetts CB Armani Reeves committed to Penn State. Reeves had been a big fan of Michigan several months ago, along with high school teammate and Michigan offeree Camren Williams. Williams committed to PSU back in March, and the two players had always talked about playing for the same school. Michigan's coaching staff had recently made contact with Reeves again since Terry Richardson plans to visit other schools, but Reeves decided to announce before Michigan could make a strong push.

Texas LB Dalton Santos committed to Tennessee. He had been committed to Oklahoma State awhile ago, but thought better of that. He must really like the color orange, though.

Illinois DT Tommy Schutt committed to Notre Dame Michigan Penn State. Schutt's story goes like this: he tried to commit to Notre Dame a half-hour after Indiana DT Sheldon Day committed, so Notre Dame told him no. Then he called Michigan to try to set up a visit, and Michigan told him not to bother visiting (which we know now was due to Pipkins' impending commitment). Then he finally settled on Penn State, which should have been choice #1 all along because PSU defensive line coach Larry Johnson spits out NFL draft picks faster than Columbus, OH, boosters ATMs spit out $100 bills.

DEFENSIVE TACKLE RECRUITING

Everybody who's anybody thinks Michigan still needs another defensive tackle in this 2012 class, even with Pipkins' commitment. With Mike Martin graduating after the 2011 season, the departure of Terry Talbott, and the dwindling eligibility of guys like junior William Campbell and redshirt sophomore Quinton Washington, it seems obvious to me that the Wolverines ought to be taking two tackles. There's always a chance that guys like Chris Wormley and Matt Godin could play 3-tech DT, which would be okay, too, but so far they insist they're being recruited for the 5-tech DE spot. Here's what remains on the DT recruiting board:

Lake Forest (IL) Lake Forest Academy's Faith Ekakitie recently named a handful of favorites that includes Boston College, Georgia Tech, Iowa, Northwestern, Oregon, Penn State, and UCLA. So far it seems like he's very high on Boston College and Northwestern.

Washington (DC) Friendship's Eddie Goldman has been generating a lot of buzz for Florida State recently. The 6'4", 307 lb. defensive tackle is considered by many to be the top player at his position and is generally unblockable. It looks as if he's headed south, whether it's to FSU or perhaps SEC country. Regardless, Michigan offered him around March of 2010 and he's really never made a peep about the Wolverines.

Rochester (NY) Aquinas' Jarron Jones was formerly committed to Penn State, which recently accepted a commitment from Schutt at the same position. Jones also likes Notre Dame and Virginia Tech, with North Carolina teetering on the edge due to Butch Davis's firing. Since he's 6'7", 308 lbs., and fast, I think Notre Dame and Penn State would be horrible, horrible choices. I think Blacksburg would be an excellent landing spot. Let's all root for the Hokies.

Lakewood (OH) St. Edward's Greg Kuhar reported a Michigan offer several months ago, but then rumors swirled that Michigan pulled its offer. The 6'3", 265 lb. wrestling champ has placed Northwestern #1, but Ohio State could wrest that spot from the Wildcats if the Buckeyes offer. Kuhar is from the same school as Michigan commit Kyle Kalis.

Monrovia (CA) Monrovia's Ellis McCarthy is a 6'5", 311 lb. prospect for the 3-tech position, and it looks like he'll remain on the west coast. Cal and Oregon seem like possible destinations, although he's still exploring a lot of options and plans to take official visits to other schools outside the state (not to Michigan, though).

Flint (MI) Powers Catholic's Danny O'Brien seems to be the most likely option if the coaches want another true defensive tackle. He's a 6'2", 293 lb. fire hydrant whose top six consists of Alabama, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, and Tennessee (in alphabetical order). Tennessee seems to be the leader with Michigan making a late push. He's best friends with Godin, which might help Michigan if they continue to pursue his commitment.

Atwater (CA) Buhach's Aziz Shittu committed to Stanford in April, reconsidered by June, and now might be seeing his stock fall due to some unimpressive summer camps. He started off as 247 Sports' #49 player and has since dropped out of their top 100. The 6'3", 275-pounder looks as if he'll stay on the west coast, most likely at Cal or USC.

Edwardsville (IL) Edwardsville's Vincent Valentine is 6'3" and 300 lbs. Nebraska has been his top choice for a long time, and he also has set an official visit for Florida. He'll probably be lining up across from Michigan for the next several years when the Wolverines play the Cornhuskers. 

247 SPORTS' NEW RANKINGS

Upstart recruiting service 24/7 Sports re-ranked the class of 2012 recently, and here are the new ratings of Michigan recruits:

#40: OG Kyle Kalis
#56: DE Chris Wormley
#63: OT Erik Magnuson
#88: DT Ondre Pipkins
#100: LB James Ross
#102: CB Terry Richardson
#181: DE Tom Strobel
#190: LB Royce Jenkins-Stone