The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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COMMITMENT PROFILE "I think the thing that was most impressive at the Five-Star Challenge was his arm strength," Rivals West recruiting analyst Adam Gorney said. "He zipped the ball better than anybody. He's not a wild guy who just throws fast — he puts it on the numbers. His height is a concern. He's very mobile, and he throws very well on the run." Just days after the offer, Viramontes accepted it and suddenly there were two quarterbacks in Michigan's class. Fortunately, the 6-1, 214-pounder is athletic enough to try other positions if his time under center doesn't work out. His highlight film demonstrates just that: he spends as much time running through secondaries as he does throwing into tight windows. "One of his biggest strengths is the mobility, so in a 7-on-7 or camp set- ting you're only seeing a portion of what he can do," Gorney said. "He can escape the rush, he has good feel when the pocket collapses, and then he makes plays. He can throw ac- curately whether he's running right or left. "When he runs, he's not afraid of taking hits because he's big and physical. He actually looks for it, and embraces going after guys a bit. He's not going to just run out of bounds, but instead get that last yard or two. "Some coaches may not like it with FILM EVALUATION Strengths: Viramontes is a quarterback, but his athletic ability gives him a versatility that few players at the position possess. He has the frame to reason- ably project to several positions, including linebacker, tight end or even run- ning back. At the QB position, that athletic ability and ball-carrying make him a huge threat. He's also a better passer than might be expected. He has a very big arm, can hit throws all over the field and identifies open targets when available. Areas of Improvement: Viramontes has issues with putting the right amount of touch on his passes. If a throw isn't deep downfield, there's a good chance that he rifles it in too fast to make it easy for his receiver to haul it in. His foot- work is also sloppy, and his passes are almost all arm. As a pure athlete, he shows a willingness to carry the ball and outrun oppos- ing players, but his movements in a tight window are often a little cumbersome and he loses speed when cutting around defenders. That's likely to be more damaging (though is also something he can fix quickly) if he moves to a differ- ent position. Michigan Player Comparison: Andy Mignery (1999-03) was one of the ath- letic quarterbacks recruited in the Lloyd Carr era who had the opportunity to play another position. He did just that, shifting to tight end — and successfully so — as a fourth- and fifth-year player. — Analysis from TheWolverine.com