Photo Credit: 247Sports.com

Inside the Fish Bowl is RSVPing “No”

Posted onAuthorGarrett Fishaw

Though Michigan will host a large and very impressive list of recruits on Saturday for the BBQ at the Big House, there are several top targets on their board that were unable to make it to town. And when you look at when a lot of these players begin school and their football season, as well as the financial commitment, it’s tough for them to make unofficial visits.

For part five of my ITFB 2016 BBQ at the Big House preview, I’m breaking down the latest on a couple of the top commits and targets that are not expected to be in attendance for the BBQ.

Non-Visitors 

Michigan attempted to get some of their top targets on campus to join the stacked visitors list but they were unable to do so with some big names, including the American Heritage duo, a certain Buckeye commit and a name to keep an eye on out of Seattle regardless of this trip.

Slaton was a “maybe” since the BBQ visitors list was starting to be put together. He and his teammate/Michigan commit OL Kai-Leon Herbert were trying to make it up for the event this weekend but, unless something drastic changes at the last minute, will not be in attendance.

As a subtraction from my July BGRC, it may seem like missing this event solidifies my move to remove him from the list. However, the fact that he did indeed try to make it to campus, says a lot. He’s a player that I believe could still very much end up in this class. A source is also feeling even better about those chances, mentioning that talk down in Florida is positive towards UM for the American Heritage standout thanks to Harbaugh’s presence.

While things look to be improving with Michigan and Slaton, the coaching staff has one big hurdle to clear before they will be the heavy favorite.

Slaton recently told 247Sports’ Christopher Stock he’s “looking to play basketball in college” and is looking for schools that give him the opportunity to do that ($). He also mentioned Western Michigan (yes, really) as a team he talks with about the opportunity to play both sports. And Wolverine247’s Steve Lorenz backed up that statement as WMU is a real option thanks to Slaton’s older brother playing on the Broncos’ basketball team ($).

At this point, I think this thing will play itself out. I’m sure some teams, including Michigan, will allow him to sit down with their school’s basketball coaches to talk about his game and (maybe?) the possibility to get a walk-on tryout. However, I would be pretty shocked if Slaton ended up at Western Michigan or another lower level football program just because of basketball.

Even with the elite level names that will be in attendance at the BBQ, there was one name that was as intriguing as any other. And that was Wade’s.

The longtime Ohio State commit was expected to be visiting Ann Arbor for the first time this weekend but, according to multiple reports, he will no longer be making it to campus this weekend. According to MaizenBrew’s Evan Petzold, Wade mentioned having practice and not having transportation as the reasoning. It’s also been reported that he will take an official visit to Michigan for the Wisconsin game on October 1st.

Not getting him on campus hampers Michigan’s chances a bit even though they were already a long shot. According to an OSU source, they don’t think he sticks with the Buckeyes and ends up with Alabama. I’ve been leaning towards the Crimson Tide flipping Wade for a couple weeks now and that source confirmed that feeling even more.

Could Michigan make a move and become a legit option after his official visit? Of course. I’m not completely ruling UM out just yet but it would be a pretty big shocker to see him sign with the Wolverines at this point.

The Michigan commitment wanted to visit for the BBQ but with his school starting today (Friday), he couldn’t make it work. So, don’t read into him not being there too much. He’s firmly committed to Michigan and has pretty much shut down recruiting contact with other schools to prove that and focus on his season season.

And it’s safe to say that his senior season should be dominant:

Though Michigan won’t be hosting these top ranked recruits this weekend, they are still very much in the thick of things for both Slaton and Wade. They also have Solomon as locked up as possible.

If anything changes and any of these guys are able to make it to campus this Saturday, we’ll have the news. So, make sure to stay tuned by checking in on MGoFish all week for the multiple BBQ previews. Follow us on Twitter @MGoFish to make sure you don’t miss a single update.

Photo Credit: 247Sports.com

Garrett Fishaw
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