The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/362774
FOOTBALL RECRUITING much, just continue dong more of what he already has. OL GRANT NEWSOME 6-7, 280 • Lawrenceville (N.J.) Prep Four-star recruit, No. 4 player in New Jersey, and No. 21 of- fensive tackle and No. 199 overall prospect nationally Newsome has been a Rivals250 player from the get-go, and his ranking has remained pretty much constant. That's no surprise for a player who camped at Penn State before his junior year, but has let his play for his high school team speak for him since then. An impressive offer list included Alabama, LSU and Ohio State before he picked Michigan. He has the ideal size for a college tackle, and that is what had schools interested early in the process. Newsome started at left tackle for a Lawrenceville Prep team that went 5-3 on the season, while averaging 183.4 rushing and 262.6 passing yards per game. Newsome's size has not been a question, nor has his athleticism. He's proven to be strong in pass protection and has added strength to improve in run blocking. Showing that he can make the most of that excellent size is the next phase. More production on the ground — and upping the nastiness that can be so important to an of- fensive lineman — will see Newsome take the next step at the position. Lawrenceville Prep's top passer and top three receivers graduate, so there may be a shift back toward the ground game, which would give Newsome the reps he needs to prove himself in that phase of offensive line play. Helping lead his team to a better record with dominant blocking on his side of the line should help him move up the rankings. OL JON RUNYAN JR. 6-4, 270 • Philadelphia St. Joseph's Prep Three-star prospect, No. 13 player in Pennsylvania and No. 38 offensive guard in the land Runyan, despite a famous father (not only an All-Amer- ican offensive lineman at Michigan, but also a U.S. con- gressman in recent years), was not a well-known prospect before camping at Michigan prior to his junior year and picking up an offer. He committed shortly thereafter, and