Drake Michaelson, a 6-foot-1, 205-pound senior linebacker from Eden Prairie, will make an official visit to Minnesota along with high school teammate Andrew Larson and his parents this weekend.
Drake Michaelson, a 6-foot-1, 205-pound senior linebacker from
Michaelson and his Eagle teammates got revenge for a 9-0 loss earlier this season on the road to Wayzata to win the Prep Bowl over the Trojans 13-3.
Michaelson had an outstanding senior season and was named to the StarTribune and KARE-11 All-Metro teams and the Associated Press and St. Paul Pioneer Press All-State squads.
GopherHole.com caught up with Michaelson right before his visit to learn the very latest on his recruitment.
GH: What are the Gophers saying to you?
Drake Michaelson: That is what I am going to figure out this weekend. They have said that they want me. That is why they want to get me down there. I think we’ll figure it out this weekend, I’m hoping.
GH: What is the latest on your offers? How many are you up to?
Drake Michaelson: I am up to nine Division I offers. Air Force, Wyoming, Akron, South Dakota, South Dakota State, North Dakota, Towson, Wofford and Furman.
GH: Have you had a chance to go to any of the colleges for visits yet?
Drake Michaelson: I took an official to
GH: How was the
Drake Michaelson: It was fun. It was great. It was my first official, so I didn’t know what to expect. It was awesome and fun. They took us snowmobiling up in the mountains. They took us out to dinner a couple of times, so it was pretty cool,
GH: The last time we talked you were waiting to hear If
Drake Michaelson: I am hoping to know after this weekend.
GH: Obviously, your preference would be to get a scholarship, but would you be interested in a preferred walk-on opportunity or are you looking more at a scholarship?
Drake Michaelson: I am definitely going to be taking a scholarship, financially and all that. What I want to do is to help my parents out. All these years of them paying for me, I want to pay them back. As much as I would want to walk-on somewhere, if it was my dream school, I would have to go with a full-ride somewhere.
GH: Was winning the state title the perfect way to end your high school career?
Drake Michaelson: Yes. It couldn’t have ended better. That was what our goal was. That was what we were aiming to do and nothing is better than seeing and experiencing something that you have been dreaming about and practicing for to come true.
GH: Did it make it even more special because you have had a rivalry with Wayzata and they had beaten you in the regular season?
Drake Michaelson: Yes. I would have like to play no other team except Wayzata in that game.
GH: You were named to the StarTribune and KARE-11 All-Metro teams and the Associated Press and
Drake Michaelson: Yes, I am. I have to give the glory to God and thank him for everything that I was able to do. It is an awesome and humbling experience winning the state title and getting those honors. I have to point my finger to the big man upstairs and give him credit for that.
GH: You have some Eden Prairie players on the Gopher roster like Grayson Levine, who played with you last year and older players like Ryan Grant and Ryan Orton. Do you know them very well?
Drake Michaelson: I know Grayson very well. I have talked with Ryan Grant before, but because of the hometown and how we can relate to that. I am sure that we can connect very quickly.
GH: Have you talked to those guys about what they like about
Drake Michaelson: Not as much as I had hoped.
GH: How special does it make it that your teammate and friend Andrew Larson are both visiting the same weekend?
Drake Michaelson: It is going to be a fun weekend. It is fun to have one of my best friends going through this process along my side. It is a fun opportunity to take.