Vincent Gray, Wolverine

Vincent Gray, Wolverine


January 21, 2018

Rochester (MI) Adams cornerback Vincent Gray committed to Michigan on Sunday during his official visit to Ann Arbor. He had previously been committed to Missouri and had other offers from Cal, Kentucky, Oregon, Purdue, and Virginia, among others.

Gray is 6’2″ and 180 lbs. and claims a 4.76 forty. He also claims a 4.26 shuttle and a 33″ vertical.

RATINGS
ESPN: 3-star, 76 grade, #82 CB
Rivals: 3-star, #56 CB
247 Sports: 3-star, 86 grade, #67 CB, #689 overall

Hit the jump for more on Gray’s commitment.

Gray wasn’t on most Michigan fans’ radar until the offer to him came in December. He had been committed to Missouri since July of 2017. A couple weeks after the Michigan offer, he decommitted from Tigers, and the writing was on the wall that he was likely bound for Michigan. Oregon sneaked in with an offer last week, and that would be an intriguing school for a lot of kids. But he set an official visit for this past weekend and committed to the Wolverines before leaving Ann Arbor.

There’s been a lot of consternation over the offer to Gray, so I have watched his senior highlight film several times to try to get a good bead on his talents. The first thing you notice for him as a cornerback is that he’s listed at 6’2″, and even if he’s not quite that tall, he obviously has good length for the cornerback position. Michigan has placed a premium on bigger corners in recent years, and they have had success with Channing Stribling and Jeremy Clark. I think Gray uses that length well to jam receivers at the line, bat down passes, make receivers uncomfortable, and make a few more pass breakups than some shorter corners might make. He’s a decent tackler but nothing special in that area. I like the way he plays as a receiver, because he gives the QB room to place the ball, he catches the ball well with his hands, and he high-points the ball well. I don’t think he has the athleticism to be a standout receiver, but those skills may contribute well to his defensive play, too.

What Gray lacks is great athleticism. His 4.76 forty isn’t inspiring, and he doesn’t play much faster than what one would assume from that forty time. He struggles to pull away from mediocre competition at Adams, and he doesn’t have great acceleration. He’s a bit of a glider and doesn’t seem to be going all out when he sprints, although I have no reason to believe he’s not going 100%. His tackling could use some work; he needs better technique, and he needs to get stronger.

Overall, this is an uninspiring commitment for Michigan, but it’s not too disappointing, either. Michigan has taken some mediocre athletes and turned them into very effective corners, including the guys I mentioned above (Clark, Stribling) and Brandon Watson. I think Clark and Stribling were superior players, but Watson isn’t anything special as an athlete and does just fine when he spells Michigan’s starters. Not every player is destined to be a star, but getting a guy who can be Brandon Watson – essentially an effective spot starter as an upperclassman – is just fine as a late January pickup.

Michigan now has 20 commitments in the 2018 class, though it might only be 19. There are strong rumors that quarterback Kevin Doyle will go to prep school next year and slide into the 2019 class. Gray is the fifth in-state commitment for 2018, joining OT/TE Ryan Hayes, DE Aidan Hutchinson, OT Jalen Mayfield, and FB Ben VanSumeren. He’s also the fifth defensive back, along with S Sammy Faustin, CB Gemon Green, S German Green, and CB/S Myles Sims. The only other Adams alum to play for Michigan appears to be former walk-on wide receiver Joe Reynolds.

TTB Rating: 71 (ratings explanation)

7 comments

  1. Comments: 1356
    Joined: 8/13/2015
    Roanman
    Jan 21, 2018 at 4:37 PM

    I think Adams is a better program than maybe Thunder does, at least this year. Adams methodically beat everyone on their schedule except West Bloomfield, who took Cass Tech out of the tournament and then went out to Clarkston in a goofy 3-2 game, then Adams played Ike tough in a 10-6 loss to go out themselves. That’s a real nice season.

    After Sims who’s a for sure corner and Faustin who I believe is a for sure safety, I keep trying to figure out who’s a corner and who’s a safety in this litter. I’m thinking Gray is a Safety and the Gemon brothers are both corners because they’re just way too skinny to be coming downhill and hitting people.

    Just out of curiosity, what did you think of the Gemon brothers in the International game?

    • Comments: 1356
      Joined: 8/13/2015
      Roanman
      Jan 21, 2018 at 4:41 PM

      I’d probably have Gray in the high 60’s to low 70’s in this rating system.

    • Comments: 3844
      Joined: 7/13/2015
      Jan 21, 2018 at 4:46 PM

      Adams isn’t a bad program, but it’s not great competition. It’s not bad, either, thus the “mediocre” tag.

      I didn’t know what to think of the Green brothers in the International Bowl. I was watching it on the internet, and it had terrible production quality. German’s INT was nice, and that’s about all I could see.

      On a side note, do you have any thoughts on Marcel Lewis?

      • Comments: 1356
        Joined: 8/13/2015
        Roanman
        Jan 22, 2018 at 7:00 AM

        He’s a tough kid. He can go sideline to sideline, but he doesn’t knock your socks off with his football speed. He likes to hit and come downhill, but he’s smart about it and careful not to miss. Then he wraps up. He can shed bigger people, but It looks to me like Wilson wants to try to keep him clean so he can run to the football. He gets a lot of opportunities that look system related to me, as opposed to him just trashing people and then destroying. He does a nice job of keeping it all right there in front of him.

        He covers and can get pretty deep.

        He’s pretty thick and strong, I think he comes out around 210, maybe a touch more. I think he can get to 220 and play.

  2. Comments: 82
    Joined: 1/10/2017
    Julio
    Jan 21, 2018 at 6:10 PM

    81? I was prepared for a 61. Did you enter the wrong number? 🙂

    • Comments: 3844
      Joined: 7/13/2015
      Jan 21, 2018 at 6:55 PM

      Yikes – neither. It was supposed to be a 71. Thanks.

  3. Comments: 313
    Joined: 8/17/2015
    JC
    Jan 24, 2018 at 10:13 AM

    I guess I’m more bearish on this particular athlete. I’m hoping I’m wrong, but I feel 71 is too high.

    I have to disagree with you that he’ll end up at corner, and I’m not in love with the Clark/Stribling comparisons. Those two were lower-rated taller recruits, but I think that’s where the similarities end. Clark/Stribling (I am positive on Strib, fairliy confident on Clark) earned their offers while camping with us against some pretty solid competition.

    Gray’s offer was thrown out at the end of the recruiting cycle. I only watched his tape once, but from what I remember, his highlights were mostly on offense where his less than stellar athleticism was apparent. During his defensive highlights, he often played off, and when he did play press, he didn’t do a lot to disrupt the receivers.

    With his length and less than exceptional athleticism, I’m hoping he can put on the necessary bulk to become a safety. I understand the kid is still young, and our coaching staff has done a great job with corners recently, but from watching the film I don’t think corner is his landing spot.

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