The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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APRIL 2023 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 53 ❱ COMMIT PROFILE BY ZACH LIBBY L akewood (Ohio) St. Edward of- fensive tackle Ben Roebuck's ver- bal commitment to Michigan occurred March 22, less than 24 hours after fel- low Ohio native Jordan Marshall made his announcement. Entering the spring, the Wolverines have now added four pledges from the rival state to their 2024 recruiting class. Coming off an Ohio Division I state championship last season, Roebuck made four separate unofficial visits to Ann Arbor over the course of four months. The process began in Decem- ber after not visiting any school on his offer sheet during the fall. He visited Ann Arbor on back-to- back weekends in March to watch spring practice, and his commitment came four days following his latest ap- pearance on campus. "Something that really stands out to me about Michigan is they have a rich history with winning," Roebuck told The Wolverine. "They're the winningest program in college football history. "Winning is something that I really like. I hate losing more than I like win- ning, so going to a school that wins a lot is something that sounds really good to me." The Wolverines secured a potential offensive line anchor for the future in Roebuck. He is rated as the No. 40 of- fensive tackle nationally, as well as the No. 20 recruit in Ohio according to the On3 Industry Ranking. On3's own ana- lysts have him rated slightly lower, as the No. 67 tackle and No. 43 player in the Buckeye State. Roebuck chose the reigning Big Ten champions over other notable confer- ence foes like Penn State, Michigan State and Wisconsin. Ohio State also showed interest this offseason. The Ohio Division I first-team all- sate selection cited back-to-back Joe Moore Awards by the U-M offensive line, as well as the tutelage of offensive coordinator and position coach Sher- rone Moore as additional catalysts in his decision. Moore had made Roebuck a prior- ity recruit as far back as his first-ever visit in January 2022 and picking up last summer when the 6-foot-7, 340-pounder attended the annual BBQ at the Big House in late July. Their communication escalated after the regular season, with Roebuck also hearing from area recruiter Steve Clink- scale often over the phone. "Something that Coach Moore has been talking to me about is that he trains all of his offensive lineman to play all five positions," Roebuck said. "That's something that I think not a lot of coaches do. But that's for a rea- son. If a guy goes down, they can move one of the starters to that spot and pull someone else up. The flexibility that Michigan has on their offensive line is something that really separates them." Michigan interior offensive line com- mit Luke Hamilton and defensive line commit Ted Hammond — both from Ohio — were deservingly credited with assisting the coaching staff in landing Roebuck. He heard from the pair daily in texts and direct messages on social media. The trio made trips together to the fa- cilities twice this offseason. In particu- lar, Hamilton was on campus all four times that Roebuck visited. ❏ Another Ohioan, Massive Tackle Ben Roebuck, Joins U-M's 2024 Class Roebuck, a 6-foot-7, 340-pound offensive tackle from Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edward, is rated as the No. 40 offensive tackle nationally in the On3 Industry Ranking. PHOTO COURTESY BEN ROEBUCK PLAYER EVALUATION STRENGTHS: Roebuck is going to be the perfect complement as a tackle next to Ham- ilton on the interior because of their chem- istry and close friendship. He possesses the necessary height and length to protect a quarterback's blind spot. Also, the suburban Cleveland native displays a nasty streak in the trenches. With Moore as his guide at the next level, Roebuck has the potential to be a multi- year starter at Michigan. AREAS OF IMPROVEMENT: Roebuck is a big-framed prospect, and his size affects his footwork. Developing lighter movement and better balance off the ball and when engaging more athletic edge rushers will be accom- plished by trimming off unnecessary weight while working with Michigan strength and conditioning coach Ben Herbert. MICHIGAN PLAYER COMPARISON: Ryan Hayes. While the two-time second-team All-Big Ten tackle didn't begin his career at Michigan with the same size as Roebuck, Hayes bumped up over 300 pounds and ended up being a key part of both Joe Moore Award-winning units in 2021-22. Roebuck will likely slim down to under 320 pounds, which will help make his drive to the second level, leverage, kick-slide and burst all more fundamentally sound, while thriving like Hayes did with the Wolverines. — Zach Libby