It was a pivotal moment on Saturday. Michigan football was down only a touchdown, despite rival MSU being able to drive the field with regularity. But the offense couldn’t get much of anything going and the Battle for the Paul Bunyan Trophy had the appearance that it was going to go the Spartans’ way.
But then head coach Sherrone Moore issued a challenge to the offensive line on the sideline, telling them they weren’t playing up to the Wolverines’ standard. From there, the offense drove the field and scored a touchdown. Then, the defense got a turnover, and special teams managed a field goal. On the first possession in the second half, the offense drove the field again, and what was a seven-point deficit was all of a sudden a 10-point lead.
Center Greg Crippen wasn’t surprised at Moore’s motivational tactics, but he said that it did help fire them up and whip the offensive line (and offense) back into shape.
“It’s a normal thing, just trying to find something, just help us lock back in,” Crippen said. “And not overthink things, just play as hard as we can. Plus, he’s a great coach, helps us do that, and after that, we scored a touchdown.”
It’s a much more difficult task awaiting, with the No. 1 and undefeated Oregon Ducks coming to town. So what does the offensive line need to do in order to set a tone and help the maize and blue shock those who don’t see them as having much of a chance?
As Crippen notes, it’s all about getting back to their roots.
“Physicality. I think being more physical,” Crippen said. “We’re definitely physical, I think it’s just the mindset of not trying to think too much, or just going out there and just trying to hit someone as hard as you can. I know we’re super like physical people, and I have 100% belief we’re gonna go out there and do that.”
It will certainly be a challenge. Oregon enters the game with the No. 12 defense in the country and has the nation’s No. 25 pass rush according to PFF.
It’s unclear whether or not Jordan Burch, the star pass rusher that’s been out the past three weeks after sustaining an injury during practice before playing Ohio State, will return, but regardless, Crippen sees the challenge and feels like the Wolverine offensive line will rise to the occasion.
“Yeah, they’re good players,” Crippen said. “They’re good players, and they play hard. And I think they’re good players, I think our game plan, just like things that we see on tape, is we’re gonna prepare for whatever they do. We’re gonna be ready for it”
It’s a fierce battle for that and a couple of other spots on the O-line. #GoBlue
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — This is certainly not the timeline that Greg Crippen envisioned when he flipped from Notre Dame to Michigan football in March 2020.
The former Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy four-star center had likely envisioned that he would join his former high school quarterback in J.J. McCarthy, and after a year or so, he would be handing him the ball on every play. Crippen sat his first year behind team captain Andrew Vastardis, and though it looked like he could come in his sophomore year, the Wolverines brought in transfer Olu Oluwatimi to take over the role. It was a good move, given that Olu, a team captain, won the Rimington and Outland trophies.
But certainly, 2023 would be the year, right? Again, Michigan dipped into the transfer portal, with Drake Nugent, another former team captain, vying for the role in his first year in a winged helmet. The duo are battling for that starting center spot and it hasn’t yet been decided — or, at least it hasn’t been announced to the players.
As far as Crippen sees it, it’s a healthy competition, bolstered by the fact that the two are rooting for the other as they compete against each other.
“We’re both very competitive people. And we’re both great players. And we’re both going out there to try to be the best we can every day,” Crippen said. “We’re both very close off the field, too, and we talk a lot. And he’s a great guy.”
There’s no sour grapes for Crippen here. While this can’t have been the trajectory he envisioned with continuously arriving competition coming in from other schools, he was already well aware that Michigan is going to lure the best of the best.
If anything, it’s helped him dig deeper, because if he wants to earn the job, he really has to earn it — it’s not going to be given to him.
“Michigan is a very competitive place. And it’s the best school in the country and the world,” Crippen said. “And we’re gonna go out there, I’m gonna go out there and give it (everything I’ve got) because I’m a very competitive person. And just always preparing and always ready to give it everything I’ve got every play.”
