COMMITMENTS
Salt Lake City (UT) Highland FB Sione Houma committed to Michigan (Touch the Banner profile here).
Toledo (OH) Whitmer DE Chris Wormley committed to Michigan (Touch the Banner profile here).
ADDED TO THE BOARD
Nobody.
OFF THE BOARD
Michigan WR Aaron Burbridge committed to Michigan State. Burbridge was considered a Michigan lean at one point after his high school teammates, TE Devin Funchess and DE Mario Ojemudia, committed to the Wolverines a couple months ago. However, it's no secret that Burbridge has grade issues, and that seemed to curb Michigan's interest. The coaches reportedly backed off of recruiting him several weeks ago, but Michigan State's interest remained unfettered.
Florida QB Bennie Coney committed to Cincinnati. Coney is another player whose off-the-field issues seemed to short circuit his recruitment. He recently stated that Michigan was no longer recruiting him, and when a kid chooses Cincinnati over other "offers" like those from Arkansas, Auburn, LSU, Michigan, and Virginia Tech, you can guess that those other programs likely backed off, too.
Virginia DE Eli Harold committed to Virginia. He picked the Cavaliers over Florida and Penn State. Harold recently lost his mother to pancreatic cancer and hopes to wear #7 at Virginia because it was her favorite number.
North Carolina OT D.J. Humphries committed to Florida, as predicted in this space a few weeks ago.
Indiana QB Gunner Kiel committed to Indiana. Kiel is a quiet kid whose recruitment has been all over the map. At various times he's been rumored to be headed to Notre Dame, Michigan, Alabama, and Oklahoma. Instead, one of the top two or three quarterbacks in the country is headed to play in Bloomington. Gunner's older brother Dusty is also a quarterback for the Hoosiers. Somehow, I get the feeling that the Kiel parents weren't intending for their kids to be dancers or scientists. Younger brothers Boomer, Buster, Blaster, and Destroyer are coming down the pike.
Ohio DE LaTroy Lewis committed to Tennessee. Michigan already has five defensive ends (counting Wormley) so this is not a disappointment, and Lewis never expressed strong interest in coming to Ann Arbor.
Minnesota OT Jonah Pirsig committed to Minnesota. The kid has NFL size already and looks like a pretty good athlete. Naturally, he chose the Minnesota Golden Gophers, who put out NFL linemen at approximately the same rate that Elton John fornicates with women.
BBQ IN THE BIG HOUSE
Brady Hoke and Co. held a gathering for unofficial visitors on July 31 called the "BBQ in the Big House," which is a carry-over tradition from the Rich Rodriguez era. Those in attendance:
Birmingham (MI) Brother Rice OT Ben Braden (2012 commit)
St. Louis (MO) Ladue Horton Watkins WR Jehu Chesson (offered)
Canton (OH) Glenoak RB Bri'onte Dunn (Ohio State commit)
Midland (MI) Midland OT Steven Elmer (2013, offered)
Farmington Hills (MI) Harrison DE Devin Funchess (2012 commit)
Sylvania (OH) Southview SS Allen Gant (2012 commit)
Novi (MI) Catholic Central DE Matt Godin (2012 commit)
Joliet (IL) Catholic RB Ty Isaac (2013)
Detroit (MI) Cass Tech LB Royce Jenkins-Stone (2012 commit)
Lakewood (OH) St. Edward's OG Kyle Kalis (2012 commit)
Warren (MI) De La Salle QB Shane Morris (2013 commit)
Flint (MI) Powers Catholic DT Danny O'Brien (offered)
Farmington Hills (MI) Harrison DE Mario Ojemudia (2012 commit)
Kansas City (MO) Park Hill DT Ondre Pipkins (offered)
Novi (MI) Catholic Central LB Johnny Reschke (2013)
Detroit (MI) Cass Tech CB Terry Richardson (2012 commit)
Orchard Lake (MI) St. Mary's LB James Ross (2012 commit)
Novi (MI) Catholic Central RB Wyatt Shallman (2013, offered)
Crete (IL) Crete-Monee CB Anthony Standifer (2012 commit)
Mentor (OH) Mentor DE Tom Strobel (2012 commit)
Alliance (OH) Marlington FS Dymonte Thomas (2013, offered)
Crete (IL) Crete-Monee WR LaQuon Treadwell (2013)
Cincinnati (OH) TE A.J. Williams (2012 commit)
Toledo (OH) Whitmer DE Chris Wormley (2012 commit)
DEFENSIVE END RECRUITING
With the recent commitment of Chris Wormley, Michigan is almost certainly finished recruiting defensive ends for 2012. However, there are several more whom received offers earlier in the process. Here's what's been going on with them lately:
Clifton (VA) Centreville's Ken Ekanem is a 6'3", 245 lb. OLB/DE hybrid. He would like to play OLB in a 3-4 defense, but there aren't many colleges in the country that run the 3-4. Typically, it seems difficult for Virginia kids to escape going to Virginia Tech if the Hokies go after them hard, but they already have three defensive ends committed for 2012.
