Signing Day presser

Brady Hoke

• We have 19 guys signed at this present time. There may be an addition later.
• The first thing we had to do was get to know the kids that are on the team right now. Then obviously, it took us some time to look at where we were and what kind of football team we want to be.
• You look schematically from an offensive perspective and match our needs there. And then you look at the defensive perspective. And then the kicking game.
• 12 of the young men are defensive players.
• Because of the elements and what you face because of the weather, you need to play defense and keep teams out of the end zone. 5 DBs, 3 DL, 4 LBs
• A couple running backs: most of the time they're the best athlete on their team. Somewhere down the road, he may not be your #1 back, but has a passion for it, they make outstanding safeties, corners, slots, LBs. We will always take a couple backs.
• Michigan is always a national brand. Going to look in the state of Michigan for players that fit the mold. Then work their way out.
• Response and excitement about having a Michigan coach at a high school is out there.
• A possibility that this class could still grow by a few players. "We're still working."
• The foundation that RR and his staff was a good foundation. We'll be a little different as we progress with QBs and backs. Be different from an OL and TE perspective. From a defensive standpoint, they transitioned so much that there are some needs that we need to address. I don't think so much difference in this class.
• There were only two that Hoke didn't get into their home. Players should feel comfortable with new coaches and be comfortable with the direction of the program.
• Worked with short recruiting period three different times now. You just go to work.
• There is no entitlement in this program. Going to be evaluated every day. When you recruit guys, I've never told someone they'll be redshirted and never told a guy he'll play as a freshman. DB, LB: Depending on how a few guys develop and learn, there may be an opportunity to play early.
• From an athletic standpoint (man coverage, man free), physicalness and schemes was a focus on DB
• We're going to be a 4-3 defense. Both over and under front.
• Staff should be complete by Monday.
• Team doesn't have a choice to buy in (or not) to strength program. Able to watch team run yesterday.
• Only one player is enrolled this winter (Greg Brown).
• Hasn't talked to any players about position switches yet. Will make decisions on what's best for the program.
• Expects all 20 players to qualify. There has been no roster attrition.
• DT and OL are priorities for 2012. Two of the DEs in this class are going to get bigger and stronger.

Players

• Greg Brown - Started in January. Engaged in winter conditioning
• Russell Bellomy - QB. Al Borges looked at 15 QBs. Narrowed down to 4.
• Brennen Beyer - DE. Athletic guy. Plays with toughness at point of attack. RR had cultivated the relationship
• Chris Bryant - OL. "Refrigerator with legs and arms".
• Tamani Carter - Safety. Had committed to another Big Ten school first.
• Frank Clark - LB out of Glenville
• Blake Countess - Out of Maryland. Been to Michigan a couple of times. RR did a tremendous job with him.
• Justice Hayes - RB. 175 lbs now. In 1.5 years, he'll be 190 lbs back [Ed. sounds like a redshirt]. Good feet.
• Keith Heitzman - Hilliard Davidson HS.
• Delonte Hollowell - DB from Cass Tech. RR brought in. Talented, good feet, loose hips. Lots of speed.
• Kellen Jones - LB out of Houston. Length, goes sideline-to-sideline
• Jack Miller - OL (specifically a center). Toughness and football intelligence
• Desmond Morgan - LB. Attacks line of scrimmage
• Antonio Poole - LB out of Cincy. Plays with physicalness.
• Tony Posada - 6'4", 330 lbs OT/OG from Tampa. "Road grater at the point of attack". "I look small compared to Tony". Between him and Chris Bryant, two guys that fit the mold of M OL will look like.
• Thomas Rawls - Physical RB.
• Chris Rock - DE from Columbus.
• Raymon Taylor - DB from Highland Park. Play the ball in the air and line people up and go through the middle of them.
• Matt Wile - Kicker.
• (late addition) Chris Barnett - TE. "We need tight ends". Only two guys on the team that are TE. TE will be an important part offensively. One of the most athletic guys in the country.

'The Decision'

Sometimes on my lunch breaks, I write about Michigan football. Sometimes I do this.

