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Coffee House: A Journal From Covering Recruiting During The Pandemic

I made my way to New England last week to see several Michigan commits and targets despite the ongoing pandemic.

Here is my journal from my experience.

Michigan has recruited New England hard over the last few cycles.
Michigan has recruited New England hard over the last few cycles.
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7:30 A.M. — Wake Up

As a recruiting reporter, my hours may be a little different than yours (the reader). Most recruiting news happens in the afternoon and at night, which works out perfectly for me. Adults always tell kids that the older they get the easier it will be to wake up early. Hey kids, that’s not true. Waking up early sucks. I love my job because my usual hours are 11 a.m. - 2 a.m. and I get to work from home/travel the country. When it comes to the latter, though, early morning flights are always the cheapest, and therefore, I have to get my ass out of bed.

8:30 A.M. — Getting to O’Hare

This is the first time I’ve traveled since February 24 when I went to Pylon Las Vegas. The pandemic has completely ruined what I do best — go out on the road and develop relationships. That’s what sets me apart from what I like to call couch potato reporters. We’ll get into that later. For now I have to jump in my Uber.

I was actually a bit concerned that I wouldn’t be able to catch a ride to the airport because of, well, social distancing. But my Uber driver is happy to pick me up. He explains that he is happy to have work and will let ‘the nerds from high school’ figure out what to do with the virus. He has to make money.

It’s an unusually short trip to the airport. No morning traffic in Chicago because nobody is going to work. O’Hare, which is always full of people, looks pretty desolate. The TSA, which is usually full of barking employees that have a thirst for power, don’t really seem like they care. It's weird, to say the least.

Security is a breeze. They didn’t even ask me to remove my hat or pat me down. The line of five people is a little slow, though, because we have to put our stuff in the bins six feet apart. But other than that, this is smooth sailing.

9:00 A.M. — Preparing For The Flight

I wanted my trip to Boston to be a surprise, so as much as I wanted to tweet about, I didn’t. It was actually kind of random how it all came together. I talked to Paul Zinter, father of Zak Zinter and Preston Zinter, a few weeks ago and told him I wanted to go out to Boston soon.

I fully intended on going this spring. In fact, I usually his around 40 school in April and May. It seems like The Fort is pretty happy with my work, but Michigan fans haven’t seen me at full strength. Last year was a transition year to the new job. And this year has been completely thrown off course by the pandemic.

Anyway, after I talked to Paul, I talked to Mark Martin, father of Tyler Martin, and finally Michael Hansen, father of Louis Hansen. Both told me they would help me setup a workout if I came out to Boston. After a week of thinking about, I said let’s just do it! I couldn’t handle sitting in the house anymore, and if parents were cool with me coming out, then I was all for it.

The line at Starbucks is massive, but I really need some coffee to get through the morning so I wait. People give me the side eye when I take off my mask and drink my frappe, but what am I supposed to do? Drink through my mask?

9:40 A.M. —The Flight

People have asked me about my flight experience. Well, it really wasn’t bad. I was on a small plane to Boston, and it was pretty empty. I got my own row, so it was much more comfortable than usual. I can never sleep on planes, so I tried to kill time by typing up some stories for future days. But that always proves to be difficult with no wi-fi. Airlines charge like $20 an hour, and it’s slow as molasses — not a great word choice for my trip (look up the Boston Molassacre).

My M.O. has always been to see kids live. It’s a true disservice to kids if I don’t do my best to see them in-person. It’s also a disservice to the readers. If I’m going to talk about kids, I damn sure need to be familiar with not only their recruitments, but their abilities on the field. Going out and spending time with kids and their families is the best way of accomplishing both. You can’t just rely on program sources and phone interviews.

There are so many lazy people in this industry. It’s absolutely absurd that the Michigan reporter travels more than basically everyone else. If I were in charge of the rankings, I would basically live in an RV in the spring and at the airport in fall. I hit more than 50 games in my last year covering Texas and close to 40 in my transition year.

I feel like I think about this so much when I fly. I saw something elsewhere on the Internet that said I don’t care about the kids or Michigan and that all I care about is my personal brand. Look, you can call me arrogant, say I’m a Twitter troll, etc. but don’t say I don’t care about these kids. Sometimes, I feel like I get too close to them and their families. I’m a first generation college student that grew up in a household with a combined 50K annual income. I grew up in the same situation as a lot of these kids. I really want them to succeed, and I want to play a small role in helping them do so.

1:40 P.M. — Boston

They teach kids to form a single file line in kindergarten. Yet, adults can’t wait their turn and do this when getting off planes. Despite the small numbers on the flight, it never fails. What’s the point of standing up in Row 23 and trying to fight your way off the plane? I’ll never understand it.

I always rent a car wen I travel, but Michael Hansen offers to pick me up and take me to the field and to his house for an in-depth interview with Louis afterwards. I contemplate if this is crossing the recruiting reporter line, but Michael is more of a friend now, so I don’t really care.

