The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/347495
FOOTBALL RECRUITING BY TIM SULLIVAN E ach recruiting class, fans clamor over who will land the five-star prospects. Those are the players most likely to have been identified early by coaches across the country and are racking up big-time scholarship offers thanks to their exploits on the field. Very few have to camp to earn their scholarship offers — and many don't even hit campus for a visit until after they have been extended the invitation. This is not the story of those players. There is another group of players that were underappreciated early in their high school careers, and had to scratch and claw to earn every bit of recognition they've received. More often than not, that means heading to college campuses across the coun- try to impress head coaches such as Michigan's Brady Hoke, Ohio State's Urban Meyer and Alabama's Nick Saban. While not every camper who heads to town hoping for an offer expe- riences a happy ending, many do. Some blossom from little known ris- ing seniors to Michigan commits and All-Americans. EARNING AN OFFER Michigan's 2012 summer camp saw plenty of talent rolling through the practice fields surrounding Schembechler Hall in Ann Arbor. Michigan commit Shane Morris of the 2013 class held court in Glick Fieldhouse during seven-on-seven play, and while he was surrounded by impressive players only a few earned Michigan scholarship offers. Things don't always work out between Michigan and the players working out at camp, however. Mon- roeville (Pa.) Gateway safety Montae Nicholson, a 2014 athlete with a pow- erful 6-2, 200-pound frame, was one such player. Nicholson looked like a sure thing for the Wolverines at the time, and U-M extended the rising junior a scholarship offer. However, Michigan's class filled with defensive backs before he was ready to make a decision, and Nicholson signed with Michigan State in February. More often, though, a camp offer eventually turns into a Michigan commit. That was the case with one player who could have been Nich- olson's teammate in East Lansing. FOOTBALL RECRUITING Campers Turned Commits Wide receiver Freddy Canteen earned an offer during Michigan's 2013 camp and eventually committed to the Wolverines before the end of the summer. PHOTO BY LON HORWEDEL