Rich Rod National Signing Day presser

 RichRod

- Staff did outstanding job developing relationships and signing guys that will be a great fit for the program
- Reluctant to rank recruiting class. Sounds like coachspeak but you need to wait a couple of years and rank how good the class is.
- If we signed them, we think they’re great fits for the program.
- If we get someone on campus, we think we have a great chance of getting him.
- People on campus are friendly (everywhere) and that helps. A great community to feel comfortable with. Fans in general.
- On Gardner: Devin got in a few days late. Only doing academics. Starting workouts today or tomorrow. Eager to learn and very competitive. Why bring another QB? We want guys that like competition. Have quality of guys at every position competing, you get better.
- On Hopkins: Big back out of Texas. Like to have one big back in the game when they have two backs in the game on many occasions.
- On Jeremy Jackson: Easiest commit they got. Stands on his own merits. Good player and hard worker. Need big strong receivers and guys that will go get the ball. Jeremy fits that bill. Helped recruit other players.
- On Ricardo Miller: Big strong physical guy. Great personality. Always has a smile on his face.
- On Christian Pace: Have a need at center and at guard. Played in great HS program (Avon Lake). Play center but will also learn guard.
- On Gerald Robinson: Big strong physical guy that can probably play safety as well.
- On Austin White: Comes from a great family. Liked his ability but thing that stood out was that he wanted to take every rep. Very excited about him. Has the skillset.
- Want to meet needs first. Don’t want to turn down anyone good, but have to fit needs. Defensive numbers way down. Won’t get balanced this year but will within another year. Had to meet needs on defense: Front line, linebacker, secondary.
- On Richard Ash: Big DT from Pahokee. Still had to battle with him up through this morning. Athletic enough to play DE, big enough to play DT.
- On Courtney Avery: DB out of Ohio. Played QB on offense and CB on defense. 1,000 point scorer in basketball. Noticed him about a year ago. Jumped in the fold early. Try him at corner first but he’s a good enough athlete to help at several positions.
- On Jibreel Black: One of top guys on the board for D-line. Could play DE or DT.
- On Cullen Christian: Goes by nickname “Buck”. Long arms, good athlete. Very coachable. Tracking him for a couple of years. Very excited about Cullen. [ed. Talked about starting players and that they don’t promise anything but let them compete.] Cullen will have that opportunity.
- On Drew Dileo: Great senior year. Good to see guys committed and have a good senior year. Return punts and kicks as well as slot.
- On Demar Dorsey: Cousins with Denard Robinson. If McGee was lead recruiter, Denard was second lead. He’s 100% on guys he hosts during visits. Very fast and athletic. May run track as well. Can play corner at safety. Will probably start at corner and then will teach him safety.
- On Josh Furman: Look to play on defense. Probably play safety/OLB (spinner).
- On Will Hagerup: Big need for punter. Hagerup will fit that need. Best they saw on film. Works on craft every day.
- On Carvin Johnson: HS coach called RichRod and said he had a guy that was a sleeper. Suddenly, other teams started recruiting him once he was committed. Fills big need at safety.
- On Conelius Jones: Nickname “Trail”. QB/athlete. “As we learned a few years ago, you can’t have too many QBs.” [ed. Yikes!]
- On Antonio Kinard: Tall linebacker. Call him “TK”. Has work to do academically. If he doesn’t get there, will place him in JUCO and try to get him back.
- On Jordan Paskorz: Big DE. Close to 245 lbs now. Didn’t get older brother when coaching at WVU. Replacing one of best players in the country in Brandon Graham.
- On Marvin Robinson: Safety been committed for a while. Is friends with Ricardo Miller. Miller was one of best recruiters from this class.
- On Davion Rogers: Tall linebacker. Trying to get bigger and more athletic defensively.
- On Jake Ryan: Great program (St. Ignatious, Ohio). Had a great senior year. Like to save spots for great senior years. Grew 2-3 inches, gained 20 pounds. Became MLB.
- On Terrence (DT or DE) and Terry Talbott (CB): Sold on them after watching film and seeing them in camp.
[ed. The feed cut out here and I missed a few players—Ray Vinopal, D.J. Williamson, and Ken Wilkins]
- Defensive need was at every position. Can never have too many defensive linemen. Need linebackers and guys that can play in space. [ed. Again, yikes]
- Don’t put too much on these players too soon. Immediately, the competition has risen on the defensive side of the football.
- Didn't see much negativity in recruiting.
- Dorsey had arrests in background? Everyone they sign they do background checks on themselves. Dangerous and unfair to pass judgment on something you read on the Internet without all the facts. [ed. Definitely had arrests, judging by RR's answer.]
- Ask players whether or not someone will be a good teammate. Can't speak highly enough on his current players in recuiting process.
- RichRod annoyed with questions on Dorsey's criminal records. "Don't judge on something until you get all the facts."
- Guy might be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Need to look into why. He did that as a juvenile. Have to look at the whole story before you pass judgment. I think that's dangerous to do.
- "Let's be positive. Can we be positive? We've got a great recruiting class and a great group."
- Not as many recruits going to the wire as they used to. Battles are more publicized now that they're on TV, etc.
- Less decommits this year: "Just the way it fell." Normally not totally surprised. If a guy is committed to you and still visiting other schools, he's not committed. He's just interested.
- Difficult to be swayed by the star system? It's not all bad. You have to prove yourself again. Some kids get sense of entitement. Don't feel that way about the players Michigan signed.
- For the most part, recruiting services do a really good job getting film and kids' names out there. Not doing a coaches job but helping coaches do their job.
- Demar was one of three or four guys they were unsure of this morning.
- Any chance you'll offer anyone else unsigned? Pretty much filled. May have spot for one more. But never say never.
- "Have one in particular, we think may not qualify." [ed. probably Antonio Kinard]
- Happy with amount of local recruits? Yeah. Would like to have more but need the right fit for the program.
- Next year's class will have a bigger need in O-linemen

It's National Signing Day

Wooooo