Ramsey (NJ) Don Bosco Prep's Darius Hamilton stands 6'4", 245 lbs. and holds offers from nearly every team in the nation. Magically, the one that stands out the most is Rutgers, and he plans to make his choice in October. Hamilton has several teammates who not only have Michigan offers, but also will be playing in January's Army All-American Bowl: wide receiver Leonte Carroo, safety Elijah Shumate, and cornerback Yuri Wright. Hamilton is the son of former University of Pittsburgh and New York Giants defensive end Keith Hamilton.
Kaysville (UT) Davis' Troy Hinds is a 6'4", 225 lb. player who hasn't shown much interest in his Michigan offer. The Utah Utes and BYU Cougars seem most likely to earn his commitment, but Nebraska and Notre Dame are also under consideration.
Hamilton (GA) Harris County's Jordan Jenkins is a 6'3", 245-pounder who seems destined for the Florida Gators. Alabama is his #2 choice.
San Antonio (TX) Sam Houston's Javonte Magee is a 6'5", 262 lb. strongside end prospect who will almost certainly stay in Texas. He has dozens of offers, but Baylor will be hard to beat for his pledge, and Texas A&M is another possibility.
Tampa (FL) Jefferson's Tyriq McCord is 6'3", 222 lbs. and considered to be a heavy Florida lean. If he ends up elsewhere, it seems that USC might have the best chance of pulling him out of the Sunshine State.
Centerville (OH) Centerville's Ifeadi Odenigbo is 6'4", 217 lbs. and quite an OLB/DE hybrid prospect. As one of several high-level defensive ends in Ohio this year, he was thought to be headed to Columbus . . . that is, if the higher ranked prospects didn't take his spot first. But the higher ranked prospects have either committed elsewhere or held off from committing at all, and Odenigbo has followed suit. Cal, Northwestern, and Notre Dame all seem to be major players for him as he sorts out the Ohio State mess. It was even rumored a couple weeks ago that Northwestern might be on the verge of getting him, but Odenigbo has so far kept his options open.
Lehi (UT) Westlake's Moana Ofahengaue is a 6'4", 205 lb. weakside end prospect. Despite being a lightly recruited state, Utah has a couple talented defensive ends that Michigan has pursued, with tight ends coach Dan Ferrigno heading up recruiting in Pac-12 country. Ofahengaue listed Michigan as one of his leaders, but it seems that Florida State or Nebraska will be his choice.
Harrisburg (PA) Bishop McDevitt's Noah Spence consistently avoids giving out much information about what school he's interested in attending, so it's hard to say where he's leaning. He's 6'4" and 245 lbs., is a consensus top 50 player, and has offers from just about every powerhouse program in the country.
Cincinnati (OH) Taft's Adolphus Washington used to be considered a heavy Ohio State lean. The potential shenanigans and the departure of head coach Jim Tressel made him consider other schools a little more, and there was a time that he was rumored to be leaning Michigan's way. If Washington doesn't end up at Ohio State, I wouldn't be surprised if he commits to Michigan State. His teammate, Dwayne Stanford, might also affect his decision, since they had hoped to play together in college. Both have been selected for the Army All-American Bowl in January.
Olney (MD) Good Counsel's Ryan Watson is a 6'3", 270 lb. strongside end, which means he played high school ball with Michigan cornerback Blake Countess. Watson recently listed a top group that included Michigan, but that was before Chris Wormley committed to the Wolverines. Tennessee leads that top group, and with Michigan almost certainly out of the running, Georgia Tech and Michigan State are also in the mix.
MagnusThunder is the author of Touch the Banner, a Michigan football blog.