Michigan Football Recruiting: June is a Crucial Month

Dec 30, 2014; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Former coach Lloyd Carr (left to right) interim athletic director Jim Hackett, new coach Jim Harbaugh and former coach Gary Moeller pose for a group photo after Jim Harbaugh is introduced as the new head football coach of the Michigan Wolverines at Jonge Center. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

One of Jim Harbaugh’s main goals when taking over as the head coach at the University of Michigan was to get people, (mainly recruits) talking about Michigan football. For that reason, this is a crucial month for Michigan football recruiting.

The same way Floyd Mayweather promotes his fights to gain an audience, Harbaugh promotes Michigan football to gain advantages in recruiting. Floyd may not be liked by all the fans and people out there who watch his fights, but he does keep them watching. Harbaugh’s innovative approach to recruiting may rub some the wrong way, but talking about Michigan good or bad keeps them in the minds of recruits. The goal is to get people talking about the product you are trying to sell, and Harbaugh, like Mayweather, has so far mastered this.

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The phrase “choose the university, not the coach” is thrown around a lot when discussing how recruits should approach choosing a school. Most recruits, however, go the route of choosing a school where they have the best relationships with coaches. Although coaches can leave as they please, most young athletes gravitate to whoever makes them feel most comfortable.

Building relationships is vital when it comes to recruiting and Harbaugh is looking to do just that. Camp season is just around the corner for college football teams across the country, but for Michigan, camp season is being taken to another level. The UM coaching staff will be involved in a number of camps around the country during the month of June, which for Harbaugh is another way to become familiar with recruits.

With the subject of satellite camps being tossed around across the college football landscape, every coach has an opinion one way or another. Not all schools/conferences agree that this form of recruiting should be permitted. With the SEC and ACC conferences not being able to participate in satellite camps because of conference rule restrictions, their opinion on the matter is expected. Harbaugh, however, is taking advantage of the loophole which allows coaches to be guest coaches at camps hosted by other Universities.

The satellite camp tour termed “Summer Swarm” will include 9 camps hosted in 7 different states across the country from June 4-12th. The tour will include stops in Texas, California, and Florida among others, states all loaded with top talent. Gaining recruiting pipelines in these areas would be huge for Harbaugh as he strives to get the Wolverines back to national prominence.

Another popular camp Harbaugh will be hosting in Ann Arbor this June is the A4 Aerial Assault. This camp allows for young quarterbacks to spend a day being coached up by former NFL quarterback himself, Jim Harbaugh, and others. Guests will include NFL quarterbacks Colin Kaepernick and Jameis Winston. Other former and current NFL players will also be in attendance. Harbaugh’s NFL connections should help him tremendously on the recruiting trail, which as you can see he is already taking advantage of.

Harbaugh has invited coaches from across the country to attend Exposure U, the name given for a camp held from June 14th-17th in Ann Arbor. The goal of the camp is to teach fundamentals, while giving the campers opportunities to compete and develop. As Harbaugh and staff aggressively attack the summer months of recruiting, getting his type of players on the roster is the number one goal. The first step to getting recruits to attend the University of Michigan is to first get them talking. Getting recruits excited about the direction of the program is imperative for success, and Jim Harbaugh is doing just that.

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