The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/246097
football recruiting 240-pounder that was more about future potential than current performance. In the subsequent years, McDowell has changed high schools (he played at Detroit Loyola until this summer), added two inches and nearly 60 pounds, and developed himself into an elite-level five-star prospect, the No. 26 overall player in the country and the No. 2 strongside defensive end in the nation. Syracuse was the first program to offer McDowell, in December of his sophomore year. By the time he suited up as a senior, offers from Alabama, LSU, Florida State and USC were on the table, along with a couple dozen others, including every program in the Midwest. Michigan was McDowell's childhood team, and the favorite school of his family, as well. That status gave the Wolverines the inside track, and one that they're hoping not to relinquish. Michigan State has made a push, however, and a 13-1 season in East Lansing — along with an impressive academic presentation — has given the Spartans a chance. McDowell's five official visits were to schools a little farther from home (Florida and Alabama in December, and Florida State, LSU and Ohio State in January), but the decision is expected to boil down to the Wolverines and Spartans. In addition to McDowell, Michigan's coaching staff has sought a running back to close out the 2014 class. Offers to top national prospects Joe Mixon and Leonard Fournette never caught serious traction, seeing the five-stars end up with Oklahoma and LSU, respectively. It seemed U-M would take a pass on the position before new targets popped up at the end of the regular season. Michigan offered Missouri City (Texas) Fort Bend Austin three-star Vic Enwere in November, and while he took an official visit to Ann Arbor in December, the 6-1, 212-pounder chose to stick with his summer commitment to Cal. Enwere's decision may have opened the door to land an even more talented prospect. Minneapolis Washburn four-star Jeff Jones showed at the Under Armour AllAmerica Game that he is deserving of big-time offers. The No. 44 overall player and No. 7 running back in the country displayed power to go along with the agility that everyone already knew he had, and even led his team in receiving in the all-star contest. Shortly after his virtuoso performance at the week of practices in Orlando, Fla., Jones picked up offers from Florida and Michigan. He committed to home-state Minnesota early in the process, but had already been considering other suitors, including Iowa State and Michigan State. The Gators and Wolverines immediately jumped into contention for his services, and Jones scheduled official visits to Gainesville (Jan. 24) and Ann Arbor (Jan. 31). It appears that the trip to Florida isn't a serious threat to his Minnesota pledge, but Michigan stands a real chance to steal him away from the Golden