Michigan NSD in Review

I love it when a plan comes together.  

Michigan was expected to get two high profile recruits in SEC Country, Aubrey and Nico and they did.   The other 3 guys were long shots and were trending away from the Wolverines.   They all ended up going to other schools. 

When you come away with a 5 Star DT and a 6'5 4 star WR - It is a great day!  

The Signing of the Stars was a bit long and Michigan didn't announce the LOI's until the show started.     It was worth the wait and all the commits signed and faxed in their paperwork. 

There were a couple of funny mistakes.   I was watching on ESPNU when Aubrey announced.   I thought he said, Miami instead of Michigan but I didn't think too much of it with the audio issues they were having.   I guess he really did say Miami by mistake. 

Michigan also put a PWO WR on the commitment video which was clearly a mistake as well. 

We even had a little bit of a surprise with the commitment of the #1 punter in the class from Ohio, Brad Robbins. 

This is a top 5 class and you have to love it.   Here is where Michigan stands right now on the services:

24/7 = #4
Scouts = #3
Rivals = #4
ESPN = #4

Note: as of 4:00 Michigan is yet to announce the LOI's of Collins or Robbins.


Michigan State has had a very difficult NSD:

• A scholarship offer player turns down an offer from MSU to walk-on to Northwestern
• Then MSU loses a WR they were leading for to South Alabama.
• Then a 3 star DL commit doesn't sign a LOI because he is in jail in Orlando. 

They have the #21 rated class on Scouts.


The pull your hair out event of the day

Alabama recruit 4 Star DE and Army All American Jarez Park from Florida wants to join Bama so bad, he will gray shirt.   It seems Alabama ran out of scholarships and Park prefers to wait a year to join the team instead of signing with another team.    Park will join Alabama next January. 




from The BIG HOUSE Blog http://mbighouse.blogspot.com/2017/02/michigan-nsd-in-review.html

Who's In?

The below players have signed their LOI (Letter of Intent) and now officially Michigan Wolverines!

These guys enrolled early:

Ambry Thomas CB 5'11 170★★★★
Tarik Black WR 6'4 200 ★★★★
Donovan People -Jones WR 6'2 200 ★★★★★
Cesar Ruiz C 6'3 320 ★★★★
Donovan Jeter DT 6'5 250★★★★
Jaylen Kelly-Powell S 6'0 180 ★★★★
Ben Mason LB 6'2 247★★★
Corey Malone-Hatcher DE 6'3 245★★★★
JaRaymond Hall OL 6'5 255 ★★★★
Ben St-Juste DB 6'3 185 ★★★★
J'Marick Woods S 6'4 200★★★


from The BIG HOUSE Blog http://mbighouse.blogspot.com/2017/02/whos-in.html

Latino Economic Development Center services Baltimore

Due to growing demand for its services, the Latino Economic Development Center (LEDC) expanded its presence and began offering its small business services in Baltimore in 2014.

Formed in Washington, D.C., in 1991, the center strives to create economic opportunity for the Latino community and neighborhoods throughout the Capital and Baltimore Region. The non-profit is dedicated to creating a better future for local residents and their families by helping them achieve small business success. LEDC celebrated its 25th anniversary last year.

Oswaldo Acosta, director of small business programs for LEDC, sat down with MDBizNews to answer a few questions.

What is your organization’s mission?
The Latino Economic Development Center’s mission is to drive the economic and social advancement of low- to moderate-income Latinos and other underserved communities in the Greater Washington, D.C. and Baltimore metropolitan areas. We equip them with the skills and tools to achieve financial independence and become leaders in their community.

What services do you provide?
We connect entrepreneurs with information and training to launch, stabilize, and grow small businesses in the community. We also provide access to financing for entrepreneurs to start and expand businesses. Our loans range from $5,000 – $50,000.

Tell us about a project you recently funded.
Brown Rice is a fast-growing Korean-American fusion restaurant located in the Charles Village district of Baltimore City. Brown Rice has been incredibly successful in its two years in business. Heather Chung – the entrepreneur behind the project – has more than 20 years of experience in the food industry, having worked in other restaurants and managing other businesses.

