This was a pretty expected commitment as Dukes had all but flat out said he was going to commit in the last few weeks. That being said, it is great news to get a WR on the board. The two kids in the class of 2012 both came on board pretty late in the process and their was some hand wringing about the position in that class. Receiver will be just important in this class as the last, if not more so, so it is great to get one on the board early. Jaron visited a few weeks ago and loved it but did not want to commit right away to make sure he was making the right choice. He had this to say to Ace over at MGoBlog in a recent interview about how his visit went:
I'll tell you what I saw. I saw a love for Michigan. Everybody I talked to loves the university, loves everything about it. They were a family, you could tell there was a bond everywhere you went, you could just feel it. It was just a great place to be. They took me through the facilities, they showed me the field, academic center, athletic center, I talked to the dean, everything—it was just great...the highest point was me starting from the very top of the tunnel, running down the tunnel, jumping, and just walking out onto the field. I went from the 'M' in the center of the field, to end zone, to end zone, and back to the center, and a tear came down my face.Sounds like a kid that loves Michigan. I'll take 85 of those. On to some film breakdown.
Jaron is a big target that can use his height and leaping ability to go get the ball over his defender. This is the type of red zone target OC Al Borges loves. He has big hands that he uses to high point the football away from his body. Dukes has decent but not blazing speed. He reminds me a bit of a taller Junior Hemmingway the way he uses his body to shield the defender and goes up and gets the ball. There isn't much film out there on him. The above is a short reel as it is but then half of it is just pics and info and there isn't much to it, so that's all I've got for now on him.
Dukes' offer sheet was fairly sparse as far as offers go with Illinois and Toledo the only other confirmed offers. According to Dukes himself, he had been hearing from Cincinnati, MSU, ND, and OSU and had been to OSU on a couple of visits as well but none of those schools had extended offers to this point.
Going Forward
As I said above, this is a good sign that there are some skill position kids out there that are feeling Michigan. There had been some grumblings that the coaching staff had done a great job thus far on the lines but had struggled a bit getting skill position players in the fold. I'm not worried. I think this class will add at least one more WR and maybe two. I think Laquon Treadwell will end up in this class and he would be a huge pickup at a position that needs playmakers in a bad way. I think a third commit would have to come from a major recruit and I think the depth chart is attractive enough to land one.
This brings the class to 12 and I think that leaves about 10 more spots to fill. I think those spots will break down something like this: 1 RB, 2 WR, 1 DE, 2 DT, 2 LB, 1 CB, 1 S. I could certainly see the coaches taking another OL instead of a Safety or third WR. With so much of the class already full, the coaches have the luxury of being very selective and slowing things down.
I suppose I should be on the lookout for another commit tonight since we all know that Hoke commits come in pairs. Until then, Go Blue.
Good summary. I don't know much about him except that he has been on the board and comes from Columbus. I feel more comfortable with him now.
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