The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1133482
THE WOLVERINE 2019 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 173 FOOTBALL RECRUITING Arizona State, Penn State and LSU, but Ohio kids don't leave the state very often. Offensive Tackle Committed: 2 (Baltimore St. Frances three-star Micah Mazzccua and Cambridge [Mass.] Buckingham Browne & Nichols four-star Zak Zinter) Projected Take: 2-3 Synopsis: While both Mazzccua, the na- tion's No. 68 offensive tackle, and Zinter, the No. 16 tackle and No. 157 overall pros- pect, are listed as tackles, both can play just about any position on the offensive line. That means Ed Warinner is still looking for at least one true tackle. If the coaching staff wants length, San Juan Capistrano (Calif.) Jserra Catholic four- star Jeffrey Persi can provide it. At 6-7, 265 pounds, Persi looks like a jumbo tight end right now. He's got great feet and a lot of athleticism, and is ranked as the No. 35 of- fensive tackle in the land. He's down to four schools — U-M, UCLA, USC and Washing- ton. Those are tough competitors for a kid from California, but U-M is hanging in there. Littleton (Colo.) Columbine four-star An- drew Gentry can provide size and length at 6-8, 305 pounds. He's the No. 8 offensive tackle and No. 54 overall prospect in the country, and has offers from everybody. He'll take a Mormon mission after high school. BYU is in the mix, as is Alabama, Notre Dame, Stanford and Virginia. He vis- ited U-M in May and also scheduled an of- ficial visit to Michigan for the weekend of June 21-23. Offensive Guard/Center Committed: 0 Projected Take: 1-2 Synopsis: Michigan landed several true interior guys in 2019, and has Zinter and Mazzccua, who could play inside, are al- ready committed in 2020. There isn't a huge focus on the position beyond Broke Arrow (Okla.) High four-star Andrew Raym. The No. 9 offensive guard and No. 239 overall prospect nationally has good size at 6-4, 285 pounds and moves very well for an interior lineman. He visited Ann Arbor in early June and is definitely giving the Wolverines a hard look. Georgia, LSU, Oklahoma, Michigan and Texas A&M make up Raym's top five, and most peg Norman as his most likely landing spot for obvious reasons. Defensive End Committed: 1 (Port Huron [Mich.] Northern four-star Braiden McGregor) Projected Take: 1 Synopsis: Michigan isn't working very hard on defensive ends because they're be- yond content with McGregor — a newly minted four-star recruit in the Rivals rank- ings and the nation's No. 23 strongside de- fensive end — in the fold. Still, a new offer did go out to Olney (Md.) Good Counsel three-star Kris Jenkins Jr. May 30, indicating that they aren't com- pletely shutting things down at the position. Jenkins is the No. 48 strongside defensive end in the country and checks in at 6-3, 235 pounds. Penn State and Maryland look like two of Jenkins' favorites. Defensive Tackle Committed: 0 Projected Take: 2 Synopsis: Landing Braiden McGregor will allow defensive line coach Shaun Nua to fo- cus a lot of his attention on defensive tackles. Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco three- star Kobe Pepe is a very realistic target for Michigan, but California might be leading the way for him. People close to the situ- ation think Michigan is the biggest threat to Cal when it comes to landing the 6-3, 270-pounder. Pepe really bonded well with Nua during a spring unofficial visit in Ann Arbor and that has U-M in the mix. The No. 41 defensive tackle in the country also is considering Ne- braska and Penn State. Finally, there's an even tougher pull in Calera (Ala.) High four-star Jayson Jones, an Alabama commit. The 6-5, 322-pounder has been committed to the Tide since July of last year, but he maintains that he'll take an official visit to U-M for the Ohio State game. As the No. 9 defensive tackle and No. 140 overall prospect nationally, he's wanted by just about everyone, but it's hard to imagine him not signing with Bama. Linebacker/Viper Committed: 3 (West Bloomfield [Mich.] High four-star Cornell Wheeler, Baltimore St. Frances four-star Osman Savage and Bal- timore St. Frances three-star Nikhai Hill- Green) Projected Take: 3-4 Synopsis: Michigan has three linebackers committed, and each is pretty well regarded. Hill-Green is listed as the No. 38 outside linebacker in the land, Wheeler checks in as the No. 13 inside linebacker and the No. 233 overall recruit, and Savage is ranked the highest at No. 14 among outside linebackers and No. 159 overall in the class. With that trio in the fold, the coaches ap- pear to be targeting some specialists at the position. Brooklyn (N.Y.) Erasmus Hall four-star William Mohan has been on Michigan's radar for a long time, and they love him at viper. Landing four‑star Zak Zinter — the nation's No. 16 offensive tackle and No. 157 overall player in the country per Rivals — got the Wolverines off to a strong start in their O‑line recruiting. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM West Bloomfield (Mich.) High four‑star Cor‑ nell Wheeler is one of three linebacker com‑ mits that U‑M has already secured. He is rated by Rivals as the nation's No. 13 inside linebacker and No. 233 overall player. PHOTO BY BRANDON BROWN