National Signing Day

After deciding to skip the 2008 season (I have no memories of it, didn't happen, you can't make me remember it, la la la), Rich Rodriguez and Michigan has put together a great recruiting class. According to Rivals, it's the 7th best in the nation, Scout says 13th. The high school seniors heading to Ann Arbor in the fall include the monster DE William Campbell (5 star, pictured), one of the very top recruits in the country. The Wolverines snagged more four-star recruits than you can shake a stick at, most notably Je'Ron Stokes (WR) and Tate Forcier (QB). They also picked up three four-star offensive linemen - a key weakness last season (I mean, what season?). 

My very early and premature prediction for '09 is 7-5 - a return to respectability at least, but not good. 

Michigan vs. Notre Dame

The Onion previews Saturday's Michigan/Notre Dame game. It's going to be a long season, but at least I didn't come into the year thinking they'd win the national championship for the first time since, well, ever. So I'll refrain from throwing things and wait until next year when Rich Rod gets some recruits that actually fit his system.

Economists on Recruiting

Bad news: the nation's top recruit, Terelle Pryor, is heading to Ohio State. Well, Ohio State has a 40.2% chance anyway (Michigan has a 37.9% chance). A couple economists have a computer model that can accurately predict the destinations of the top high school football prospects (ht Freakonomics). The model has correctly picked the schools for 72.5% of the Rivals.com top 100 recruits over a two year period. This model puts science to the whims of these teenage phenoms. The model includes more than two dozen variables and reveals some surprises: recruits don't care how many players you put in the NFL, or how stacked you are at their position. Also, recruits from the West and Northeast were less likely to stay close to home than those from the Midwest and the South. What was most important? "According to the model, they usually will pick the BCS-conference school nearest their hometown that has the biggest on-campus stadium and won the most games last season. Not the past five seasons, mind you."

Rich Rodriguez in at Michigan

Now for something far more important than politics: Michigan football. After getting turned down by LSU's Miles and Rutgers' Schiano, UM landed a head coach in Rich Rodriguez from West Virginia. Rodriguez has been hugely successful at WVU, taking them to a BCS bowl game two out of the last three years, so I am very excited about this move. Rodriguez's teams have used a spread offense and a mobile quarterback, so it will be very interesting to see what he does with the Michigan offense. Ryan Mallet has to be a little concerned, as he's a traditional, drop back passer. However, the #1 recruit in the country, Jeanette, PA junior Terrelle Pryor, has now put Michigan on his short list. He's a 6-6 dual threat QB with 4.4 speed (think Vince Young in maize & blue).