Murphy thrilled with Michigan offer

Connor Murphy once sat on his living room floor with Jim Harbaugh, drinking milk and playing chess as they waited for Murphy's parents to return from the hospital.

On Friday night, Murphy heard back from his old babysitter as Michigan's new head coach reached out with a scholarship offer. It was the sixth offer for the 6-foot-7, 250-pound defensive end from Phoenix (Ariz.) Brophy Prep, with four of those coming from the Pac-12.

"This is a huge offer for me," Murphy said. "Coach Harbaugh and I go way back. He's the guy that recruited my brother (Trent Murphy) to Stanford when he was coaching there. One quick funny story is when he came out to Arizona for a house visit when my big brother signed with Stanford. My parents were actually stuck in the hospital for a couple hours that night because my mom was in labor.

"So coach was literally waiting at our house basically baby sitting us with my aunt considering I was only 10 at the time. So he has been like a father figure to me for a while now and I know for a fact that I can go to war for that guy. That's why this is such a huge offer for me."

Murphy has the size that could make him one of the region's top defensive prospects in the 2016 class. He's rated as the nation's No. 24 weakside defensive end by Rivals.com.

The older Murphy just completed his rookie season with the Washington Redskins, finishing his year with eight starts.

"In high school my brother was a defensive end, and coach Harbaugh moved him to outside linebacker when he got there, which was one of the best things that could have happened to my brother," Murphy said. "They did not get into how they are going to use me, though."

Arizona, Arizona State, Oregon State, Stanford and Vanderbilt round out Murphy's list of offers. The Wolverines, he said, definitely stand out early in the process.

"It's a huge offer for me and to be one of his first offers definitely means a lot," Murphy said. "It just lets me know that I'm as good of a fit for them as they are for me. I know Michigan excels on the field and in the classroom and I'm looking for a place like that. I can guarantee you I'll be making a visit out to Michigan here sometime soon."

Murphy had 12 tackles for loss, 70 total tackles and two fumble recoveries as a junior at Brophy Prep.