Birmingham Seaholm's Shawn Conway (#4 in maroon) committed on Saturday following Michigan's Junior Day.

This weekend’s Junior Day produced a commitment for the Wolverines, but not from a player on most people’s radar: Shawn Conway, a 6-4 wide receiver from Birmingham Seaholm who has flown under the radar of the recruiting services, picked up a Michigan offer when he arrived on campus and made his pledge before the day was over.

MGoBlog has their commitment post up, which has some user-submitted junior-year stats (11 catches, 217 yards, and three touchdowns in five games) and maybe an explanation for Conway’s lack of recruiting attention or superstar numbers — his quarterback last season was a sophomore who wasn’t slated to start, and it shows in the film:

Watching those highlights, I see a player who may not have elite speed or quickness, but Conway shows off a tremendous pair of hands, great size, and a tremendous ability to go up and get the ball. It will be interesting to see how the coaching staff uses him — his size and skill set could lead to a move to tight end, but Michigan may not be using those for much longer, so Conway may just be a big possession receiver.

Also, there’s this interesting tidbit from TomVH’s interview with Conway in the MGoBlog post:

TOM: I know you play basketball, too. Is that going to be an option at Michigan?

SHAWN: Coach Rod said he wouldn’t mind if I tried to walk on the basketball team, so I will definitely try to do that. Carlton (Brundidge) plays on my AAU basketball team, he was the first one I called when it happened. He was just really excited, and he said we should room together. We’ll see, I’m just excited about all this.

Conway boasts a 38-inch vertical (somewhat more believable than the 4.49 40-yard dash time he also claims in the same article) in the interview, and adding that type of athleticism without using a scholarship is always a bonus. Conway is an AAU teammate of 2011 basketball commit Carlton Brundidge, and sounded excited at the prospect of playing with him at the college level.

With (at least initially, before some expected normal attrition) just 14 spots available for the 2011 class, the recruiting focus will likely shift away from sleepers like Conway and towards blue-chip prospects at positions of need (offensive line and defensive front seven especially).

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