Michigan Football Recruiting and the Ideal Class for Brady Hoke in 2012

 As Brady Hoke was introduced to the Michigan faithful in January, he vowed to bring back the toughness, pride and tradition that had eluded the Wolverines under the Rodriguez regime. In his introduction, he pointed to the fact that the goal was to win the Big Ten Championship every year.

He also made it clear that Michigan was going back to their old recruiting practices, which includes cleaning up the mid-west and branching out for elite prospects, mostly in California, Texas and other "elite recruiting states."

While we will have to wait and see the results for winning the Big Ten Championship, we can assess his promise of going back to the Schembechler, Moeller and Carr recruiting practices. As of May 13th, Brady Hoke has accepted commitments from eleven players—all from Ohio and Michigan. 

1. James Ross—Orchard Lake, MI, No. 2 MLB

2. Royce Stone—Detroit, MI, No. 3 MLB

3. Devin Funchess—Farmington Hills, MI, No. .6 TE

4. Kaleb Ringer—Clayton, OH, No. 9 OLB

5. Mario Ojemudia—Farmington Hill, MI, No. 17 DE

6. Joe Bolden—Cincinnati, OH, No. 7 OLB

7. A.J. Williams—Cincinnati, OH, No. 15 TE

8. Caleb Stacey—Cincinnati, OH, No. 33 OG

9. Matt Godin—Novi, MI, No. 39 DT

10. Ben Braden—Rockford, MI, No. 39 OT

11. Pharaoh Brown—Lyndhurst, OH, No. 5 DE

Three months ago, it would have been improbable to guess that Hoke would have 11 commitments from 11 quality guys according to 24/7 Sports and Scout's rankings. It is believed that the Wolverines will take anywhere from 22 to 24 prospects in this class.

With that being said, nearly half of this class is full. I believe with attrition that Hoke is looking to take close to 23 prospects. Let's take a look at the "ideal class" Michigan would like to see come signing day next February.

Assuming the aforementioned eleven stay true to their word, we have 12 spots to fill. Obviously, we all want every five star recruit, but that will not happen. Here are players that could be in Michigan's plans for the future. This could change on a day-by-day basis as new offers are still coming and going. These are my predictions:

12. Bennie Coney—Plant City, FL, No. 22 QB: FSU is leader, but Michigan is in final five.

13. Aaron Burbridge—Farmington Hills, MI, No. 11 WR: Michigan will finish off the F.H. trio.

14. Ron Thompson—Southfield, MI, No. 5 TE: Michigan still leads, could announce any day.

15. Jordan Diamond—Chicago, IL, No. 9 OT: Michigan has been leading, very important for Hoke.

 16. Zach Banner—Lakewood, WA, No. 11 OT: Says he will visit Ann Arbor and Michigan is in top three.

17. Kelby Latta—Battle Creek, MI, No. 32 OG: No offer yet for Latta, this is just a prediction.

18. Sheldon Day—Indianapolis, IN, No. 9 DT: Michigan is said to be in his final five and top three. 

19. Ondre Pipkens—Kansas City, MO, No. 16 DT: Grew up in Michigan, a battle between UM and MSU.

20. Chris Wormley—Toledo, OH, No. 11 DE: This will come down to Michigan and Ohio State. 

21. Wayne Morgan—Brooklyn, NY, No. 18 CB/S: Appears UM, Rutgers and Penn State are top three.

22. Terry Richardson—Detroit, MI, No. 10 CB: Great offers, luckily the Cass Tech pipeline continues.

23. Stefon Diggs—Olney, MD, No. 1 ATH: Michigan has made his top 10; possible but will take a lot! 

We are still nearly nine months away from signing day, but if Brady Hoke continues his success in recruiting, Michigan will be contending for the Big Ten Championship again very soon.

This class is just a prediction and will change—but this gives Michigan fans something to keep their eyes on until football kicks off again in September.