Michigan and our old coaches over there are really a pain

[Mama_Bull]

I hated losing Tay Odoms to them at the last minute earlier this year.

Now we are mostly in a two team battle with them for his former teammate, Brandin Hawthorne:

Briefing Room Archive

Outside linebacker Brandin Hawthorne has five finalists (Jul8)

ESPN 150 Watch Lister Brandin Hawthorne will choose between South Florida, West Virginia, Michigan, Tennessee and Louisville during an Aug. 30th game against Olive Branch (Miss.) to be televised on ESPN, affiliate Web site InsideTheU.com reports.

Hawthorne will then take official visits to all those schools except South Florida and will travel to Iowa State instead.

Last season, the 6-foot-1, 181-pounder racked up more than 80 tackles, 28 tackles for loss and nine sacks.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/recruiting/tracker/player?page=briefingroom&recruitId=63560

[Ruger7mmmag]

Can't be in too much of a battle if he's not even going to take an official visit here...  Am I missing something or has he already been to USF a few times where he doesn't need to see things?

[Mama_Bull]

USF was the first school to offer him and he's already taken an unofficial visit to USF.

Odoms is the one pushing him to Michigan.

So, Michigan is now leading with USF in second over the other schools.

[Mama_Bull]

Scout $

6/5

From the USF site. Hawthorne says his top five is Michigan, USF, Louisville, Tennesse and West Virginia, in that order. He lsays that he likes everything about Michigan, and will announce during a nationally televised game his team has this year.

http://www.recruitingplanet.com/forum/south-florida-bulls/15076-09-fl-lb-brandin-hawthorne-official-offer.html

[Mama_Bull]

Another Florida kid that we might lose to Rod Smith. He must think he can get more playing time there and likes their helmets. LOL

It's Those Helmets 

  By Allen Wallace

National Recruiting Editor

Posted Jul 10, 2008 

Although safety Mike Jones was born in Pittsburgh, he's lived in Florida half his life. So what makes a kid from the south follow a team from the midwest? "Honestly, I just liked their helmets when I was smaller," Jones said. "That's what I first noticed about them. With me, distance doesn't matter. All of the Florida schools are really stacked and I'm hoping to play early..."

Mike Jones, the 6-foot-2.5, 200-pound three-star strong safety from Edgewater High School in Orlando, Fla., has seven scholarship offers and now favors Michigan slightly over Notre Dame, Auburn, Kentucky and South Florida. All have offered, except the Irish.

Jones recently visited both Michigan and Notre Dame and admits he's always been a fan of the Wolverines. "I love Michigan," he said. "They have like 110,000 fans come to their games. It's a big tradition school and I like that.

"I also like coach Rich Rodriguez and like the new faster-pace offense he's gonna run," Jones said. "I think it'll be good for them."

Jones is being recruited by Wolverines quarterbacks coach Rod Smith. "He's always writing me letters and really wants me to go to Michigan," he said. "He says that I'd be a perfect fit for them and that they need guys like me."

Although Jones was born in Pittsburgh, he's lived in Florida half his life. So, what makes a kid from the south follow a team from the midwest? "Honestly, I just liked their helmets when I was smaller," he said. "That's what I first noticed about them."

He says that the distance will not be a factor. "With me, distance doesn't matter," he said. "All of the Florida schools are really stacked and I'm hoping to play early. Florida State is recruiting me a little and coach Randy Shannon (from Miami) called my coach, but that's about it."

Although the Irish haven't offered Jones yet, he says he believes they will. "Coach Corwin Brown says he likes my style and thinks they'll offer me," he said.

"I love that Notre Dame is a prestigious school," Jones said. "Their facilities are the best in the country and the campus is amazing. It's felt like I was at a Harvard or something like that.

"Notre Dame also had a really good recruiting class, so I think they'll be getting a lot better over the next few years," he said.

The only camp that Jones had a chance to attend was Auburn's and he says the Tigers were his first offer as well. "It's a real nice place," he said. "I like (defensive end) coach Terry Price. He's cool. He's a hard dude, but is smart and knows how to have fun too. He also likes to talk to his players about life and stuff and not just football."

Jones, ranked as the No. 30 strong safety in the country by Scout.com, also has offers from North Carolina and Wake Forest.

"I was thinking about committing during the season," he said. "Probably like around the fourth or fifth week. Hopefully, by that time I'll have taken a few official visits and can make up my mind."

Jones only played in five games last season due to a separated right shoulder, but still had 56 tackles, eight sacks and four caused fumbles. He benches 305-pounds and has a 36-inch vertical jump.

"I'm a hitter," Jones said. "I hit real hard and I've got good speed. I react to the ball real quick and have great instincts."

He admits he wants to improve on his covering skills. "I'd like to work on my footwork and steps."

Jones says he wants to be a business major and reports a 3.2 core GPA and a 910 SAT.

http://recruiting.scout.com/2/768382.html