With the $50,000 loan Heather received from LEDC, she was able to expand and open a new location at R-House—a new style of food hall in a 50,000 square-foot historic warehouse in the Remington neighborhood in Baltimore City. Heather is one of the ten exclusive chefs invited to be part of this exciting new food hub. This marks Heather’s third location in Baltimore City, and she is planning to open two new locations in early 2017.

What is planned for 2017?
We plan to continue our growth in the Baltimore metropolitan region. We expect to deploy over $500K in small business loans for the fiscal year and continue our expansion to Baltimore’s neighboring counties.

How can our readers connect with your organization and learn more?
People can engage with us via our social media accounts (Facebook, Twitter), sign up for our newsletter on our website, or simply contact our staff at Baltimore’s Impact Hub.

The post Latino Economic Development Center services Baltimore appeared first on MDBIZNews.

from https://mdbiznews.commerce.maryland.gov/2017/02/latino-economic-development-center-services-baltimore/

Welcome To NSD!

Ok, everyone its National Signing Day and here is the schedule of announcements for Michigan prospects:

1. 9:30 AM Mekhi Becton between Virginia Tech and Michigan
2. 10:00 AM Willie Gay - LSU, Michigan, Miss State
3. 10:30 AM Aubrey Solomon on ESPNU - Michigan or Alabama
4. 11:30AM Jay Tufele - USC, Utah, Michigan
5. 2:30 PM Nico Collins - Michigan and Georgia

I will also start updating the LOI's as they roll in.  I expect to start hearing around 8:00 AM.

It's looking great for Nico, Aubrey still points to Michigan but there is still that video.  Willie would be a surprise at this point and I expect Jay and Mekhi to stay close to home.

Let the fun begin!!

from The BIG HOUSE Blog http://mbighouse.blogspot.com/2017/02/welcome-to-nsd.html

Michigan Tuesday: Fishin and Wishin on NSD Eve

hdimagelib.com

Tomorrow is one of my favorite days of the year.   It's also the busiest day on the blog, so get here early and often.  Like every year, I will update the LOI's as they roll off the fax machine.    We will also update all the news with any surprises.  I'm 100% committed to the Blog all day!   With that said, it has already started, so lets get to some recent news:

 

 

Jumped in the Boat

 

Oliver Martin is now part of Michigan's 2017 class as he and Jimmy actually jumped into the pool with his commitment.   He committed to the Wolverines over the weekend and announced it on Monday night.    This is a great pick up and just another piece of the pie for a high powered offense that Jimmy has been dreaming of.   If Nico picks the Wolverines on Wednesday, this will be the best WR class ever heading to Michigan. 

 

 

Martin is an Army All American 4 star WR across the board and jumped out of Iowa into the national rankings during Nike's Opening this past summer.   Michigan quickly offered and Oliver was very interested.  Oliver visited for the BBQ at the Big House and many thought a commitment would soon follow.   It didn't and Michigan started to pull back interest after it looked like Brad Hawkins was back in the class.    Oliver stayed the course and it looked like maybe he would end up at MSU, ND or even Iowa. 

 

Pep Hamilton got hired and made Oliver his #1 priority and it worked.  They got him on campus last weekend and closed the deal.  Martin is 6'1 and 185 pounds and can play either the slot or outside WR at Michigan.   His game will get compared to any New England Patriots WR not named Randy Moss.   He has great hands, good speed and a very good route runner.   He also plays baseball and is on the swim team in high school.   The kid is a good athlete!

 

His offer list included the likes of:  Florida, ND, MSU, Iowa, Ohio State, BYU, Oregon, Wisconsin, Auburn and others.

 

I'm sure you might be thinking, this question:  Does this effect the recruitment of Nico Collins to Michigan? The answer is no.   Nico is a 6'5 outside WR and Jimmy is looking at him for a completely different role.   The slot at Michigan also has some folks in front of Oliver including the likes of:  McDoom, Crawford, Johnson and maybe Perry.   Nico with his size and the lack of outside WR's on the roster could see the field very early.

