The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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JUNE/JULY 2023 ❱ THE WOLVERINE 49 ❱ MICHIGAN RECRUITING NOTEBOOK When asked to compare Davis to a college or NFL quarterback, Grier po- litely declined. Instead, he continued to focus on Davis' progression at Provi- dence Day. "I compare Jadyn to what he was when I met him and what he is now," Grier said. "I'm very pleased with that. "Our goal last year was to watch ev- ery play together. It was a lot. We made notes and figured out how to improve. "His improvement during the season was noticeable. If you drew a graph, it kept getting better and better as the year went on. "We run a college-level system. His transition in college will be a lot easier. He'll be more aware and in-tune." Davis has been on the recruiting ra- dar for quite some time, notching his first college offer when he was in middle school. Recruiting services ranked him highly, and offers flooded in from across the country. Needless to say, Davis, who eventu- ally picked Michigan over fellow final- ists Clemson, North Carolina, Ohio State and Tennessee, has always been in the spotlight. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. Grier believes Davis is now fully equipped to handle the pressure on one of college football's biggest stages. "He had offers in the eighth grade, and that added instant pres- sure," Grier said. "Every time he threw an incomplete pass, people were screaming overrated. Watch- ing him develop that toughness is great. "If he's at Michigan playing at Ohio State, nothing anybody at Ohio State says is going to faze him. He's heard it all. It's just the intan- gibles. He's prepared for success on and off the field." — EJ Holland OL COMMIT BEN ROEBUCK HELPING CLASS BOND When Lakewood (Ohio) St. Ed- ward offensive tackle Ben Roebuck was undergoing the recruitment process, he was looking to find a college home that replicated the environment of his high school. Eventually, his search led him to find the same culture fit at Michigan that he feels inside the Northeast Ohio prep powerhouse. At the time of his commitment, Roe- buck was the third offensive lineman in the 2024 class to join the Wolverines. Now, with five pledges on board for of- fensive coordinator/line coach Sher- rone Moore, frequent communication through texts and social media direct messages, phone calls and mutual visits to campus have allowed the incoming lineman cohort to gain a bond that goes beyond simple friendship. "We're tight," Roebuck told The Wol- verine at the Under Armour Next+ Se- ries Camp May 7 in Columbus. "At my high school right now, it's all about brotherhood, and I feel like I'm continuing that at the next level. Coach Moore actually got on FaceTime with all of us and said that we're the tightest group of offensive line commits that he's ever seen. "He has experience playing at Okla- homa and has coached at Michigan for a while, so that speaks to how close we are. It's going to be a great four years." There are more than a couple of rea- sons, according to Roebuck, as to why he, Luke Hamilton (Avon, Ohio), Andrew Sprague (Kansas City, Mo.), Jake Guarnera (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.) and Blake Fra- zier (Austin, Texas) have connected so well in just a short amount of time. The first is obvious. All five share the same motivation behind committing to Michigan. They each want to be de- veloped on and off the field by Moore, be a part of an offensive line that's the reigning Joe Moore Award winners in consecutive seasons and find kindred spirits in Ann Arbor and the entire U-M football program. "I think we all have the same kind of personalities," Roebuck said. "We just fit together. It's hard to explain, but I don't think it can get that much better. We all have the same common inter- ests. Even in our group chat, whenever someone says something, everyone im- mediately responds. "We're super close now. I can't wait to keep it going once we get to Michigan." Roebuck is also one of four 2024 pledges who are Ohio natives. In addition to linemate Hamilton, the group is rounded out by the Cin- cinnati duo of running back Jordan Marshall (Archbishop Moeller) and defensive lineman Ted Hammond (St. Xavier). While Roebuck may have had competitive encounters with the rest of the group these past few years — based on proximity and frequency of playing one another in the fall — knowing that all four are going to graduate from the same college someday has turned their rivalry into harmony. "Jordan and I kind of started off as enemies because Archbishop Moeller was my only loss during my sophomore year, and then we beat them last year," Roebuck said with a laugh. "But then once we both com- mitted, we quickly became close friends. With me and Ted, we've been close since December. Once he committed, he and Luke were the two who were on me the most." Hamilton made his decision less than 24 hours after the win One of 17 Michigan commits in the 2024 class as of May 16, Ben Roebuck is listed as the No. 28 offensive tackle nationally in the On3 Industry Ranking. PHOTO BY ZACH LIBBY/ON3