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Friday Michigan Football Recruiting Roundup Is Devilish

FRR updates you on the very latest Michigan football recruiting rumblings. How many young prospects received Michigan offers this week? Do prominent national analysts actually buy into the Peppers to Michigan hype? That and much more.

By Anthony Mammel
USA TODAY Sports

Plenty of New Offers Out

I can't touch on all of these players due to time constraints and a lack of information on some of them.

CA QB Josh Rosen (2015)

Rosen is an awesome prospect at quarterback. He isn't overly athletic, barely outrunning some high school linebackers and safeties, but he more than makes up for it with a smooth release, great arm strength and consistent footwork. It's not hard to tell that Rosen studies the game. He's ranked fifth overall in 247's initial rankings for the class of 2015. He's definitely interested in Michigan:

It's no coincidence that California and Stanford are the presumed leaders right now.

FL LB Jeffery Holland (2015)

FL CB Kevin Toliver II (2015)

TX LB Anthony Wheeler (2015)

FL WR Sam Bruce (2016)

IL OL Erik Swenson (2016)

Massive young lineman already has the length to play tackle in college; he might end up being too tall to deal with speed rushers on the thrower's blind side. He loves Michigan, so much that myself and three other recruiting editors already have him going to Michigan. His family loves the Wolverines as well:

Erik called the offer his "dream offer". The last time I heard that it ended with a commitment to Michigan.

Multiple Updates to Rankings

247 Sports has released a new Top 247 list. Bryan Mone moved up into the top 50, but the majority of the class dropped ever so slightly. The company also released their initial Top 247 for the class of 2015. Don't put too much stock into that list, as half of the players on it might not be there this time next year.

Rivals also has a new Rivals 250 out. The top two of Da'Shawn Hand and Jabrill Peppers remains intact, and Michigan's commitment generally dropped by a small amount.

Why do Michigan's commitments always seem to trend downward? Because they're committed early; it isn't just Michigan's commitments, it's everyone's commitments. Players who didn't have much exposure get recognition, ultimately moving ahead of players like Michael Ferns and Mason Cole, who sit in the middle of the pack of the top 250 players. It isn't that these players' ranking are regressing, rather that other players are being noticed and bumped up.

I think Bryan Mone could move up a bit more on Rivals and Scout if he hits the camp scene hard over the summer, and Wilton Speight could earn a fourth star if he continues to work as well. Ian Bunting is criminally underrated because of his past injuries, but he should be a unanimous four-star by the end of the process if he has a strong, healthy, senior season.

Also, rest assured that recruits know where they stand in the rankings:

Players like Campbell love it when they receive recognition, and unappreciated prospect like Maurice Ways use their lowly rankings as motivation.

Cass Tech: DBU

Detroit Cass Tech High School puts out more four-star defensive backs than some states do. The school's defensive coordinator tweeted out a few interesting thoughts:

That's a four-star corner at Oregon, a fringe three- to four-star slot corner at Michigan, a three-star safety at Iowa, a four-star freshman corner at Michigan and another at Ohio State, and a fringe three- to four-star safety at Michigan. Sooner or later Cass Tech will be able to point at multiple NFL teams' defensive backs and say, "Yea, we coached every last one of them."

Jabrill Peppers' Decision Looms Large

Consensus five-star cornerback Jabrill Peppers will announce his college decision on May 26th between 4:45 pm and 6 pm. ESPNU will broadcast the decision live.

What are Michigan's chances as of now? According to Tom VH and Rivals Mike, they're about as close to a lock as it gets:

I'll go ahead and agree with you, Rivals Mike.

General Notes and Multimedia Items

Class of 2013 safety commitment Delano Hill is still fast:

That's even faster than what he ran a few days ago.

I might not ever get the chance to make a mini board for 2014 running backs: the staff isn't honing in on any particular prospects, and the running backs worth their time aren't deciding any time soon. This tweet is now a bit easier to understand:

This is mostly due to the fact that 2015 back Damien Harris, the 90th player in the country according to 247 Sports, has Michigan ahead of the competition by miles.

Michigan is still in pursuit of offensive lineman Jamarco Jones:

All signs point to Jones becoming a Buckeye right now, but nothing is set in stone in the world of recruiting. He's the only elite lineman left on the board who is giving Michigan a legitimate look.

Nick Saban admits that not all Alabama scholarship offers are committable:

"To get some of them to come here in the summer I think is a really big tool in evaluation as well as an opportunity to get to know guys, to see if they have the right character and attitude to fit in your program."

Satban isn't trying to see if these kids have "the right character", he's making sure they've progressed enough as athletes to receive a scholarship that isn't, you know, a lie. If, for example, Jayru Campbell fails to develop as a passer, his 'scholarship offer' from Alabama will go poof. Now you see me, now you're suddenly committing to Kansas.

Finally, this has nothing to do with recruiting, but it made me laugh out loud:

The Space Emperor is a hilarious and interesting follow on Twitter.

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