 

 

Swimming in another direction

 

Ifeatu Melifonwu has confirmed his commitment to Syracuse.   His offer from Michigan never came and I'm guessing Syracuse was asking for him to re-confirm.   Michigan of course likes this DB a ton but might not have room if they land a number of guys tomorrow.   Will this change if Michigan does end up having a spot?  Hard to tell at this point.    This could be good news for Wednesday or bad news if you are a fan of Ifeatu Melifonwu.

 

To further answer the above Nico Collins question, this non-offer could also mean they want Brad Hawkins to play Safety.

 

 

Fishes still swimming

 

• Aubrey Solomon - many still believe he will end up in the class.   BHB Prediction:  Nervously Blue

 

• Nico Collins - still trending towards A2 - BHB:  Maize and Blue on Wednesday!

 

• Willie Gay - still up in the air - BHB: Mississippi State

 

• Mekhi Becton - between Va. Tech and Michigan - BHB: Hokies

 

If the above truly happens,  I believe Michigan would still have a spot for Ifeatu, so I wonder if he will hold his LOI for a few minutes on Wednesday?

 

Buckle up boys, its going to be fun ride!

 



from The BIG HOUSE Blog http://mbighouse.blogspot.com/2017/01/michigan-tuesday-fishin-and-wishin-on.html

Celebrating Company Milestones in Maryland

Michigan Monday: Updates Recruits Trends and Welcomes PWO's

We are two days away from National Signing Day and Michigan is still in it for a number of high profile recruits.  Jimmy also welcomed a number of preferred Walk-On's prospects this weekend and there were a couple of commits.   Let's take a look at where thing are trending for Michigan's top prospects first.

Aubrey Solomon - Many of the Michigan insiders still feel Michigan is the choice.   I'm not sure anyone has let Aubrey know.   He continues to say that Alabama leads, which could be a fake out or maybe he loves that hurricane simulator like DeShawn Hand.   Sam Webb still thinks he ends up in Ann Arbor.   This could be a Mike Weber situation, so we need to keep a close eye on this one.   He will commit at 10:00 on ESPNU.

Nico Collins:  He visited Georgia this past weekend and some Georgia insiders came away with predicting that Nico was heading to Michigan.  Seems the latest trend has Nico staying with his favorite and leader for most of his recruitment.   Sounds like Jimmy and Coach Hamilton had a big impact in their last visit.  Let's hope he stays with his heart and goes Maize and Blue on Wednesday.  He will announce at 2:00 on Wednesday.

Oliver Martin: Was in A2 this weekend and there isn't a ton of visit reaction yet.   Many still expect that Oliver's heart is still in Ann Arbor and that he will end up Maize and Blue over ND on Wednesday.   This could be one of the best WR classes ever in Ann Arbor if Nico and Oliver are both Blue.

Willie Gay:  He likes LSU and mom likes Michigan and Miss State.   I'm guessing he will stay close to home and picks Mississippi State.   If he wants to get away from home and mom won't let him go to LSU, then Michigan has a chance.   Don't hold your breathe on this one. 

Ifeatu Melifonwu - It seems both sides are considering if they want to move forward.   Michigan hasn't officially offered yet and could be looking at what the numbers are going to be.   I wouldn't be surprised if he got offered and committed on Tuesday or Wednesday.   This might be a situation where he waits to sends in his Syracuse LOI until Wednesday afternoon.

- DT Jay Tufele - unless its a huge surprise, Jay will stay out West.
- OL Mekhi Becton seems to be heading to VA Tech.


Now lets look at some of the Preferred Walk-On's that are most likely heading to Michigan:

• Saline linebacker/fullback Tyler Plocki, he will play FB at Michigan.  He is 6'1 and 215 pounds.
• Mt. Pleasant 6'3 290 pounds OG Sean Fitzgerald committed as well.  Sean had a scholarship offer to the Air Force Academy.
• Catholic Central WR/S Evan Latham also committed.  He is 6'3 and 191 pounds.

Congrats to all the PWO's!


from The BIG HOUSE Blog http://mbighouse.blogspot.com/2017/01/michigan-monday-updates-recruits-trends.html