The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/130469
football recruiting bump in the Rivals.com rankings. "I think both have the potential to get to a four-star ranking," Rivals.com Midwest recruiting analyst Josh Helmholdt said. "With Bunting, I want to see him become more of a pure football player. He's adjusting to the tight end position after playing wide receiver primarily. "With Ways, the biggest thing I need Rivals.com Team Recruiting Rankings The team recruiting rankings on Rivals.com award point values to each recruit in a team's class. Those values range from 250 points for the nation's No. 1 player to 15 points for a two-star prospect. In order to fairly measure classes with large numbers of commitments, only the top 20 players in each team's class count toward the team rankings. Last year's 27-man Michigan class ended with 2,661 points, or 133.1 points for each of the top 20 commits. Alabama's No. 1 class totaled 3,166 points, 158.3 points for each of the top 20 commits. 2014 Team Rankings Rank School CommitsPoints 1. Texas 13 1,327 2. Texas A&M 10 1,212 3. Tennessee 12 1,210 4. Florida 9 1,171 5. Notre Dame 9 1,129 6. LSU 10 1,075 7. Michigan 91,056 8. Louisville 13 1,020 9. Florida State 9 1,005 10. Ohio State 8 852 to see out of him is becoming a little more explosive off the line of scrimmage. He has a smoothness and natural athleticism that I really like. He has great size and is just continuing to develop." Paramus (N.J.) Catholic offensive lineman Juwann Bushell-Beatty and Richmond (Va.) Collegiate School quarterback Wilton Speight have shied away from the camp circuit thus far in 2013, and will have to wait until the fall to be re-evaluated. Still, both could rise with impressive seasons. Altogether, the current group of Michigan commitments has totaled 1,056 points in the Rivals.com team rankings (see sidebar). If the next seven commitments are of similar caliber to the first group, Michigan would be on pace for the No. 16 class in the country, based on last year's numbers. However, there's a very strong chance that the final group will have higher rankings than the first nine commitments. Power Duo There are two big fish in Michigan's 2014 recruiting targets — the top two players in the nation. Woodbridge (Va.) High defensive end Da'Shawn Hand is atop the Rivals.com rankings, and Paramus (N.J.) Catholic cornerback Jabrill Peppers is hot on his heels at No. 2. Fortunately for Brady Hoke (and especially for defensive coordinator Greg Mattison), both players are very high on Michigan. Hand includes U-M in a top five that also consists of Florida, Alabama, Virginia Tech and South Carolina.