Fans will get an opportunity to learn who the starting center is, at least for Week 1, when the Wolverines host East Carolina on Saturday for the 2023 season opener. Kick off will be at noon EDT and the game will be streamed live on Peacock.
A full roundup of recruiting evaluations, facts, stats, film and everything else covering Michigan football’s signed 2021 class.
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It wasn’t a perfect signing day for Michigan football, as there were a few unhappy surprises, and a big great one — as well as a couple of smaller ones — so it was mostly good for the Wolverines. It took a minute for the letters of intent to start rolling in, but once they did, they came in with regularity.
We scoured the main sites for breakdowns and intel on all of Michigan football’s newest members, including the new bios from the program itself. Here’s everything you need to know about Michigan football’s 2021 recruiting class, in order of their signing.
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Dominick Giudice
Welcome to Michigan, Dominick Giudice ! 〽️ @dom_giudice27 hails from Freehold, New Jersey and played all along the defensive line and offensive tackle in high school.
Prep
• Attended Mater Dei High School (2021) coached by Dino Mangiero
• Helped Mater Dei finish as the state runner-up after reaching the championship game as a junior
• Played all along the defensive line and offensive tackle in high school
• Selected to the Mater Dei Prep All-Decade Team (2010-19) on defense
Key Statistics
• Credited with 46 tackles, seven tackles for loss, six sacks and 42 quarterback pressures as a senior
• Totaled 43 tackles for loss and 24 sacks as a junior – total was No. 1 in New Jersey and ranked 11th nationally
Honors and Rankings
• Earned a 247Sports Composite ranking of three stars; the No. 1,958 overall player nationally, the No. 100 weakside defensive end and the No. 42 player in the state of New Jersey
• Three-star prospect according to 247Sports; the No. 111 defensive end nationally and the No. 43 player in the state of New Jersey
• Rated as a three-star prospect by ESPN, the No. 179 defensive end and the No. 35 player in the state of New Jersey
• Rivals.com two-star prospect
• First team All-New Jersey Defensive pick by USA Today as a senior
• Named the division’s Co-Defensive Player of the Year as a senior; first team defense All-Division selection
• Earned Jersey Sports Zone All-Zone Team as a junior and senior
Personal
• Dominick Giudice was born Sept. 12, 2002
• Son of Anthony and Maryann Giudice
He plays with a relentless motor and has shown improvement with the way he uses his hands. Giudice doesn’t bend all that well, and a clear lack of athleticism prevents him from going higher in my ranking. He also needs to work on his get off. Giudice fits the cliché billing as a lunch pail recruit with a chip on his shoulder. Overall, you’re getting a big, strong, mean kid that lacks athleticism but will be the hardest worker in the room.
Giudice has said that the coaches plan to play him at the anchor position, which I agree matches his skillset the best right now. He doesn’t have the athleticism to be a pure pass rusher on the weakside, but can definitely take on tight ends and clog up running lanes. However, I think that eventually he’ll pack on 20 or 30 more pounds and slide inside to be a three-tech, where his pass rush skills will be more valuable.
2021 Outlook: Giudice is an underrated recruit, but does have some upside. At 6-4, 250 pounds, he has the type of frame and athletic ability that will serve him well at the defensive end position. He’s also been described as a kid who is moving fast at all times, making it difficult for offensive lineman to keep him in check. It’s unlikely that Guidice will become an impact player in year one, but the upside is definitely there for him to become one at some point.
A former Notre Dame commit, IMG Academy center Greg Crippen makes his pledge to Michigan football official.
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Ratings
Stars
Overall
Position
State
247Sports
3
–
7
77
Rivals
4
163
8
26
ESPN
4
297
15
46
247Sports Composite
4
275
6
39
Vitals
Hometown
Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy
Projected Position
Offensive Center
Height
6-foot-4
Weight
285-pounds
Recruitment
Originally hailing from Milton, Massachusetts, Crippen found himself at the prestigious IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.
