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Thursday Morning Brews: Working For The Good Times

Projecting the AP’s top 11, Ohio State bolsters its recruiting staff and breaking down Harbaugh’s first offer to a 2020 prospect.

By Nick Bodanyi@NickBodanyi Jun 30, 2016, 6:00am CDT

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Hitting the Links Is Impatient

Harbaugh Visits Hawaii, Offers 8th Grader

Sol-Jay Maiava is a 2020 prospect at quarterback. Yes, I scouted him, and, well, he looks like an eighth-grader. He did seem like a good prospect, though, and obviously I trust what Harbaugh is doing.

Another Harbaugh update (Harbaughpdate? no? okay): this column from SI is worth a read if you haven’t gotten to it yet. A throwaway comment Harbaugh made in the video was that he hoped young players these days were getting enough ‘athletic reps,’ at anything and everything athletically oriented.

So, maybe I should pause over something obvious regarding Maiava that doesn’t normally go into scouting reports: he’s played enough to have very solid athletic instincts, solid technique, and good accuracy before even getting into high school. Obviously Harbaugh is banking on the “football lifer” approach. Combined with a very good GPA, it will be interesting to watch Maiava develop over the next four seasons.

Phil Steele Projects The AP’s Top 11

Steele also released his own top 25, which features Michigan much lower than other preseason lists.

Joker Phillips Joins Ohio State

The head coach of Kentucky from 2010-12 has had a bit of a bumpy ride the last few years: after a 2-10 season that got him fired from the Wildcats, Phillips worked for Will Muschamp at Florida until Muschamp was fired, then worked for Mike Pettine and the Cleveland Browns until Pettine was fired. For that reason alone, joining Urban Meyer might be a good move for Phillips.

And, it’s a great addition for Ohio State, which just bolstered their recruiting abilities even more. They were already doing pretty well.

A Look At Rutgers’ Resurgent Recruiting Class

Very, very impressive. And the biggest addition isn’t even on this list, as Chris Ash brought in a grad transfer quarterback with two years of eligibility remaining: former TCU player Zach Allen. Allen had been a three-star dual-threat in 2013.

Talking Nebraska’s 2015 Big Ten Payout

Nebraska is still making a small amount compared to Michigan and Ohio State.

Maryland Adds Grad Transfer WR

I’ll just leave this here.

He is listed at 6 feet. Assuming that height is accurate, he’ll be one of the tallest scholarship receivers on the roster.

The Quick Rise of Eli Apple...’s Mom

Sports coverage needs a little bit more of this. Also, this article about Eli’s rookie summer is linked inside the E.W. piece, but it deserves its own mention.

The Celebrity Fans Of The Top 25

Michigan, of course, is in all the preseason top 25’s, and they’re represented here by Ms. Kate Upton.

Dylan Moses Will Take An Official Visit To The Game

The smart money is on LSU for the #2 prospect in the nation, even though the Tigers won’t be getting one of Dylan’s five official visits (why? Dylan attended a high school located on LSU’s campus before going to IMG in Florida. He doesn’t need to O.V. there).

And, the next-best money is on Alabama. But if Michigan finally beats Ohio State this year, Dylan might have something positive to say, which would be a nice cherry.