Elite 11 Updates: Peters Performing Well, Probably
Ah, the Elite 11, when a group of more than 11 of the nation's best quarterbacks gather for a camp in which a handful of throws will be analyzed to death. There's usually something of a disconnect between how the recruiting analysts and the camp counselors rank the performers. This year doesn't appear to be different. After Monday's opening session, Scout's Brandon Huffman named Michigan commit Brandon Peters among the five quarterbacks who stood out to him:
Was one of the most consistent passers all morning. Was just hot from the get-go on day one. Looked athletic and threw the ball with very little effort. The Michigan commit really dropped the ball into the basket for receivers and it looks like the Wolverines have a lot to be excited about.
247's Barton Simmons also had high praise for Peters:
Finally Brandon Peters was one of the guys that multiple analysts were buzzing about and his upside is crazy considering he's had limited quarterback training and he has elite athleticism that shows up on the basketball court.
Partway through the camp, however, Peters isn't on the Elite 11 rankings list. (He's far from the only notable missing: five-star FSU commit Malik Henry didn't crack the list, either.) Peters still has time to make a move; regardless, he's been impressive to onlookers.
Meanwhile, Peters is also keeping an eye on recruiting, per 247's Steve Wiltfong:
“I was talking to coach the other day,” Peters said. “He said we might get Ahmir Mitchell and maybe (Naseir Upshur). Also I think Devin Bush Jr.”
Upshur will be at The Opening this week, as will Peters and Michael Onwenu. You can bet M's commits will be working on getting Upshur to join them.
[Hit THE JUMP for the rest of the roundup.]
Hey, Radio Guy
This is how Michigan recruits a four-star receiver:
“Michigan’s staff is great,” [Brad] Hawkins said about the Wolverines in April after visiting. “Harbaugh, coach (Jedd) Fisch, I built a great relationship with those guys when I was in Ann Arbor. It’s a great place. I can't wait to get back."
The second visit, which was originally scheduled for last week, is now taking place on July 19th. Hawkins will be accompanied by high school teammate and fellow four-star Michigan commitment Ron Johnson and 2017 center Cesar Ruiz, who also has the Wolverines in a good early position.
Hawkins and Johnson are both commitments, of course, and Ruiz—who was on the Harbaugh-in-the-streets visit—may be the next to come through the burgeoning Camden-to-A2 pipeline. The four-star 2017 center raved about Harbaugh to Scout's Brian Dohn:
“Coach (Jim) Harbaugh, he’s just an amazing guy,” Ruiz said. “He’s down to earth. He’s not like one of those stuck up guys. He walked the streets with us. Everybody wanted to take pictures with us. It’s not like he said, ‘I don’t want to take pictures.’ He took pictures with everybody. He’s always smiling and he seems like a positive person.”
Ruiz specifically mentioned Michigan and Penn State as schools currently standing out to him. Michigan is widely considered to have the early edge, though Ruiz boasts a very impressive offer sheet.
Defensive Back Updates: Butler Decommits
This has felt inevitable for quite some time. Three-star Lakewood (OH) St. Edward CB Tony Butler finally decommitted from Pitt, and while he has a top four, only one of those schools is currently slated to get a visit, per Scout's Bill Greene:
"My four top schools right now are Michigan, Rutgers, Maryland and Arizona State," he explained. "I am open to hearing from any other schools right now, and I do have to call Clemson this Monday about their interest in me."
"The only unofficial visit I have scheduled is Michigan on July 15, and that visit is rescheduled from earlier when we had car trouble and couldn't go there," he added. "I might just take all my officials now this fall, but I need to discuss that with my mom and my coach about."
Butler is a good bet to end up in the class, though he's not Michigan's only option at corner. Three-star MD CB Sir Patrick Scott—yes, SIR PATRICK SCOTT—will visit for the BBQ on August 2nd after adding an offer late last month, per 247's Steve Lorenz ($). Wake Forest is considered Scott's favorite for now; if Michigan makes a strong push, he seems like a very realistic option, as well.
One corner who most likely won't end up in the class is four-star CA CB David Long. Long told Rivals' Adam Friedman that he plans to see Michigan before making a decision, but it's telling that he already has a decision timeframe in mind before taking that trip ($):
"I'm going to try to get out to Michigan and Notre Dame before the season starts," Long said. "At this point I want to commit before the season starts so probably in the late summer."
One other trip Long could take is with his mother to Stanford. That could be especially important since the Los Angeles Loyola standout seems to favor the Cardinal over others and this would be his mom's first trip to campus.
Stanford is the heavy favorite. I'd honestly be surprised if Long followed through on those unofficials.
Right, The Nike Thing
Steve Lorenz rounded up the recruit reactions to Michigan's forthcoming switch to Nike. Four-star 2016 ATH Jordan Fuller probably had the most realistic assessment of its impact:
2016 Top100 ATH/Safety Jordan Fuller: "It's a perk for sure. I wouldn't choose a school based on that alone, but it helps."
Four-star 2016 OL Jean Delance came out on the high end:
2016 Top100 OL Jean Delance: "I'M BEYOND EXCITED. HELL YEAH! Michigan and the Swoosh.....awesome."
And commit Victor Viramontes continues to build his legend by mentioning Russell Athletic and busting out a Deion Sanders quote:
ATH Victor Viramontes: "Even if we're wearing Nike, Adidas or Russell Athletic, we're going to give 110% on the field, but it's definitely something to be excited about. It's like Deion Sanders said: "You look good, you feel good, you play good"."
The move to Jordan Brand for hoops should also pay dividends.
Etc.
Three-star WR Chase Claypool, who Michigan put a lot of effort into recruiting at Sound Mind Sound Body, will make his college choice at The Opening either Thursday or Friday. Notre Dame is the prohibitive favorite. Rutgers tried to make a late move and managed to get Claypool on campus; Claypool gave Rutgers' Rivals outlet his reaction, which I can't help but interpret as his best attempt to say something nice about the program ($):
"It was a lot of fun," Claypool. "I was really surprised with how much I liked Rutgers. I liked how much construction they are doing. It was really impressive."
"How do you feel about Kyle Flood?" "Man, I tell you, that's a big ol' crane over there."
The Wolverine's Chris Balas caught up with Todd Howard, who help out with M's camp, to get his thoughts on commit Benjamin St-Juste ($):
"Somebody's coaching that kid. The things he knew - shoulders over the knees, planting and driving, technique, playing low. That's the thing I don't really see a lot of young football players doing. They'll have high backpedals, some kids will double plant, bicycle break where they are running in place out of breaks. You didn't see that with him. He played low the whole time, was barely out of position, maintained low pad level, change direction with no false steps, attacked the football. He caught the ball like a wide receiver, and he could just fly. He was all over, and it you could tell it mattered to him. He was diving around, selling out, and if he did get beat he was getting right back in line for another rep. That's what you want to see as a coach."
Howard even went so far as to say St-Juste could be a "three-year guy"—as in, a potential early entry to the NFL. While Howard's opinion is likely affected by his status as a former Wolverine, that's some high praise.
Erik Swenson talking about the events that have transpired since his commitment will make you feel old.