Once a Notre Dame commit, when Crippen decommitted in early March 2020, it seemed all but destined that he would end up a Wolverine. He pulled the trigger on March 24, and remained solid in his pledge — one that became even stronger with fellow commitment J.J. McCarthy becoming an Ascender.
Readiness Level
With unknowns at center for Michigan football next season, Crippen could insert himself into the competition and be a day one player.
The Wolverines QB commit is set to make his debut at the high school powerhouse. He shares how he earned the team’s respect.
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On Friday, Sept. 4, for the first time, J.J. McCarthy will be out on the field, leading the prestigious IMG Academy as its starting quarterback in a game.
The longtime Michigan commit transferred this offseason from Nazareth Academy in Illinois, where he was the lone five-star — not just in his high school, but in the state.
Meanwhile, while McCarthy was a big fish in a small pond in La Grange Park (IL), at IMG Academy in Bradenton (FL), despite being a five-star, he isn’t even the top-ranked player on his team. In his class, 2021, he’s one of three five-stars, and there’s another in 2022, according to the 247Sports Composite.
Beyond that, there are 11 Ascenders ranked in the Top247 between the 2021-22 classes, and others — such as fellow Michigan commit Greg Crippen — who are rated four-stars but not in the first 247 spots of the rankings.
So to arrive on campus and take over the most prominent position on the field, it was going to take a little more than cache — though that certainly helps.
The thing about McCarthy, however, is that he’s willing to go in and do the work. The stars mean nothing to him. But, being one of the most visible high school senior quarterbacks in the country, he used that as a starting point to earn the respect of his teammates.
But to fully earn their respect, he was determined to prove that he deserves it.
“It’s one of those things where you come in there – I mean, the rankings do a lot for you,” McCarthy told WolverinesWire. “I came in, they gave me a little respect coming in, and other players respect me for that. But it was what I did once I was there and how down to earth I am. I’m always never above anyone else, so that’s what got me the total respect of my teammates and my coaches.”
At 8 p.m. on Friday evening, as the Ascenders take on the Venice Indians, all of that offseason hard work will finally come to the forefront.
Though all eyes will certainly be on McCarthy and first-year IMG Academy head coach Bobby Acosta, others like fellow five-stars JC Latham (OL, committed to Alabama) and Lovesea Carroll (RB, committed to Georgia) will also look to shine on one of high school football’s brightest stages.
You’d think with so many top-rated players, that egos would rule supreme. But according to McCarthy, it’s quite the opposite. It’s a team rife with hunger, eager to prove themselves.
As McCarthy sees it, despite all the accolades, none of them have truly done anything. Thus, they have to earn whatever is given to them.
“Being around all the talent and five-stars – yeah, there’s a couple players here and there that talk about it – but nobody ever really talks about it, because we’re all focused on one goal and focused on winning week-by-week,” McCarthy said. “We all realize the potential that’s in front of us and the potential within us. We’re not gonna let a couple stars tell where we’re gonna go in life. We all just want to exceed all those expectations, exceed what people are thinking of us right and do so much better. And that kind of brings us all together and makes it really easy to be the quarterback of this team. Because no one looks at me – I can’t say that no one has that same perspective in Illinois, where it’s very uncommon for the five-stars to be in that area.”
Michigan connection
2021 IMG Academy four-star OC Greg Crippen
When McCarthy made his way down to Bradenton this offseason, he was immediately greeted by a familiar face: fellow Michigan commit Greg Crippen, the four-star center.
Crippen has been at IMG Academy for some time, and to have a friendly in his corner was certainly to McCarthy’s advantage. But there’s another advantage: the two can get on the same page now, a full year before they get to work in Ann Arbor.
It’s the second-time we’ve seen an interior offensive line-quarterback combo go from IMG Academy to Michigan, with Cesar Ruiz and Shea Patterson preceding McCarthy and Crippen. But Patterson’s route to Ann Arbor was a little circuitous, with the former five-star spending two years at Ole Miss before transferring to the Wolverines. The intention is for Crippen and McCarthy to have full careers together at the college-level, so building a bond now sets the stage for the immediate future.
