The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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44 THE WOLVERINE OCTOBER 2018 FOOTBALL RECRUITING gets seriously looking at Michigan, but Katy (Texas) Cinco Ranch three- star inside linebacker David Gbenda does have the Wolverines in his top group along with Notre Dame, Hous- ton, Texas, Nebraska, Texas A&M, Washington, Ole Miss, TCU and Mis- souri. The No. 20 inside linebacker in the country seems like a Texas A&M lean, but he is giving most teams a chance still. Cornerback Michigan reeled in several long and rangy defensive backs in the 2018 class, so cornerback isn't a huge priority with the 2019 group. Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy three-star cornerback DJ Turner II committed to the Wolverines earlier this year in June and is rock solid. The No. 52 cornerback in the country has been back to Ann Arbor a few times and isn't going to check out any other schools. Beyond Turner there aren't a lot of cornerback targets for Michigan. Wellington (Fla.) Palm Beach Central five-star Akeem Dent has been com- mitted to Florida State for more than a year. However, the Seminoles are struggling and the 6-0, 170-pounder has mentioned several times that he'd like to official visit Michigan. The No. 3 cornerback and No. 22 overall prospect nationally hasn't scheduled a visit yet, but if he does — look out. Similarly, Dacula (Ga.) High four- star cornerback Jalen Perry has been committed to Georgia since October of last year, but also says that he'd like to check out Ann Arbor in an of- ficial capacity. The 6-1, 188-pounder is the No. 14 cornerback and No. 115 overall prospect nationally. Safety Michigan doesn't really have a true safety committed because of Don Brown's viper position. Both Wash- ington (D.C.) St. John's College High three-star Quinten Johnson and Co- lumbus (Ohio) St. Francis DeSales three-star Joey Velazquez are listed as safeties by Rivals.com, but were recruited by Brown and Co. to play viper at U-M. At 5-11, 190 pounds and 6-0, 205 pounds, respectively, both can cover and play in the box. Michigan seems to like longer, leaner and more athletic guys to roam the deep part of the second- ary. That's why the focus is almost entirely on Tulsa (Okla.) Booker T. Washington five-star safety Daxton Hill. The No. 1 safety and No. 24 overall prospect nationally isn't the tallest player at 6-1, 190 pounds, but he's extremely fast and rangy. He took an official visit to Michigan for the SMU game and is legitimately down to U-M and Alabama. The Michigan coaches, like most staffs, usually don't fare well against Bama on the recruiting trail. However, Hill and his parents are extremely serious about academics, and that could give U-M a slight edge. Cedar Hill (Texas) Trinity Christian four-star safety Lewis Cine is also getting some attention from Michi- gan, and he's still intrigued by the Wolverines along with Texas and Penn State, most notably. Cine in- tends to be in Ann Arbor for U-M's contest against Nebraska Sept. 22. Athlete George Johnson III has already been outlined as a wide receiver since he's committed to Michigan, and a few other versatile players are still being courted by U-M as well. Charlotte (N.C.) Harding Uni- versity five-star Quavaris Crouch, Frankfort (Ky.) Western Hills four- star Wandale Robinson and Everett (Mass.) High three-star Mike Sainris- til are all still on U-M's board. Crouch is the most intriguing of the bunch. As the No. 2 athlete and No. 9 overall prospect nationally, Crouch goes 6-3, 222 pounds and excels at both running back and linebacker. He's been to Ann Arbor a few times and is expected to return, but the southern schools like Clemson, Ten- nessee, Alabama and Florida State seem to be the most important to him. Robinson once looked like a pretty coveted target, but with Giles Jackson now in the fold he's less of a priority. The 5-9, 175-pounder is considered the No. 20 athlete in the country and might be leaning toward Alabama after picking up an offer from the Tide and checking out Tuscaloosa in an official capacity. Finally, there's Sainristil. He's been committed to Virginia Tech since February of this year, but snuck in a very low key official visit to Michi- gan in late June and has been on flip watch to U-M ever since. The speedy 5-9, 175-pounder can play cornerback, nickel, slot, running back or wildcat quarterback. Because he's similar to George Johnson III, he may be viewed as a luxury, not a priority, by the U-M staff. ❏ Rivals.com ranks Daxton Hill of Tulsa, Okla., who officially visited U-M for the SMU game Sept. 15, as the nation's best safety and No. 24 overall prospect. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM