The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/230001
michigan recruiting Jabrill Peppers Reaffirms Commitment M ichigan's dreams of landing the top two prospects in the country — an unprecedented feat for any team in the Rivals.com era — ended Nov. 14 when Woodbridge (Va.) High defensive end Da'Shawn Hand surprised by picking Alabama over Michigan. There was even worse news for the Maize and Blue than missing out on the No. 1 prospects in the country when the No. 2 prospect, who had already committed to become a Wolverine, indicated his pledge may not be as secure as previously believed. Paramus (N.J.) Catholic cornerback Jabrill Peppers picked Michigan May 26 and had seemed 100 percent committed the entire time. However, he tweeted some potentially ominous news Nov. 26. "I think I'm going to take a couple officials myself after the season" Peppers tweeted. The policy of the coaching staff is that committed players making visits to other schools are no longer considered commitments and the coaches start recruiting other players for the position. The common misconception that those players will lose their scholarship offers is false. Peppers would not be dropped from the Michigan recruiting board, but any slight re-opening of his recruitment is unsettling for the school that already Peppers, a cornerback from Paramus (N.J.) Catholic who committed to U-M May 26, considered taking official visits to other schools, but ultimately scuttled those plans after a trip to Ann Arbor Dec. 13. photo by Cyle nunemaker has him in the fold. Peppers clarified his position shortly after the tweet. Although he considered himself a Michigan commit, he was concerned about the job security of the U-M staff. "I am still 100 percent committed to the University of Michigan and that is the place where I want to go to college," he said in a statement. "With the rumors about Coach [Brady] Hoke possibly not being there I need to make sure that I have options and have seen other places. For the sake