The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/201975
football recruiting tions — the distribution of scholarships across multiple positions — that help explain the changes, but Hoke is consistently going after bigger players than U‑M had in the recent past. The 2014 class can get even bigger should the Wolverines close with defensive ends Da'Shawn Hand (6-4, 248 pounds) and Malik McDowell (6-6, 292 pounds). Michigan's classes didn't get smaller just in terms of literal size over the Rodriguez era, they also dropped off when it comes to the number of stars next to each name on the commit list. While the star ranking system isn't everything, five-star recruits are far more likely to pan out than fourstar recruits — who are, in turn, more likely to pan out than three-stars. U-M's average star ranking per commit in the 2008 class was 3.67, the seventh-best mark in the country. From there (as with many other aspects of the Rodriguez era), that ranking went downhill. The 2009 mark dropped to 3.59, and the 2010 number was 3.19. In the hybrid class between Hoke and Rodriguez in 2011, the average per player rebounded only slightly to 3.25, which would have been by far the worst of the Rivals.com era for Michigan if not for the previous year's mark. Hoke's first full class saw an immediate boost. The average star ranking was 3.56, and the class included two five-star prospects. Kansas City (Mo.) Park Hill defensive tackle Ondre Pipkins was the No. 14 overall player in the country, and Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edward offensive lineman Kyle Kalis was the No. 22 overall player nationally. Although the 2013 class included only one five-star player — the country's No. 8 prospect in Richmond (Va.) Hermitage running back Derrick Green — the average stars per player moved up to 3.63. That's an impressive mark, seventh-best in the country, and it was even brought down slightly by U‑M's signing a long snapper, with a maximum star ranking of two (which Ottawa [Ill.] Marquette prospect Scott Syniewski reached). The 2014 class has taken the next step in continuing Michigan's recruiting ascent, even though the current average star ranking is only 3.47. Once again, the number is dragged down slightly by the presence of a two-star prospect, though it's likely that Warren (Mich.) De La Salle linebacker Jared Wangler moves up in the rankings by National Signing Day in February. Paramus (N.J.) Catholic defensive back Jabrill Peppers is the lone five-star prospect, but he's a good one: Michigan has never before landed the No. 2 player in the country in the Rivals.com era. The 2014 class still has star power to add. Should the Wolverines reel in Hand (the top player in the country and a five-star recruit) and McDowell (the No. 40 player in the nation and a four-star player), the average would improve to 3.59. While there are still more possible changes to the overall rankings, that would be a return to the range of the 2012 class, which was a top-five effort nationally.