How Mike Weber Saga Will Shape Future of Michigan-Ohio State Recruiting Rivalry

Instate 4-star recruit Mike Weber’s decision to sign with Ohio State was always going to be controversial for Michigan fans. Weber added to insult to injury by decommitting during the fourth quarter of Michigan’s loss to Maryland last November and then switched his allegiance to archrival Ohio State after Brady Hoke’s dismissal.

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But Ohio State’s subterfuge about the future of running backs coach Stan Drayton has caused outrage that threatens to undermine its future recruiting efforts in the state of Michigan.

Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh offered a cryptic tweet about the incident that serves as an opening salvo in what is sure to be an ongoing conflict with Urban Meyer.

Drayton helped prevent Michigan Coach Harbaugh from flipping the recruit on signing day.

Toledo newspaper The Blade reported Meyer and Drayton were working to secure Weber until past midnight before signing day.

"I plug my phone in, and you hear that darn thing going and going,” Meyer said. “I looked at my clock one time, it's 12:10, and I'm still talking to [running backs coach] Stan Drayton about Mike.”

Drayton himself acknowledged the difficulty of Weber’s circumstances.

"You're talking about a 17-year old kid who goes to an inner-city Detroit high school where every teacher in the building is a Team Up North fan,” Drayton said. “Every day, every day, he's fighting those battles, and no one is really supporting his decision."

But less than a day after convincing Weber to attend Ohio State, Drayton himself left.

Weber was understandably upset and took to Twitter:

Coaches leave programs all the time, but the timing of this departure casts a pall over Ohio State recruiting efforts in Michigan. Weber was a high-profile recruit, and this incident won’t be forgotten by area high school coaches.

Meyer did nothing dispel the notion that he put his desire to beat Harbaugh for the prized recruit above everything else, as Tim May of The Columbus Dispatch wrote:

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But [Weber] picked Ohio State. So chalk it up, Ohio State and Meyer 1, Michigan and Harbaugh 0.

“Absolutely, you keep score that way,” Meyer said.

"

Sporting News reported that Weber’s coach, Thomas Wilcher, talked on local radio about the situation.

"He's got to come to school," Wilcher said. "He has to face everybody at school. He has to walk out that door and face all these people in the state of Michigan who's all going to be pointing their fingers in his face and saying, 'What. I told you so.'”

Despite the outcry, Urban Meyer is showing no signs of releasing Weber from his commitment, per Steve Helwagen of 247Sports. “There was a talk,” Meyer said. “I had a long conversation with him and so did Stan. We’ve got to move forward.”

Weber wasn't the only top recruit who had a coach leave after recruiting him. Roquan Smith, a 4- star linebacker, has held off officially signing with UCLA since its defensive coordinator has left for the NFL. He was fortunate enough to learn about the departure before turning in his paperwork. But Weber is bound by his national letter of intent to attend Ohio State.

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Urban Meyer may have won the recruiting battle, but the Mike Weber saga is just beginning. The turmoil surrounding his commitment ensures that he will continue to face extra scrutiny as he begins his collegiate career. Weber has become the symbol of the system that allows coaches to freely pursue opportunities while the players face strict limitations—even when coaches lie or withhold the truth about their intentions.

Under the current system, coach Stan Drayton didn’t break any rules while recruiting Mike Weber, but the Ohio State brand has taken a hit among Michigan high school football players. Urban Meyer may not be quite as welcome the next time he takes recruiting visits up north.

Phil Callihan is a featured writer for Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotations obtained firsthand

Follow @PCallihan