The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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58 THE WOLVERINE APRIL 2019 PREP PROFILES Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei four- star cornerback Darion Green-Warren had been committed to Oklahoma since July of last year, but opened things back up in March and is now a free agent, so to speak. The 6-0, 173-pounder picked up his Michigan offer before decom- mitting from the Sooners and even then seemed to be pretty intrigued by what the Wolverines have to offer. "Getting an offer is always a bless- ing, but with it being Michigan it was even more exciting," he said in Febru- ary. "My dad always tells me about Charles Woodson and makes me watch his YouTube videos, so I'm fa- miliar with the history of the program. "It's definitely an original blue-blood school and prestigious. I haven't been there, but I definitely plan to go up there and see it. I like Coach [Jim] Har- baugh, and I also know that they have a great history of defensive backs." Once decommitted, Green-War- ren's interest in Michigan might have even gone up a notch. "Michigan is recruiting me heavily, and I like Michigan a lot," Green- Warren said. "My main recruiter is Coach [Sherrone] Moore, and we talk at least once a week. I also talk to Coach [Mike] Zordich periodically. "I am making plans to unofficial there this spring or summer. If I don't visit for the spring game, then it will be sometime during the summer. The plan is to take an unofficial visit and then an official visit." Green-Warren also plans to check out several schools from a pretty stacked list that includes Georgia, USC, Oregon, Texas and Ole Miss, among others, and is currently in the process of finding a date to see Ann Arbor as well. He has a couple of po- tential days circled on his calendar, but hasn't set his plans in stone just yet. Green-Warren's recruitment feels a lot like Dacula (Ga.) High 2019 four-star cornerback and Michigan signee Jalen Perry's from last year. Perry was an out-of-region prospect committed to the home state Geor- gia Bulldogs and ultimately opened things up and is now in Ann Arbor as an early enrollee. Green-Warren isn't from Oklahoma, but he was committed to the very successful Sooners and is an out-of- region kid who now seems very inter- ested in the Wolverines. If he does end up visiting once or twice before a fall official, he should be viewed as a very real option for the Wolverines. — Brandon Brown Fort Wayne (Ind.) Culver Acade- mies three-star strongside defensive end Deontae Craig first visited Mich- igan in September 2018, and knew right away that he'd be back and be back often. "I knew they were going to take care of you on a recruiting visit," Craig said of his first trip to Ann Ar- bor. "But they were just with me step by step throughout the whole day, and that was really important to me and my family for sure." Craig — who checks in at 6-3, 225 pounds — left without an offer that day, though, and he did the s a m e t h i n g a few more times t h ro u g h o u t t h e 2018 season. How- ever, the whole situation changed Feb. 24 when he swung by Ann Arbor again for the Michigan State basketball game. He finally reeled in the tender he'd been hoping for, and it might end up being a game changer. "Earlier in the week I had talked to Coach [Shaun] Nua and he said that it would be worth it to visit. I had an idea that an offer could be coming," Craig explained. "After we went through a little film session with Coach [Don] Brown, he took my parents and I into one of the m e e t i n g ro o m s where he told us a little bit about himself. "He said that he really liked my tape and that they wanted to offer me." I t o b v i o u s l y took some time for U-M to offer Craig, but he's not worried about that. He's just glad to now have Michigan as an option and never lost any sleep over how long it took for the opportunity to present itself. "The timing never really came up," he said. "They have a really good program, and I think that's because they want to make sure they recruit the right players. "Doing that takes time so the tim- ing of the offer wasn't really on my mind." With a couple ,of visits in the rear- view mirror Craig is ready to take some more. Once the second-team USA Today All-State pick does that, he'll make a decision. — Brandon Brown Coveted Oklahoma Decommit Is High On Michigan Indiana Pass Rusher Picks Up A U-M Offer After Several Visits ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Culver Academies Fort Wayne, Ind. Class: 2020 Position: Defensive End Ht.: 6-3 • Wt.: 225 Rivals.com Rankings: No. 24 strong- side defensive end nationally Deontae Craig ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Mater Dei H.S. Santa Ana, Calif. Class: 2020 Position: Cornerback Ht.: 6-0 • Wt.: 173 Rivals.com Rankings: No. 12 cornerback and No. 124 overall prospect nationally Darion Green-Warren Green-Warren on U-M "My dad always tells me about Charles Woodson and makes me watch his YouTube videos, so I'm familiar with the history of the program. It's definitely an original blue-blood school and prestigious." Craig on finally picking up a Michigan offer "They have a really good program, and I think that's because they want to make sure they recruit the right players. Doing that takes time so the timing of the offer wasn't really on my mind."