The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/70101
SUPERLATIVES CLASS I country according to Rivals.com — a group that includes two five-star prospects and a slue of talented three- and four-stars. n Michigan head coach Brady Hoke's first full recruiting cy- cle, he had resounding success, hauling in the No. 6 class in the BY ANDY REID 2012 class is monstrous. The average height of the 25 recruits is 6 feet, 2.6 inches, the highest average of any incoming class since 2006, which had an averaged height of 6-2.8. There are just two players in the Tallest Recruit: As a whole, the class that stand under 6-0. The Wolverines are also adding five players that are 6-6, all tied for the tallest in the class: Carlsbad (Calif.) La Costa Canyon offensive tackle Erik Magnuson, Mentor (Ohio) High School defensive end Tom Strobel, Novi (Mich.) Detroit Catholic Cen- tral defensive end Matthew Godin, Cincinnati Sycamore tight end A.J. Williams and Rockford (Mich.) High School offensive lineman Ben Braden. It's been 11 years since the Wol- verines brought in that many play- ers who were 6-6 or taller. Michigan had six such players in the 2001 class, including defensive linemen Pierre Woods and Patrick Massey. ther King running back Dennis Nor- fleet is not only the shortest player in the 2012, he's one of the shortest run- ning backs in the history of Michigan football. Norfleet is just 5-7. According to the university's Shortest Recruit: Detroit Martin Lu- Five-star prospect Ondre Pipkins (320 pounds) is Michigan's heaviest freshman defensive tackle since Jason Kates (340 pounds) in 2006. recognizable name: Jamie Morris (1984-87), the spark plug whose 4,393 career rushing yards led the Wolver- ines' all-time list for 13 years, until it was broken by Anthony Thomas in 2000. Morris is currently No. 3 in all-time rushing, behind Mike Hart (5,040 yards, 2004-07) and Thomas (4,472 yards, 1997-2000). player database, the Wolverines have had just four other running backs that were 5-7 or shorter in the last 50 years. Three were walk-ons, Jim Potempa (2007-08), Mike Milano (2007-08) and Alijah Bradley (2002-06) never saw the field much. The other is a very is a relatively recent phenomenon in college football. Michigan didn't even have a freshman weigh in at more than 250 pounds until 1960. The Wolverines brought in their first- ever 300-pound rookie in 1987, Greg Skrepenak. Since then, they have signed 26 more players who tipped the scales above the 300-pound mark their freshmen years. Not surpris- ingly, they're all either offensive or defensive linemen. It's becoming more and more com- mon to see behemoths in the trenches. Heaviest Recruit: The 300-pounder Surveying The Field For Michigan's Incoming Class 2012 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE With the 2012 class, three more play- ers join the list: five-star Kansas City (Mo.) Park Hill defensive tackle On- dre Pipkins (320 pounds), five-star Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edwards offen- sive tackle Kyle Kalis (305 pounds) and Braden (319 pounds). Pipkins is the heaviest freshman defensive tackle since Jason Kates, who weighed 340 pounds, in 2006. emphasis on size and physicality. The Wolverines have just four play- ers in this class who weigh less than 200 pounds, the fewest since the 2007 season. Four-star Detroit Cass Tech corner- Lightest Recruit: Hoke is putting back Terry Richardson is the lightest of the bunch, weighing 165 pounds. The rest of the sub-200 pounders in the class are Norfleet (170 pounds), Madisonville (Ky.) North Hopkins safety Jeremy Clark (195 pounds) and Akron (Ohio) Buchtel safety Jarrod Wilson (190 pounds). PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM Arbor: Hoke and his staff have largely focused on protecting the Wolverines' backyard, and that focus paid off. Eighteen of the 25 signees in the 2012 class are from Michigan and Ohio, eight of whom were rated as five- or four-star prospects by Rivals.com. None of them will be racking up fre- quent flier miles on trips back home. There are seven players who will Travels The Greatest Distance To Ann most likely fly to Ann Arbor, though. Most of them will have pretty short flights. Clark's home in Madisonville, Ky., is 504 miles from Ann Arbor. St. Louis Ladue Horton Watkins wide receiver Jehu Chesson will travel 509 miles. Nashville (Tenn.) Montgomery Bell Academy offensive lineman Blake Bars will be 525 miles away from home, while Darboh must travel 563 miles. Pipkins, who's coming from his home in Kansas City, Mo., is a bit further away, at 722 miles. After that, the distance gets greater. Salt Lake City Highland fullback Sione Houma is 1,624 miles away. Magnuson, who must travel 2,277 miles before he can report for fall camp, is the winner. Ann Arbor: There are eight signees — Farmington Hills (Mich.) Harrison Travels The Shortest Distance To MARCH 2012 THE WOLVERINE 31