Goodbye, Daxton Hill

HIGH SCHOOL
Hill came to Michigan in the class of 2019 out of Tulsa (OK) Booker T. Washington. He was a 247 Composite 5-star, the #1 safety, and #14 overall. He committed to Michigan in September 2019, flipped to Alabama in early December 2019, and then flipped back on National Signing Day. I gave him a TTB Rating of 100 (LINK) and gave the following quote:

Things I dislike about Hill: *crickets*

COLLEGE
Hill started three games as a freshman and made 36 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 1 interception, 2 fumble recoveries, and 4 pass breakups; he also caught a pass on a fake punt to gain a first down against Army. I thought that would be foreshadowing for him being a two-way player or a returner at some point in his career, but that didn’t happen. He became a full-time starter in 2020 when he made 46 tackles, 1 interception, and 5 pass breakups. We finally saw him spend a full, real season as a starter in 2021, when he was somewhat unleashed as a safety/slot corner who made 69 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks, 2 interceptions, 1 forced fumble, and 11 pass breakups. For his efforts he was named a 1st Team All-Big Ten player by the conference’s coaches.

Hit the jump for more.

CAREER STATS
151 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks, 4 interceptions (returned for 3 yards), 3 fumble recoveries, 16 pass breakups
1 reception for 25 yards

AWARDS
1st Team All-Big Ten (Coaches, 2021)
2nd Team All-Big Ten (Media, 2021)

SUMMARY
Hill was a tantalizing prospect coming out of high school, and he remains one to this day. He reportedly ran a 40 in the 4.3 range in high school, and he was a ball hawk who also had promise as a wide receiver. When he came to Michigan, I pegged him as an immediate starter; and while that wasn’t the case, he did play quite a bit and performed well for a freshman. There was consistent talk about him potentially moving to cornerback, a position that has lacked top-end talent for the past couple seasons, but Hill supposedly did not want to play corner because he thought (or was told) that his future was at safety in the NFL. Whatever the reason, he played quite a bit in the slot and acquitted himself quite well. His speed, change-of-direction, and instincts helped him in man coverage, and he was never afraid to come up and tackle aggressively. In my time watching Michigan, I think he was one of the top few open-field tacklers. While I did expect him to spend more time playing a deep center field position because of his speed and instincts, he had a very good career in a Michigan uniform. Selfishly, I hoped he would return for a fourth year in 2022, but I knew that was unlikely.

I WILL REMEMBER HIM FOR . . .
. . . his fake punt reception in 2019 from Mike Barrett. Barrett – a converted high school quarterback – took a snap as an upback against Army, turned, and threw to an uncovered Hill, who made a guy miss before running 25 yards for a big first down conversion in a game that turned out to be tighter than expected.

PROJECTION
Hill measured in at 6’0″ and 191 lbs. at the NFL Combine. He ran a 4.38 forty with a 33.5″ vertical and a 10’1″ broad jump. He also had a 6.57 three-cone drill and a 4.06 twenty-yard shuttle. He is almost universally projected as a first round draft pick, which I think makes sense. I don’t see him as an outside corner in the NFL, but he can play either safety position and the nickel spot. He generally seems to be battling to be the first safety taken off the board on Thursday night, along with Notre Dame’s Kyle Hamilton. My guess is that Hill will be taken in the middle of the first round.

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