National Signing Day 2011: Grading the Michigan Football Recruiting Class
Just as his predecessor did before him, Brady Hoke’s first recruiting class at Michigan was completed with a flourish.
While a total of 20 players signed national letters of intent, 13 committed since Hoke took over for Rodriguez in early January.
“The way we finished is a credit to Michigan and what Michigan stands for,” Hoke told a CBS Sports interview team that included former coach Rich Rodriguez. In fact, it was ex-Coach Rodriguez who pulled in nine late recruits to make Lloyd Carr’s 2008 class a success.
The majority of this year’s group is from the Midwest, seven being from Ohio, five from Michigan, three from Texas and one each from Illinois, Maryland, Florida and California.
Hoke claims he’ll continue to use Michigan’s “brand” to recruit nationally but his focus will be in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and western Pennsylvania. “There’s great football played in all those states,” Hoke added. “Football that’s coached at a high level.”
Michigan’s immediate concerns are, of course, on the defensive side of the ball. The Wolverines also looked to improve the depth on offense, and to bring in a kicker. Hoke actually has a few scholarships remaining, and could sign another player or two before the April deadline.
Here’s a look at the 10 players most likely to make early contributions:
Chris Barnett
1 of 11Position: Tight End
Ht/Wt: 6'6", 250
Where He Fits in Best
Already 250 pounds, Barnett will be a huge tight end. Hoke was thrilled when word of his signing came through during the press conference.
Does It Fill a Void?
Michigan has only two experienced tight ends on the roster, Kevin Koger and Brandon Moore. Barnett, who nearly signed with Arkansas, should get some playing time this fall.
Grade: A-
Chris Bryant
2 of 11Position: Offensive Line
Ht/Wt: 6'5", 330
Where He Fits in Best
Bryant has fairly good quickness for a big man, so he’ll most likely wind up at offensive guard.
Does It Fill a Void?
With the loss of Steve Schilling and Perry Dorrenstein, and the possibility of William Campbell moving to defense, he’ll eventually play a backup role this season. Hoke was able to pull Bryant away from Illinois.
Grade: B+
Tony Posada
3 of 11Position: Offensive Line
Ht/Wt: 6'5", 325
Where He Fits in Best
Posada’s strength is his major attribute as is the use of Hoke’s key word “physical” to describe his play. Eventually he’ll camp alongside Bryant at a tackle slot.
Does It Fill a Void?
Like Bryant, Posada will add needed depth. Coaches, however, hate to play freshmen on the offensive line, but the last three seasons have been anything but normal.
Grade: B+
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Russell Bellomy
4 of 11Position: Quarterback
Ht/Wt: 6'3", 185
Where He Fits in Best
Like Devin Gardner, Bellomy has plenty of height to fit into a drop-back style of play, but he’s also been listed as a dual-threat quarterback. As a high school senior Bellomy ran for 804 yards.
Does It Fill a Void?
With only two scholarship quarterbacks on the roster, Bellomy is only one injury away from being the backup quarterback. From Arlington, Texas, Bellomy was also offered by Boise State, Michigan State and Purdue.
Grade: A-
Matt Wile
5 of 11Position: Kicker, Punter
Ht/Wt: 6'2", 210
Where He Fits in Best
Every Michigan follower knows about last season’s kicking woes. Wile could handle kickoffs, field goals and extra points, while Will Hagerup will keep the punting duties.
Does It Fill a Void?
As a team, Michigan connected on only 4-of-14 field goal attempts. Enough said.
Grade: B
Greg Brown (Early Enrollee)
6 of 11Position: Cornerback
Ht/Wt: 5'10", 195
Where He Fits in Best
Since Brown is already on campus, he could earn considerable playing time at cornerback.
Does It Fill a Void?
Both Troy Woolfolk and J.T. Floyd are returning from injuries, so Brown will make the most of spring practice and be ready to play this fall.
Grade: B
Brennan Beyer
7 of 11Position: Defensive End
Ht/Wt: 6'4", 220
Where He Fits in Best
From just down the road in Plymouth, Beyer will be looking to improve Michigan’s tackles-for-loss and quarterback sack numbers. He plays with excellent tenacity and he’s super smart. He carried a 3.8 GPA and was also offered by Northwestern, Stanford and Vanderbilt. He’ll likely play defensive end.
Does It Fill a Void?
By using the 4-3 defense, Hoke plans on moving some of his bigger defensive ends to tackle. Buyer will add needed depth this far, and may even challenge for a starting spot.
Grade: A-
Kellen Jones
8 of 11Position: Middle Linebacker
Ht/Wt: 6'1", 210
Where He Fits in Best
He could be a natural outside linebacker, but his strength leads him to the middle. Called “Superman” by his teammates in Houston, Jones might battle Kevin Leach for the backup spot at middle linebacker.
Does It Fill a Void?
Jones could conceivably play both linebacker positions, free safety or even defensive end.
Grade: A-
Blake Countess
9 of 11Position: Cornerback
Ht/Wt: 5'10", 174
Where He Fits in Best
Despite his lack of size, Countess is a highly skilled corner who’s already proficient at press coverage.
Does It Fill a Void?
There are five cornerbacks in this class so Countess may be a candidate for a redshirt. He doesn’t look very big, but he’ll probably fool everyone.
Grade: B
Raymon Taylor
10 of 11Position: Cornerback
Ht/Wt: 5'11", 172
Where He Fits in Best
Another candidate for the weight room, Taylor has overcome the size problem with blazing quickness.
Does It Fill a Void?
Yes. As he bulks up, Taylor might see the field as a kick returner. With 4.43 speed, he might prove to be the fastest player in his class.
Grade: B+
Hoke Brings Recruiting Back to Midwest
11 of 11
Brady Hoke has been back to Ann Arbor barely a month, but his assignment is very clear.
The Wolverines simply need to beat Ohio State and win a Big Ten championship. Everything else will take care of itself.
When Jim Tressel took the Buckeye job, he was well aware of his assignment. In order to beat Michigan, he was told he needed to keep the best Ohio high school players in Ohio.
A quick look at the records show that from 2002 through 2007, Michigan recruited exactly 12 players from Ohio. Maybe the argument that Carr left the cupboard bare wasn’t ridiculous at all.
Rich Rodriguez made some inroads. With Hoke adding the finishing touches to this year’s class, Michigan has now brought in 21 Ohioans in the last three recruiting classes. Take a look at the depth chart this spring. Maybe things are getting back to normal.
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