And that’s precisely what the duo are doing, McCarthy says.
“Being with Greg for the past month and a half now, almost two, it’s been eye-opening with how similar we are and the type of mold Michigan is trying to bring in,” McCarthy said. “Being with him, we’ve already grown so much together and we’re talking ball together. We’re like best buddies. We’re best friends. He can come to me with anything and I can come to him with anything. He’s the best. He’s the absolute man. I’ve been around a couple people with the same sort of attitude he has. This kid has been at IMG for almost four years and he’s doing everything humanly possible to make sure he improves and gets better to live up to those expectations he has for himself and his team. So just being with him and just understanding his mindset is something that is so beneficial going into Michigan.”
But IMG opens more doors to McCarthy’s future teammates than just those in West Florida.
On Sept. 25, the Ascenders will travel to Brentwood (TN) to take on Ravenwood, home of four-star linebacker Junior Colson, also a Michigan pledge.
The two speak often on social media, but have never met in person. Colson told WolverinesWire that, considering he’s featured in a lot of blitz packages, if he sees an open lane to his future quarterback, he’ll hold up a bit as to not injure his soon-to-be teammate.
McCarthy doesn’t want to hear that. In fact, he wants to know more about the hype — or, rather, he wants to feel why Colson is hyped, from a physical perspective.
“Man, if I don’t feel it when he hits me, I’m gonna be very disappointed in him!” McCarthy said. “As long as he doesn’t go for my legs, I better feel something from him. I wanna know! This is football, this is football – I want him to hit me! I want him to get that and show out.
“Once we get to Michigan and he’s on the defense, he’s gonna be coming. So I want him to get out there and just play ball and whatever he needs to do. But it’s been awesome meeting him, because we’ve been Snapchatting all the time and he just seems like such a great kid and I can’t wait to just meet him and just talk and build that relationship from the start and build it so early that once we go into Michigan, we’ll be buds for life.”
IMG Academy’s Friday night game against Venice can be seen nationally on ESPN U at 8 p.m.
Why the Wolverines landed the four-star interior offensive lineman, who he’s recruiting and much more.
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After nearly a year sitting tight with just two commitments in the 2021 class, the Wolverines finally got commit No. 3 on March 25, with Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy four-star interior offensive lineman Greg Crippen pledging to the maize and blue.
Crippen was a long-time Notre Dame commitment, but kept in touch with Michigan throughout the process.
But given that Crippen, of course, didn’t originally get his start at the all-star team at IMG Academy, he already had some connections with the maize and blue, as he spent his first few years at the high school level at Milton Academy in Massachusetts.
If that sounds familiar, that’s because that’s the same school that produced 2020 Michigan signee Kalel Mullings.
So why was flipping from the Fighting Irish to the Wolverines the choice? Crippen explained to WolverinesWire what made going to school in Ann Arbor so intriguing.
“Michigan was my first offer and they never stopped recruiting me hard,” Crippen said. “(I was lured by) the Massachusetts connections with other players and Coach Brown, too.
“Also, Michigan is now more of a passing team. I feel my strengths are pass blocking and moving in space. (The feel of the game) will show more of my skill set.”
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When he gets to campus, Crippen intends to be a business major, but as far as positionally, it’ll be a wait-and-see approach.
As of current, Michigan has two commitments in 2021 that could both play center between Crippen and latest verbal commit, Detroit (MI) Cass Tech four-star Raheem Anderson.
Though he played center last year and anticipates that will continue in 2020 for IMG Academy, Crippen anticipates coming to Ann Arbor with an open mind and simply doing what’s best for the team.
“I feel (like I) will fit (wherever they put me),” Crippen said. “I will work hard every day, I will do what I am told. I will play and learn whatever they ask.
