Paramus (NJ) Catholic LB Drew Singleton (image via North Jersey)
Paramus (NJ) Catholic linebacker Drew Singleton committed to Michigan on Friday evening. He chose the Wolverines over offers from Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Georgia. LSU, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, and Rutgers, among others.
Singleton is 6’2″, 215 lbs. and was selected to the Under Armour All-American Game before he tore his ACL early in his senior season.
RATINGS
ESPN: 4-star, 82 grade, #3 ILB, #162 overall
Rivals: 4-star, #4 OLB, #51 overall
Scout: 4-star, #4 OLB, #72 overall
247 Sports: 4-star, 95 grade, #5 OLB, #79 overall
Hit the jump for more on Singleton’s commitment to Michigan.
Singleton was offered by Michigan in April of 2015, right around the same time the staff started pursuing Jordan Anthony, Jaylen Kelly-Powell, and Ambry Thomas (LINK), all of whom have committed to Michigan. The Wolverines jumped to the top of Singleton’s list since they already had Jabrill Peppers and Juwann Bushell-Beatty on campus, and Rashan Gary committed to the Wolverines ten months later. In the meantime, Michigan also pursued teammates like 2016 WR Donald Stewart, 2017 DE Corey Bolds, and 2018 QB Allan Walters, though Walters has since transferred to the Peddie School. Paramus Catholic is a powerhouse program in New Jersey, and it used to be coached by current Michigan linebackers coach Chris Partridge. Clemson was really the only other school that made Singleton think twice, but Michigan has held the lead most of the way. When Singleton makes it to campus, it won’t be his first time playing in Michigan Stadium. He and the rest of the Paladins played their season opener against Maryland’s St. Frances Academy back in September, a game which Paramus Catholic won by a score of 38-20. The team went on to win the New Jersey state championship, though Singleton was watching from the sideline for most of the year.
I posted a scouting report on Singleton earlier in 2016 based on his junior year (LINK), and that junior film is really all we have to see since he tore his ACL in September of this year. I’ve watched the film a couple times since then, and all I really have to add is that I like the way he disguises and times up his blitzes. It remains to be seen how well he regains his form after that knee injury, but if he gets back to 100%, he will be Michigan’s most athletic linebacker in the 2017 class. I think he could play any of the three linebacker positions at Michigan, though he will have to bulk up if he ends up playing middle linebacker.
Michigan now has 26 commitments in the 2017 class, including four linebackers: Joshua Ross, Ben Mason, and Jordan Anthony. The class should reach somewhere around 30, and the only linebacker target who remains squarely in Michigan’s sights is Starkville (MS) Starkville’s Willie Gay.
TTB Rating: 83 (ratings explanation)
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A heat seeking missile.
Twitchy in the extreme.
You probably have to worry more than a little about the ACL, but who wouldn’t be delighted to get this kid.
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So, assuming you have your twitchy LB, does Drew coupled with Jordan create a synergy … the two are better than the sun of them individually?
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Sum
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Hell, I don’t know. Young Ross seems to have the exact game as his brother, only bigger. Which I’m not sure I’ve ever seen before. There is a brand new batch coming in next year. Who knows, the middle line backing stud of a generation might come in and put two of these guys on the bench.
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I guess where I was going with this question was this — in an ideal world we’d have 6’3″ 245lb Jabrill Peppers for LB, but those are rare. The other day we got Jordan Anthony, which seems to be a beast but lacks some of that explosiveness. Today we get Drew Singleton, who seems to have the opposite attributes.
I’m wondering if combined they make a wonderful duo … a complementary relationship. I don’t know enough about football in the LB corp to know how thumpers and speedsters best match up to make things even better.
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The NFL has never seen someone who is 245 pounds with Peppers’ speed and athleticism. It is not rare – it has never happened.
Lawrence Taylor is probably the closest thing and nobody was wondering if he should return kicks.
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I think one of the defensive ends are gonna get a shot at Mike. I get the question, but we’re talking about kids.
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Okay, thanks … I was just pondering stuff … nothing more.
Time will tell how Brown deploys the talent he has.
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Ok, MGoBlog is real sure that Ross is Mike, Singleton is Sam and Anthony is Will. I might have the last two backwards.
I think I understand the question in that I think your looking for a two down, one down combination or power, spread combination that gives you the best of all available traits for all types of offenses/situations.
I like MGoBlog, but I think they know stuff for sure sometimes before it makes sense to know that thing. I’m not really even finding fault here because the whole point of this is to have some fun thinking about something that ain’t all that serious in the big picture.
If I had to guess, I’d probably say that Singleton, healthy, is a reasonable proximation of Jabrill Peppers at SAM. I think Ross/Anthony compete at Will and maybe share snaps depending on opponent or some thing one might prove to do better than the other, and we don’t have a Mike in this class.
But, they are all puppies. Who knows how or when they grow up.
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Thanks!
The more I think about all this, the more I realize I know very little about the LB role in today’s football. The DL I kinda-sorta get; the secondary I kinda-sorta get; but the LB corp seems to be a weird combination of DL / blitz / coverage … and maybe a dash of what the name implies: to backup the line.
I have to believe the coaches have a plan. But then again, Harbaugh is on record as saying “get the best athletes,” so maybe that’s the plan … and the specifics are figured out as we go.
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It has changed some over the recent past.
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I do think that the guys who adapt to their talent do better over time than the guys who have a system that they try to jam people into, which is not the same thing as having a system that people recruit for.
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Big time get in Singleton. Hopefully he’ll get back close to 100% healthy.
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I can not think of a pure LB recruit that has sounded as promising as Singleton since…Prescott Burgess?
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Did you factor the ACL injury into his TTB score?
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