The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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78 THE WOLVERINE NOVEMBER 2017 COMMITMENT PROFILE Michigan's outstanding 2018 recruit- ing class came to a close when Dayton Beach (Fla.) Father Lopez big man Co- lin Castleton pledged to the Wolver- ines days after an outstanding Sept. 29 visit weekend. He was the latest late arrival to U-M's radar to pick the Wol- verines, first narrowing his list to eight schools, then to two — U-M and Illi- nois — before committing Oct. 4. There were signs heading into the trip that Castleton might be leaning toward the Wolverines, and the visit sealed the deal. He'd hosted head coach John Beilein at his school several days earlier and saw everything he needed to see on the trip to Ann Arbor. "It was just everything," Castleton said of his pledge. "It felt right, and just being with the guys felt like I was part of the team. Coach B and I clicked right from the start. My par- ents loved it, too." Ann Arbor was like a bigger ver- sion of home, he said, and the feel, the culture and the coaching staff were exactly what he wanted. Beilein was straightforward with him, he said, never promising playing time — only that he'd get his chance if he worked hard. And that is one of the staples of Castleton's game, Rivals.com na- tional analyst Corey Evans reported. Castleton averaged 23.3 points, 11.0 rebounds and 5.4 blocks per game as a junior at Father Lopez, but his big summer put him on the map as one of the nation's top big men. Beilein sees him as a stretch five (center) in the mold of current junior Moritz Wagner, able to put it on the floor a bit and shoot out to the three- point line. "Moe Wagner came into college being a five/four … A lot of people think of me as a kid that can shoot, but they want to stress that I am a big guy that can shoot," said Castleton, who is listed at 6-11 and 220 pounds. "I can play the post, as well, and also shoot, just like Moe. "He has been through it, and if he can get to the NBA after this year, I can maybe follow in his footsteps and be a clone of sorts, since we have the same kind of game." Evans believes the four-star tal- ent and Rivals.com's No. 120 overall player nationally has it in him. Notre Dame, Florida, Florida State, Illinois, Ohio State, Purdue and Baylor all of- fered in addition to U-M, all of them impressed with what they saw in July. "He just made huge strides this summer," Evans said. "He's a 6-11 big man, can move and run the floor … he definitely has some Moe Wag- ner in him. "Right now he's decently skilled and definitely not strong. But when you're a skinny dude who is pretty tough, you have the makings of a good ballplayer down the road once he hits a college weight room. I think he's the perfect five-man for John Beilein's system." It didn't always look that way, however. Evans saw him in May and wasn't overly impressed. In late sum- mer, Castleton was a completely dif- ferent player. "That's when he really kind of broke out. At Nike South Beach in April and May, I wasn't a big fan of him," Evans admitted. "I saw him on the adidas circuit in July with Team Knight, and he was phenomenal. "He played against great players in Spartanburg, S.C., and was dominant. I thought, 'How does this guy go from four or five major offers to a guy who could be a pro that quickly?'" His basketball IQ is one of his big- gest strengths, Evans continued. "That and his toughness," he said. "He's tough and smart, and if you put tough and smart together in a ballplayer who has a decent set of ball skills and is getting bigger and better, he's going to be good. "I wouldn't call him explosive, but he's definitely good enough in that area. He's light enough on his feet where he can guard a ball screen, hedge and recover off it. He's like Moe Wagner in that he's definitely light afoot, not explosive, but a de- cent athlete." Though Beilein sealed the deal, new assistant coach Luke Yaklich gets a lot of the credit for this one. Yaklich started recruiting Castleton while he was at Illinois State, and his first call once the coach got to Michi- gan was to the young big man. "He has been there with me since Il- linois State," Castleton said. "He called me right when he got the job and said that he had already told Coach Beilein about me and that I was the first guy that he wanted to call, which means a lot to me since he believed in me and still remembered me." The two will get to see much more of each other over the next several years, starting next summer in Ann Arbor. — Chris Balas Castleton — a 6-11, 220-pound center who is rated as the nation's No. 120 overall pros- pect by Rivals.com — averaged 23.3 points, 11.0 rebounds and 5.4 blocks per game as a junior at Dayton Beach (Fla.) Father Lopez. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM Four-Star Big Man Colin Castleton Caps U-M's Stellar 2018 Haul FILM EVALUATION Strengths: Colin Castleton is long (6-11), skilled and a very good shooter, one who should fit perfectly as a Michigan center under John Beilein. He's also much tougher than his 220-pound frame would have you believe. He plays with an extremely high motor and has incredible upside with his size. Areas Of Improvement: Castleton is rail thin and needs to get much stronger to compete in the Big Ten. He isn't extremely athletic and will need some time in the weight room with strength coach Jon Sanderson to fill out and improve his lateral movement. Michigan Player Comparison: Analysts compare Castleton to current Michi- gan center Moritz Wagner, and the similarities are obvious. Both go all-out, all the time, and while Wagner is a bit better off the dribble, Castleton has the potential (like Wagner) to drive and finish against bigger defenders and make people respect his shooting ability. — Analysis from TheWolverine.com