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Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Who is Isaiah Bell? A guy who's likely to play safety. This is about all we know at the moment. Rivals knew nothing of his existence until he committed to Michigan. ESPN doesn't have a scouting report. Scout is similarly silent.

There is this article from a local paper:

It’s been hard for Liberty’s Isaiah Bell to choose which team to root for in the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry since he started watching football as a kid.

His mother is a Wolverine fan, while his father cheers for the scarlet and gray.

But after 16 years, he has finally picked a team in one of the biggest rivalries in college football.
Michigan's won two of these house divided situations in the past few days: OH DB Justin Turner's mom was pro-OSU while his father was pro-Michigan.

More useful items from the article: Bell didn't play offense last year, when he was 6'3" and around 180 pounds. This year he's around 215 and will get a shot somewhere, presumably wide receiver with two D-I prospects already vying for time in Liberty's backfield, about whom more later.

First, an awesome quote from the same piece:
‘‘He can run the football, there’s no doubt about that. We saw that when he returned kicks and punts. He’s got great hands, we saw that in his interceptions. And he’s also in the running for the quarterback spot. How that turns out is entirely up to how he and the team progresses.’’

Bell, who had ‘‘dozens of Division [-I, presumably, sic -ed]offers,’’ according to Whittaker, said he wants to play safety at Michigan, and wherever else the Wolverines need him. He said first-year coach Rich Rodriguez was the primary reason he decided to play for Michigan.

‘‘They remind me of the coaching staff at Liberty,’’ Bell said. ‘‘It wasn’t just a coaching staff, they work like a family in terms and looking out for each other.’’
Blood orgies are a family value.

Other pieces of information:
  • Bell plays at Liberty High in Youngstown with two other potential D-I prospects, including a running back/slot guy fantastically named "Fitzgerald Toussaint." Though Michigan's luck with awesomely named running backs has been middling -- Mister Simpson transferred to Cincinnati after a year -- Toussaint is a pretty slick running back. Check out his Scouting Ohio video.

    The other guy is Julius Ferrell, who will split time with Toussaint this fall. Ferrell is a fullback who "loves hitting" and may be a fit for the Owen Schmitt role; Michigan should be able to sell the idea he'll actually get carries, along with the presence of a teammate. Both are potential Big Ten prospects; Toussaint already has a Michigan offer.
  • Bell had a decent offer list early: WVU, Cincinnati, some MAC schools. Ohio State was involved, too. They had him up for a junior day and may have been thinking about an offer, though we'll never know now.
  • File under "weird things found on google":

    Not exactly "I heart Hart."
  • You can see sophomore year video of Bell at Scouting Ohio. There are also highlights of Toussaint.
Editorial Opinion: Likely to be an anonymous three-star safety recruit; I generally prefer to get my anonymous three star safety recruits early in the recruiting cycle since the early offer usually means greater confidence in the eyes of the staff. This one comes with a Trotwood-like bonus, as Liberty is in possession of two more kids who are potential Michigan recruits.

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