Michigan's Targets In The 2014 Scout75

So far, Scout has compiled a list of the Top 75 players in the country for the 2014 recruiting class and Michigan's targets have placed pretty well in them.  There's no doubt that there will be numerous updates both to the players on the list and players that do not appear before the recruits arrive on campus, but it does start to give us a sense of how Michigan's recruiting is going in 2014 and how Michigan's class might finish.


I don't think this list is perfect by any means and there are some areas that I really think are flawed, but I do think it's worth the time to go through these rankings and analyze the results.  I have generally found that ESPN's basketball recruiting coverage has been the best of all the major recruiting services, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't look at Scout's rankings.  They might look at a player differently that sheds some light on their true talent level.  Even though ESPN is the best, at least in my opinion, they are just one service.  There can be a lot of bias involved, not that I'm accusing anybody, especially with just one service.  To me, this is the most logical reason for using multiple lists.  

Breaking Down Michigan's Spot In Scout 300 List

Over the past few weeks, we have been breaking down the class rankings from the major recruiting services.  We have already done ESPN, Rivals, and 247Sports, so now it's finally time to break down Scout.  I would go into breakdowns of each recruit as we did in our 247Sports post, but it's kind of pointless since we did that post less than a week ago.  If you want to find out more info about each recruit than listed, I suggest either checking out the 247Sports post linked above, or check out our Football Recruiting page.


So let's get into Scout's list of the Top 300 players in the country for the 2013 recruiting class.  As usual, there were a few rankings that made little sense, but there were also some that seemed to fit pretty logically.  Along with this, there were plenty of players that were pretty clearly over or underrated both of Michigan's commits and recruits on other teams or uncommitted.  Regardless, let's just look at the rankings and see how Michigan's commits and targets placed:

Scout's 2013 Rankings Hurt Michigan

As I wrote about earlier, Michigan's 2013 basketball recruiting class has been receiving a lot of love from the recruiting services.  ESPN has ranked the class #2 in the nation and as the best in the Big Ten.  Scout has expressed a similar sentiment, but not quite as positive.  Scout has put Michigan's 2013 class as #6 in the nation, but as only the 3rd best in the Big Ten, behind Purdue and Indiana.

I'm not one that claims Michigan's recruits are always underrated like many analysts seem to do, but I would like to point out the differences between ESPN and Scout's rankings.  ESPN's basketball coverage has almost always been superior to Rivals and Scout, so I tend to lean towards their rankings, but that's not the only reason I think ESPN's rankings are more accurate for Michigan's 2013 recruiting class.

Wide Receiver Jehu Chesson Commits To Michigan

Today, Jehu Chesson from St. Louis, committed to the Wolverines to become #24 in the 2012 recruiting class.  This is a big pick-up for Michigan primarily because the team was in need of another wide receiver.  Brady Hoke has commented several times that the class would probably be around 26 commitments.  However, with several wide receivers graduating this season and many of the current players being upperclassmen, gaining at least two wide receiver commitments was crucial for long-term success.

Chesson is rated as a three star prospect by Rivals and Scout and is rated anywhere from #82 to #89 at his position across the country.  Basically, this means that he's a solid recruit, but not one that is going to "change" the entire team's dynamic the minute he walks on campus.  Scout says he's "tall and lanky," but needs to bulk up to become a true impact player.  If a recruit has a down-side, size may be the problem most coaches and fans would want because a recruit typically gains significant weight through training camp and their first season, effectively removing the "problem."

With the current depth at wide receiver, Chesson will have some time to develop under experienced players without being forced to contribute the day he walks on campus, which is always an advantage.  It's great to have a player who can make a difference and build game-experience quickly, but it can also be helpful if the player can avoid the limelight in their development, at least for a short-time.  Players like Roundtree, Gallon, and Stonum will be back next year, giving Chesson at least a full season where he could play off the bench or potentially red-shirt, although I doubt that will happen simply because there is some depth concerns at the position.

From all the information he seems to be a very tough and competitive player, which are some of the key aspects Brady Hoke is trying to build into this team.  It is pretty unlikely he'll get significant playing time next year without some injuries to other players, but I think there is a great possibility he will play a decent amount of time and make a few solid plays.  He is a great addition to this recruiting class and will help secure a position that was a big need for this class.  With two wide receivers commitments (the other being four star Amara Darboh), this class is nearing completion, bringing one of the best groups to campus next fall Ann Arbor has seen in a long time.  There are sure to be some huge expectations for this class and players like Chesson.

Photo Credit: Rivals