The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/362774
FOOTBALL RECRUITING the Cass Tech lineup as a sophomore while nursing injuries at the beginning of the year. However, he went on to ex- plode over the second half of that season, gaining notoriety — and scholarship offers. He has been a four-star prospect on the cusp of the Rivals100 during the majority of the pro- cess, and picked U-M over offers from Ohio State, Michigan State, Wisconsin and others. Weber's production through two seasons — rushing for 1,700 yards and 21 touchdowns as a sophomore, and follow- ing it up with 1,659 yards and 24 scores last fall — is impres- sive. Better still, he's shown that he's consistently adding to his game. He ran, albeit very fast, through gaping holes in the line during his first varsity campaign with the likes of Michigan-bound David Dawson and future MSU Spartan Dennis Finley up front. Behind a slightly weaker line last fall, he added a power element to his game. In the summer between his junior and senior seasons, Weber has shown that he'll be a receiving threat, too. Turning the skills he's added over time into production on the field — perhaps even more than he's ever had, now that fellow Cass Tech running backs Deon Drake (Michigan State) and Gary Hosey (Buffalo) are off to play linebacker in college — will help Weber show that he's deserving of the top-100 ranking that he's so close to achieving. WR BRIAN COLE 6-2, 190 • Saginaw (Mich.) Heritage Four-star recruit, No. 2 player in Michigan, and No. 7 athlete and No. 106 overall prospect nationally Cole burst onto the scene in February during his sopho- more year, picking up a Michigan offer before many recruit- niks had even heard much about him. He's remained right on the cusp of the national top 100 ever since. His junior year, unfortunately, was not the greatest op- portunity to evaluate Cole at wide receiver, the position he'll be playing when he arrives in Ann Arbor. His team needed him more at running back, so he had just a few opportuni- ties to catch passes (while also starring on defense at safety, where many schools, including Michigan, also considered recruiting him). He rushed for more than 1,200 yards and notched 26 touchdowns, plus recorded 47 tackles and five interceptions — with one returned for a score — on the