Welcome: Garrett Taylor
Michigan gained their fifth commitment of the 2015 class on Monday in VA CB Garrett Taylor, the third prospect from the talent-rich Richmond area to commit to U-M in the last three classes (joining Derrick Green and Wilton Speight). Sam Webb has a lengthy (and free) post-commitment feature on Taylor that covers his relationship with Roy Manning, scouting quotes from his coach and a Scout analyst, and the visit that drew him to Michigan:
“We got to go to the school of business… the Ross School of Business, which is really great,” Taylor reported. “The professor toured us around, which was really great. I’ve never had that before. So we toured around, saw the classrooms and stuff like that. It was really personal. We obviously toured all the facilities and the football facilities are great. We got to see all the resources they have in terms of their Glick Fieldhouse. That was big to see a full indoor field, especially with the weather. They go over there sometimes and to have that as a resource is really good. We got to see the weight room. Then we met with Shari (Acho), the head lady of all the academic support so that was great to see. We got a tour of the academic side. You’ve definitely got the support of the tutors and everything like that to make sure that you’re on track academically. It was awesome. It was awesome! It really felt like they wanted me to be up there.”
After reading that quote, it probably shouldn't surprise you that Taylor tweets things like "properly equipped for the SAT tomorrow" with a pencil-on-paper emoji and photo of his already-laid-out TI-83, pair of sharpened Ticonderoga #2s, and pack of old-school erasers. Coaches and reporters alike laud Taylor for being a great, personable kid; Michigan's landed another prospect who fits the proverbial Pattern™.
As for how his commitment affects the class moving forward, Scout's Michael Clark provides some details ($):
After landing Taylor, the Wolverines are done at cornerback in the 2015 class. Now, the staff will turn their focus towards landing one more safety. Top targets include Whitehouse (Texas) and Texas A&M commit Justin Dunning, Dallas (Texas) South Oakcliff’s Prentice McKinney and Evans (Ga.) Lakeside’s Rashad Roundtree.
Many have asked how Taylor's commitment impacts Michigan's pursuit of five-star NJ CB Minkah Fitzpatrick. It already looked like Fitzpatrick would end up elsewhere before Taylor's commitment—Alabama, Florida State, and Ohio State are the three schools currently generating the most noise in his recruitment, and Michigan hasn't been mentioned in a while. With a small projected class containing two blue-chip prospects already slotted for corner, I doubt U-M is a serious player in Fitzpatrick's recruitment going forward.
[Hit THE JUMP for details on a couple recent offers, an update on Justin Hilliard, and more.]
Michigan Offers Hayes, Williams
Michigan offered 2016 Orchard Lake St. Mary's ATH Daelin Hayes, cousin of U-M RB Justice Hayes, when he visited campus last weekend, and Brandon caught up with him to get the offer reaction. Hayes is a RB/LB recruit whom the Wolverines offered as an outside linebacker, and Brandon likes Michigan's chances at this early juncture:
Hayes and I spoke for a few minutes off the record and let’s just say he really likes Michigan. He’s definitely not in a hurry to commit, but Michigan will absolutely be in it for him until he makes his decision. He speaks with Coach Singletary once or twice a week and will continue to do so throughout his process. Having an older cousin on the team isn’t hurting either.
Michigan is in his top six, joining Michigan State and Tennessee among schools that have offered; Hayes also likes Notre Dame, Penn State, and UCLA, three schools that haven't offered him yet. Even if he reels in big-time national offers, though, expect his interest in Michigan to remain very high; this quote he gave to Scout's Allen Trieu is particularly illuminating ($):
"The Wolverine offer is one of the offers I really wanted since day one," he said. "Take away football from the equation, and you're getting a great school where you can better yourself through education. You get the best of both worlds. Take away football and you still have a Michigan degree to fall back on."
He added, "That carries more weight than a school like Alabama, where it's strictly football. I'm not saying Alabama is a bad school, but Michigan carries more weight."
[opens up Crystal Ball] [predicts Michigan]
The Wolverines also offered 2015 four-star SC RB Ty'Son Williams, per 247's Steve Lorenz ($). Aside from a Georgia offer last November, Williams's recruitment has started pretty slowly for a recruit of his caliber, and right now he's still in the exploratory phase:
The last couple weeks, Williams has been on unofficial visits to Georgia and South Carolina, two schools that many believe may be the potential leaders for his services. Because his recruitment is just starting to take off, he's only now developing an idea of what he's looking for from his suitors.
"I really am looking for how the coaches coach their players and how they interact with both each other and the team as a whole," Williams said. "I want to be at a place I feel comfortable too and of course I want to get the ball. There's not a certain kind of offense that I want to play in as long as they know how to use their running backs. Pro-style or spread doesn't really matter to me."
Williams definitely looks like a recruit to put in the "wait and see if he visits" category.
Justin Hilliard Update
Michigan recently hosted 2015 four-star OH LB Justin Hilliard, one of their top overall targets in the class, for what he described as a "great" unofficial visit to Scout's Dave Berk—Hilliard added that the Wolverines are among the schools currently standing out to him ($):
Just a few weeks ago Hilliard said Notre Dame would be one of his top schools when the time comes to trim down his offer list. Where do the Wolverines stand following his visit last weekend?
“I would say Michigan is right up there with some other schools,” he said. “I like the school itself as it’s a great academic place and a live campus. Ann Arbor is also a great city and I stayed overnight when I was up there last time.”
He's also a big fan of Michigan's photoshop work, apparently.
Etc.
Four-star CT TE Chris Clarkwill take a visit to Michigan despite his recent commitment to North Carolina, according to Brandon.
Vust a jery bad typo, OSU.