“I played freshman and sophomore year at right and left guard. Last year at center and probably this year at center. My mindset is to be as versatile as possible. I just want to play and help my teammates.”
If you follow along with recruiting on social media, then there’s been a common thread when it comes to the 2021 class.
The major targets often find their tweets quote-tweeted or responded to by either J.J. McCarthy or Giovanni El-Hadi — the two pledges who have been committed to the program since early-to-mid 2019. But as of late, Crippen has joined them, working to lure some of the nation’s top prospects to Ann Arbor.
He shared his strategy as far as how he approaches recruiting as well as who he’s targeting.
“I would like to keep the Massachusetts to Michigan (pipeline) going,” Crippen said. “(I’m recruiting) Drew Kendall (and) talking with and David Davidkov a little. Also JC Latham.”
The aforementioned Kendall is another interior offensive lineman from Massachusetts and one that Michigan has been targeting for some time. Rated a four-star at No. 71 overall by 247Sports, he remains one of the maize and blue’s top targets in 2021. Davidkov is a four-star offensive tackle from Illinois, rated No. 59 overall.
But Latham is a different story.
He’s a fellow offensive lineman from IMG Academy, recently moved by 247Sports up into five-star status at the No. 3 overall ranking, regardless of position. However, with 11 247Sports Crystal Ball predictions, all for Michigan’s arch rival Ohio State, that means that Crippen is lining up next to a strong ally that could eventually become one of his chief enemies.
Now that he’s with the maize and blue, Crippen is in Latham’s ear, but he’s walking a balancing act, trying not to push too hard.
“We talk about it,” Crippen said. “I am going to try to talk more but understand and respect his thought process during this.”
Crippen is rated No. 244 overall by the 247Sports Composite and is acknowledged as the No. 4 center in the 2021 class.
Michigan finally broke its 10-month 2021 commitment drought with Greg Crippen pledging to the class on Wednesday. We discuss the impact before moving on to your crowdsourced topics. You can subscribe on iTunes, Google Podcasts, TuneIn Radio or …
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Michigan finally broke its 10-month 2021 commitment drought with Greg Crippen pledging to the class on Wednesday. We discuss the impact before moving on to your crowdsourced topics.
The Wolverines landed their third commit of the 2021 class on Wednesday.
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Michigan’s 2021 commitment drought has finally come to an end, with yet another four-star pledging to the program.
While visits are on a moratorium due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, other programs have seen a recent influx of commitments in recent weeks. However, Michigan hadn’t gotten a pledge since five-star QB J.J. McCarthy committed nearly a year ago, making him the second to join the 2021 class — along with OL Giovanni El-Hadi.
But that’s changed as of Wednesday, as 2021 Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy four-star offensive guard Greg Crippen announced on Twitter that he’s pledging his commitment to the maize and blue and becoming the third member of the class.
Crippen is rated a four-star by the 247Sports Composite and is the No. 222 recruit in the country, regardless of position. He’s also the nation’s 11th-rated guard and No. 30 player in the state of Florida.
He was previously committed to Notre Dame but rescinded his longtime commitment earlier this month.
Florida OG Greg Crippen decommits from Notre Dame’s 2021 recruiting class.
Brian Kelly had gotten off to a great start to the 2021 recruiting cycle, up to today he had 8 total commits. However, with developing news that offensive guard Greg Crippen decommitting, the class now sits at one less player.
Crippen is a high thought of prospect, as evidenced by his offer list of Alabama, Ohio State, Michigan, USC and others, will not take any interview requests now. He had committed to the Irish almost a year ago, on March 27th, had a change of heart in that time frame.
The decommitment leaves the class with just one other offensive lineman, in-state tackle Blake Fisher, but with plenty of time until the early signing period, Crippen’s decision won’t hurt the Irish as much. The Florida star will focus on his development, with recruiting taking a back seat, but don’t expect a reunion between Notre Dame and Crippen