When I came to Boston last fall, I met Michael for breakfast and of course, I broke the Louis to Michigan commitment news because of our relationship. We talk once a week, so I feel comfortable with it. Michael is one of the best dudes you’ll ever meet. He’s genuinely a great guy and an awesome dad to Louis. Plus, I enjoy his thick Boston accent lol.

We have an hour before the workout, and we pick up lunch at Comella’s. If you travel to Boston, make sure to get the Italian sausage sandwich. It’s out of this world. We chop it up about life — my wife working to get into medical school, his new house, managing his properties and half joking about me moving to Boston because Michigan recruits in New England so much.

And yes, we talk a lot about Michigan. I can’t give you all the details. But I can tell you that Michael couldn’t stop raving about Don Brown and Sherrone Moore. Michael tells me about Moore’s family approach, which we’ve talked about a lot, as well as Moore sharing photos of his new child.

I tell him that Moore is the best recruiter on staff. He’s truly a rising star on the recruiting trail. I tell him that Ed Warinner is next on my list. Both of those dudes work their ass off. ‘Did you know Warinner watches like three full game films before he offers an offensive lineman?,’ I say. They put in the work, and it shows.

2:45 P.M — Almost Workout

Both Michael and Mark Martin helped me set up the workout. They helped invite the kids, and Michael secured the field location, which is at St. Sebastian’s, where Louis goes to high school. I also invited some underclassmen with Michigan offers like Ismael Zamor, Sully Weidman and Joenel Aguero. Nobody seems to know anything about Aguero, but I tell Michael that I’ve heard he’s a phenom.

As we’re about to pull up to the parking lot, Mark sends us a group text. He and Tyler got stuck out by Cape Cod and can’t make it. I start to get a little nervous. Stu Coman foots the bill for travel and won’t be pleased if I don’t see anyone on my trip. The field looks bleak, too.

The only person out there is Northwestern linebacker Blake Gallagher, who played at St. Sebastian’s and just randomly happens to be there. I joke with Michael that Tyler Martin already looks bigger than Blake. By the way, I do think Martin can have a Gallagher like impact at Michigan if he sides with the Wolverines.

Louis pulls up in his own car. He had just wrapped up a virtual meeting with Michigan’s nutrition program. Soon after, Dale and Kalel Mullings roll in. Paul pulls in with Zak and Preston. Then kids just start flooding the field. My nerves are gone. It’s going to be a good day.

Zak catches my attention immediately. I saw him last fall and said that I thought he was a Top 100 player but man, he just looks so physically impressive. No doubt in my mind he’s going to be an early round NFL Draft pick under Warinner. Kalel is Kalel. I do a formal interview with him, and he’s all smiles. Love this kid. Extremely smart, great football player and just a genuinely great human. He’s going to be an ambassador for Michigan on and off the field.

Right before we get started, a St. Sebastian’s official comes over the field. None of us are wearing masks. He says a neighbor called and complained. There aren’t houses by the school, so we’re confused. Anyway, he kicks us off the field, and we have to improves. Louis tells everybody to go to the next school down the street — Roxbury Latin.

3:30 P.M. — New Field

Roxbury Latin is only a few miles away from St. Sebs. On the way, I tell Michael that I can’t wait to see Michigan defensive line commit TJ Guy. Nobody has every seen him, and he looked great on the hoof when he walked onto the field. 'Guy could be the steal of the class,' I say. He’s only been playing for three years and plays all five spots for his high school basketball team. I just need to see him do something.

We arrive at Roxbury Latin. I joke with Louis and say ‘I though you ran St. Sebastian’s!?’ He rolls his eyes and says it would have been different if he played hockey. Being from Texas, that’s wild to me. Football is life there. Here, kids are just excited that one Rivals reporter is coming to watch them work out. I love coming to places like Boston and am glad I took the Michigan job because it’s a true national beat. I want to cover kids across the country and do my best to give them the pub they deserve.

We can’t find a way into Roxbury Latin because the entire campus is gated. I joke that I’ve jumped many fences getting into spring practices in Texas, where high school stadiums are basically fortresses. In Boston, they don’t even have bleachers. We finally find a side entrance. The show goes on.

4:00 P.M. — The Workout

In Texas, trainers and private coaches run workouts. There are a ton of them battling to work with top kids in different parts of the state. Even in Chicago, there are quality trainers running workouts. Here, Louis takes charge. Again, this is crazy to me. These New England kids have so much potential. They are getting nowhere near the year round rigorous coaching and training that kids in other parts of the country get.

While the skill guys warm up, Guy does some 1-on-1’s with Weidman. And man, he looks like an absolute beast. I know it’s such a small and rough setting, but I’ve seen what I’ve needed to see from Guy. He’s a lot further along than I though he was, and he has the size and athleticism to be a force upfront. He IS going to be the steal of the class.

