Recapping 2012 Commit James Ross

Here's my recap of another big time Linebacker in the 2012 class, James Ross out of Orchard Lake St. Mary's in Orchard Lake, MI.  James happens to be an Army All-American and checks in at 6'1" and around 215 pounds.  One of the top linebackers in the country, Coach Hoke and the staff made an emphasis of addressing the linebacker position and James is definitely part of that fold.  2012 was a linebacker haul for Michigan with four phenomenal commitments in Joe Bolden, Royce Jenkins-Stone, and Kaleb Ringer.  James is right in the mix and is certainly in the argument for the best linebacker in the class.

James isn't the biggest guy, at only 215, but man can this dude lay the wood.  He has phenomenal quickness and reaction time.  He defends the run very well and has great instincts along with the fact that he has great cover skills and is such a physical defender.  James doesn't shy away from contact and has great discipline when it comes to gap responsibility.  He can get after the passer whether it's blitzing up the middle or coming off the edge as a type of speed rusher.  The only real knock on him, in my opinion, would be his weight at around 215 lbs. He could definitely use some bulking up in the weight room, which I can definitely see happening now that he's on campus.  Also, he's quick but it doesn't have great top speed.  This can hurt him at times in coverage.

2012 Positional Breakdown: Linebacker

As far as defense is concerned, the Linebacker position was arguably the least hit at the end of the 2011 season. The only two players lost to graduation were backups Brandon Herron and J.B. Fitzgerald. All starters return, and there is a lot of depth to back them up the already great talent going out there.

What really makes these players special is the scheme they play within. Defensive coordinator Greg Mattison loves mixing up the look he gives an opposing offense and does a tremendous job of disguising the pressure from Linebackers. It's one of the biggest reasons the Wolverines were able to make that huge jump in defense from 2010 to 2011. They did an incredible job of keeping the offense on its toes and mixing things up.