The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1451622
2022 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE JAYDEN DENEGAL QUARTERBACK 6-4 • 215 APPLE VALLEY HIGH SCHOOL APPLE VALLEY, CALIF. RANKINGS STARS NAT. POS. STATE ✪ ✪ ✪ 489 26 32 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 50 38 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 19 38 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 24* 38 ✪ ✪ ✪ — 21* 37 * Ranked as a pro-style quarterback 62 THE WOLVERINE MARCH 2022 HONORS • Led Apple Valley to an 11-4 record and a CIF Southern Section Division 3 state runner-up finish in 2021. His squad won three one-score playoff contests. • Invited to the All-American Bowl as a senior. • Spring 2021 Mojave River League Offensive Player of the Year. • First-team All- Mojave River League honoree as a junior and senior. RECRUITMENT • Pledged to U-M June 23, 2021, after picking up his offer from the Maize and Blue on the same day. • Picked U-M over notable offers from Cal, Michigan State and Oregon State. • Recruited by quarterbacks coach Matt Weiss. DID YOU KNOW? • Is an early enrollee at Michigan. • Born April 19, 2004. THEY SAID IT • On3 director of scouting and rankings Charles Power: "I think he has some natural arm strength. He's a big-handed kid and can throw the ball downfield … has some physical tools to work with. He's going to need some time in coaching and continued experience. Probably a guy that would benefit just from going through spring practice, scouting and just get- ting more live reps." BY TIM VERGHESE It would have been understandable for Apple Valley (Calif.) High quarterback Jayden Denegal to back off his commit- ment to Michigan. After all, pledging in the first place was a risk. Michigan landed its quarterback of the future in J.J. Mc- Carthy just one cycle before and has been heavily in pursuit of 2023 in-state five- star Dante Moore as the quarterback af- ter McCarthy. It also might have made sense to look around when Cade M c N a m a ra w o n the starting job, only complicating Michigan's quar- terback situation. It would have been even easier to recon- sider his recruitment when Sachse (Texas) High quarterback Alex Orji flipped from Virginia Tech to Michigan on Na- tional Signing Day. Instead, Denegal stuck with his com- mitment. He knew the plan all along was to add a second quarterback in the 2022 class and he was fully on-board with the coaching staff's decision. After all, it was his trust in the coaches that played a key factor in him pledging to U-M in the first place. "I just really liked how the coaches treated me and were completely honest," he said. "And I just like the town, it's a col- lege town, and I kind of want to get away from home, so it's a little ways away. But I just really like Michigan and playing un- der Coach [Jim] Harbaugh is a dream people have." Denegal understands that early play- ing time looks unlikely, but he didn't pick Michigan for playing time, he picked the Wolverines because he wanted to learn. He's looking forward to absorbing as much as he can from Harbaugh and co- offensive coordinators Sherrone Moore and Matt Weiss to build his under- standing. "I can't wait to get in the depth of the game," he said. " U n d e r s t a n d i n g pre-snap, post-snap and all that type of stuff. I feel like high s c h o o l wa s j u s t mainly post-snap. So really at Michi- gan, I want to learn pre-snap and all that type of stuff — just really learn the game so it's next level." Denegal is get- ting a head start in his development by enrolling early. Just days after moving in, an opportunity arose that Denegal couldn't pass up. Due to some positive COVID tests among the participants, he received a late invita- tion to the All-American Bowl and had to quickly make his way to San Antonio. Now settled back on campus, Denegal has enjoyed getting to see in person all the fellow early enrollees he's gotten to know primarily over text messages. "We've all kept in contact for a while, with some group chats and stuff like that," he said. "But I'm getting close with the tight ends and receivers. Even the defen- sive guys, we're all kind of tight." ❑ Jayden Denegal Will Trust The Process And Bide His Time In his final season of high school, Denegal threw for 1,545 yards and 24 touchdowns, and rushed for an additional 281 yards and eight scores. PHOTO BY EJ HOLLAND 2022 Projection Denegal provides Michigan with much-needed depth at the quarterback position, but likely still needs a few years of development before he'll be ready to see the field. Has a great frame and raw tools but needs to sharpen his mechanics and further develop his mental side. He'll more than likely redshirt his freshman season. STATISTICS Year Comp. Pct. Pass Yds. TD INT Rush Yds. TD 2021 69.1 1,545 24 7 281 8 2020* 64.8 958 12 — 120 9 2019 65.8 2,260 34 8 — 1 * Only played five games consensus