As first reported over in Michigan State's national signing day StoryStream, Maryland defensive tackle Darian Cooper will sign with the Iowa Hawkeyes. The Washington Post's Josh Barr reported yesterday that Cooper was down to Iowa and Michigan State, and he also broke the news today about Cooper selecting the Hawkeyes over the Spartans.
Michigan made a late run at Cooper after Brady Hoke was hired. Defensive coordinator Greg Mattison, who coached in Baltimore the past two seasons, served as Cooper's lead recruiter. Cooper visited Michigan this past weekend and discussed the trip to Ann Arbor on his Twitter account. He had a good enough time visiting with the Wolverines and their new coaching staff to put Michigan in his final list of schools (Georgia Tech was also in the top four), but in the end he opted for Iowa.
What this means for Michigan football's recruiting class is that it will stay at 19 commits until at least tomorrow. Both Leilon Willingham and Chris Barnett have yet to announce their decisions and are still considering Michigan, but their decisions won't be out until later in the week. It is expected that we will hear from Willingham on Thursday, and Barnett's decision will likely be out on Saturday.