Louis is terrific. He’s faster than the last time I saw him and such a natural pass catcher. Casey Phinney is also out there. This isn’t really, his setting, though. He struggles covering Louis through the workout, but I love the effort. To get a true appreciation for Phinney, you have to see him in-game, which I did last fall. He’s a true thumper in the middle and an old-school run stuffing linebacker. Guy jumps in and covers Louis, and everybody is wowed. His speed at that size… sheesh.

That Aguero kid I mentioned earlier is going to be a Top 100 recruit. He was one of the stars of the workout. Expect him to be a huge target for Michigan in a few years.

Guy and Phinney spend some time talking about rankings and how they didn’t do any camps. I feel bad for them. Kids really were stripped of so many opportunities this offseason. This whole thing just sucks.

The workout is winding down with some goal line work when a Roxbury Latin official comes and kicks us off. Louis pleads for one more rep. He obliges and then tells us to go home. Louis runs a perfect route and makes a jump ball catch in the end zone. He’s going to be a great one for U-M.

6:00 P.M. — Dinner At The Hansen’s

I try to meet families when I travel, so I gladly accepted Michael’s invitation for dinner, where I meet his mother and brother for the first time. Such a great family. Despite still being full from the Italian sandwich, I enjoy a big bowl of Boston clam chowder. I’ve wanted to try an authentic chowder forever, and Michael came through. Big shoutout to him.

Louis and I spend most of the dinner chatting while I upload the day’s content on my computer. We talk about Junior Colson and Drew Kendall and the chances of them jumping onboard. Michael asks me to tell some recruiting stories, so I tell them about one high profile kid that hosted three schools in a hotel room in one day with an ‘agent’ for his ‘in-home visits.’ They laugh and can’t believe it. Michael mentions that Michigan did everything the right way in their recruitment. I say I agree. Despite the craziness of recruiting, Michigan does seem to stick to their moral code.

Michael also asks about rankings. I hate talking about this topic. It just makes me so mad. I talk about the politics of it and the couch potato reports and say that while I’m not claiming to be a great evaluator, I do my best to see kids and provide rankings insight to The Wolverine. That’s all I can do.

Louis tells me he has notifications set for me on Twitter. His phone is currently shattered, though, because he dropped a weight on it. I tell him I tweet too much and laugh about it. I do play too much on Twitter. To me, it’s all fun. My wife researches cancer cells for a living. I just write about recruits. While I want to be the best at what I do, I think people often mistake my trolling for arrogance. Trust me, to me this is all just fun.

I didn’t tell this story at dinner, but once, I trolled Steve Wiltfong for changing his Crystal Ball last minute while I stayed steady on mine. Steve confronted me in February. I told Steve ‘it’s just Twitter.’ And it’s true. It means nothing, at least to me. I went on to tell him that I respected him and thought he worked really hard, which I honestly do. I hated a lot of things about my previous employer. Steve was always a good guy to me, though. But that doesn’t mean he’s safe from the troll lol.

Anyway, I go upstairs with Louis to film a Q&A with him, and somehow Michigan quarterback commit JJ McCarthy becomes a topic of discussion. Louis says everyone is laughing at JJ in the commit group text because girls are all over him on social media. I find it amusing. I tell him that he should get to know JJ more. Both are great kids and two of my favorites in the class. Louis says he might go to Arizona to workout with JJ. And I tell I’ll be there if he does.

‘JJ is a great’ quarterback is the test line to see if the mic on the camera is working. He really is. I can’t wait to see him and Louis at Michigan. I’m always going to root for those two kids.

8:30 P.M. — Winding Down

I tell the Hansen family that I’ll catch an Uber to the hotel, but Michael and Louis insist on driving me there. Louis drives, which is funny because sometimes, you forget these recruits are just kids. Louis, this 6-foot-5 manchild, is still new to being behind the wheel. Michael scolds him while backing out and then a car in front of us almost runs over a fox.

Michael also demands that we use the car GPS. Louis calls him old. I don’t disagree. Who uses the car GPS? Sorry, Michael.

I ask Louis if any schools are still recruiting him. He says he hardly checks his messages on social media but that Michigan State sent him one saying he’d look better in green, which we laugh about. Michael shows me a text from a school that sent a message dissing Jim Harbaugh and his open letter. He shows me more messages. Man, that school really loves to negative recruit…

I arrive at the hotel and have to put my mask back on. I feel like I’m the only guest. It’s a pretty eerie feeling. I have an early morning flight and go through a similar process at O’Hare, so I won’t bore you with the details. But my flight is definitely more full, and there are people all around me.

Overall, it was a short but productive trip. I felt like I got some great content out of it, and the time I spent with the Hansens will be something I’ll always remember. The relationships I build cover recruiting are forever.

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