Ivan drawing coaches to northern Michigan

College coaches will have to buy new maps if they are going to recruit Charlevoix, Mich., offensive tackle Bill Ivan. Charlevoix, located at the northern tip of Michigan's lower peninsula, is off the beaten recruiting path, but the 6-5, 250-pound Ivan has been worth the drive for several college coaching staffs.

"The coaches that I know of who have come through my school are Max Glowacki from Central Michigan and Mike Tressel from Michigan State," Ivan reported. "I am expecting a coach from Western Michigan to come up and a coach from Indiana to come up later (this month). Then, hopefully some guys from Michigan and Iowa, but I'm not sure.

"I've gotten a hold of Coach Tressel a couple times and talked with Coach Parker out at Iowa quite a bit. The big thing with them, is everybody wants to see me at camp. I've scheduled a camp run for June and hopefully everything works out then."

Ivan does not hold any scholarships yet, and a big reason is because the area he comes from is not known for producing Division 1 level football talent. Ivan hopes to change that perception and add names to his offer sheet by taking a summer visit tour that will include stops at Central Michigan, Indiana, Michigan, Iowa, Michigan State and Notre Dame.

"A lot of it is because I go to the small school, can I compete with the competition everybody else does?" Ivan said. "I am a tall guy here at 6-5 and I'm going up against defensive linemen who are 6-0 at the tallest. The biggest thing that they like is my ability to get low and finish driving through blocks."

Ivan has already taken several unofficial visits in the recruiting process. He attended both Michigan and Michigan State's spring games, but received the best vibes on visits to Central Michigan and Indiana.

"I took a visit to Central's last spring practice and we spent at least two hours after the practice getting a campus tour with Coach Glowacki and talking with Coach (Don) Mahoney, the offensive line coach," Ivan said. "We also sat down and talked for about a half hour with Coach (Butch) Jones.

"When I was down at Indiana over spring break, I got a really good feeling down there. Coach Lynch came over and talked to my parents and talked to me for a little bit. Bobby Johnson, the offensive line coach, is just a really great guy. I like the way he runs things with the offensive line."

Ivan has been a multi-year starter for Charlevoix head coach Don Jess and he earned first team all-area honors in both his sophomore and junior seasons.