Tag: Nick Eubanks

2019 Season Countdown: #31 Nick Eubanks

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Name: Nick Eubanks
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 252 lbs.
High school: Plantation (FL) American Heritage
Position: Tight end
Class: Redshirt junior
Jersey number: #82
Last year: I ranked Eubanks #54 and said he would be a backup tight end (LINK). He started four games and made 8 catches for 157 yards and 1 touchdown.
TTB Rating: 44

Going into his redshirt sophomore year, Eubanks looked destined to be the third tight end in an offense that might be de-emphasizing the tight end position altogether. With a new, more spread-oriented quarterback, along with the return of a third talented receiver (Tarik Black), it made sense to put more receivers on the field and lessen the reliance on multiple tight end sets.

A funny thing happened with the #3 tight end, though: He became the big-play guy.

Hit the jump for more.

2018 Season Countdown: #54 Nick Eubanks

Nick Eubanks (image via ClickOnDetroit)

Name: Nick Eubanks
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 236 lbs.
High school: Ft. Lauderdale (FL) American Heritage
Position: Tight end
Class: Redshirt sophomore
Jersey number: #18
Last year: I ranked Eubanks #55 and said he would be a backup tight end (LINK). He made 2 catches for 61 yards.
TTB Rating: 44

Eubanks started off last season with a bang. He caught passes of 48 and 13 yards against Florida, even as a backup. Then he suffered a couple injuries after the first month of the season and his year quickly came to an end.

This year the tight end position is still crowded, even though Michigan has lost Jake Butt, Devin Asiasi, and Ian Bunting over the past two off-seasons. Sean McKeon and Zach Gentry are the two front-runners at tight end, McKeon as an in-line guy and Zach Gentry as more of a flex threat. Michigan has other options with Tyrone Wheatley, Jr., Mustapha Muhammad, and others. Eubanks was fourth in catches among tight ends last season (behind McKeon, Gentry, and Wheatley), but his usage in the opener implied more if he had been able to stay healthy. There’s a chance he will move ahead of Wheatley, but McKeon and Gentry are pretty strongly entrenched. Eubanks will probably have to wait his turn until those guys graduate or leave for the NFL.

Prediction: Backup tight end

2017 Season Countdown: #55 Nick Eubanks

Nick Eubanks (#18, image via USA Today)

Name: Nick Eubanks
Height: 6’5″
Weight: 236 lbs.
High school: Plantation (FL) American Heritage
Position: Tight end
Class: Redshirt freshman
Jersey number: #18
Last year: I ranked Eubanks #82 and said he would redshirt. He played in one game.
TTB Rating: 44

Eubanks was skinny and raw entering college last year, so I was a little surprised when he trotted out late in the game against Central Florida last year and burned his redshirt. Then we started to realize that Jim Harbaugh doesn’t care too much about redshirting. Technically, Eubanks might be a sophomore this season, but considering he only played in one game, I imagine Michigan will be aiming to get this year back for him if they want him for a fifth year down the road.

This year the chance for Eubanks to play has increased. Not only is Jake Butt off to the NFL, but he was able to do some of the flex tight end stuff that Eubanks is most suited to run. And on top of that, Devin Asiasi – the top-rated tight end in Michigan’s 2016 class – ditched Ann Arbor for UCLA. Presumed starter Ian Bunting was a wide receiver for much of his high school career, and he might be able to flex out, but he’s mostly an in-line guy at this point. The two guys most likely to detach from the formation are Eubanks and Zach Gentry. Gentry, a former quarterback, is faster and more athletic, but he has struggled with his hands and still might need to add some weight. I was not impressed with Eubanks’s route-running or instincts in the spring game, but he’s still just a young’n.

Prediction: Backup tight end

2016 Season Countdown: #82 Nick Eubanks

Nick Eubanks (image via Scout)

Name: Nick Eubanks
Height: 6’6″
Weight: 230 lbs.
High school: Plantation (FL) American Heritage
Position: Tight end
Class: Freshman
Jersey number: N/A
Last year: Eubanks was a senior in high school (LINK). He had 23 catches for 344 yards and 3 touchdowns.

Eubanks was considered very likely to stay in SEC country for most of his recruitment, but things seemed to pick up between him and Michigan after the Wolverines missed out on a couple other tight ends. He visited in January 2015 and then committed late in the month. At one point I ranked him #5 out of the 5 tight ends Michigan was recruiting (LINK). Eubanks is a good athlete, but he didn’t show a great deal of focus and discipline.

Going into the 2016 season, Michigan shouldn’t need him to contribute. Starter Jake Butt returns, and Ian Bunting has a fair amount of talent and experience. Redshirt freshman Tyrone Wheatley, Jr. showed some solid skills in the spring, not to mention fifth-year walk-on Michael Jocz and early enrollee Sean McKeon. On top of all those guys, incoming freshman Devin Asiasi will be the highest ranked recruit at the position. Eubanks is pretty skinny and raw, so I believe he will redshirt this season.

Prediction: Redshirt

Nick Eubanks, Wolverine

Nick Eubanks (image via Scout.com)

Plantation (FL) American Heritage tight end Nick Eubanks committed to Michigan on Thursday. He chose the Wolverines over offers from Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Miami, Oregon, Texas, and USC, among others.

Eubanks is listed at 6’6″, 230 lbs. by 247 Sports. He claims a 4.69 forty, a 4.46 shuttle, and a 33″ vertical. As a senior in 2015, he caught 23 passes for 344 yards and 3 touchdowns. As a junior in 2014, he caught 26 passes for 408 yards and 4 touchdowns.

RATINGS
ESPN: 4-star, 81 grade, #2 H-back, #258 overall
Rivals: 4-star, #9 TE
Scout: 3-star, #29 TE
247 Sports: 4-star, 91 grade, #11 TE, #291 overall

Hit the jump for more on Eubanks’s commitment.

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