The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/787035
MARCH 2017 THE WOLVERINE 35 2017 FOOTBALL RECRUITING ISSUE MEASURABLES • Was invited to Nike's The Open- ing Finals in Beaverton, Ore., in both 2015 and 2016, and brought home the Nike+ Football Rating Championship in 2015 with a score of 149.49, becoming the first underclassman to ever win the event. Posted a 4.42 40-yard dash and 42.4-inch vertical jump. STATISTICS • Peoples-Jones had 60 catches for 1,071 yards and 17 touch- downs in his final season. He also pulled in four interceptions for Cass Tech's 14-0, Division I state title team, which was ranked No. 14 nationally by MaxPreps. • He hauled in 41 passes for 1,012 yards and 14 touchdowns as a junior. On special teams, he added a 79-yard touchdown via punt return. • As a sophomore, he had 16 receptions for 331 yards and nine touchdowns, and had two interceptions on defense. HONORS • Selected a first-team All-American as a senior by Max- Preps and USA Today. He earned an honorable mention from Parade. • Named the 2016-17 Gatorade Player of the Year for Michi- gan; he also earned MLive's Player of the Year honor. • Tabbed a MaxPreps Junior All-American in 2015. • Named the USA Today Offensive Player of the Year for Michigan as a senior. • All-USA Michigan first-team wide receiver by USA Today as a senior after earning second-team honors as a junior. • Ranked No. 1 in the Detroit Free Press Fab 50 ranking of the top senior football players in Michigan. • Ranked as the No.1 Blue-Chip recruit for the class of 2017 by the Detroit News. • 2016 Division 1-2 Associated Press Michigan Football Player of the Year and first-team All-State wide receiver. • Selected for to the Detroit News All-State Dream Team as a junior and senior. ALL-STAR GAMES AND CAMPS • Attended the Rivals Camp Series Detroit in 2014 and Cleve- land in 2015. • Was invited to the Rivals Five-Star Challenge in Baltimore in 2015 and in Atlanta in 2016. • Was invited to the Future 50 Under Armour camp ahead of the 2016 Under Armour All-America Game. • Attended the Columbus regional of Nike's The Opening in 2015 and 2016. • Participated in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl Jan. 7, 2017, and caught two passes for 22 yards. RECRUITMENT • Committed to Michigan Dec. 14, 2016. • Took official visits to Florida (Nov. 18), Florida State (Dec. 2), Michigan (Dec. 9), Nebraska (Sep. 2), and Ohio State (Oct. 7), and was down to the Seminoles, Buckeyes and Wolverines before pledging to U-M • Head coach Jim Harbaugh, former passing game coordina- tor Jedd Fisch and former running backs coach Tyrone Wheat- ley were all heavily involved in Peoples-Jones' recruitment. NOTABLE • Born Feb. 19, 1999. • Reportedly finished high school with a 3.9 GPA and plans to major in pre-medicine. • Teamed with fellow U-M signee Jaylen Kelly-Powell to win the Division I 4x100-meter relay state championship in June 2016. • Won a non-basketball player dunk contest two years in a row at Cass Tech by jumping over multiple people before dunking. • Is already on campus as an early-enrolled freshman. 2017 PROJECTION He's got the speed, size, strength, hands, intelligence and route-running ability to contribute as a freshman, plus he's already on campus as an early enrollee. THEY SAID IT Rivals.com West Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney: "The top-rated prospect in Michigan and the No. 1 receiver nationally has the ability to make an immediate impact. Peoples-Jones is an excellent pass catcher and an explosive playmaker who could really stretch the field in Michigan's of- fense. Peoples-Jones has a great, physical frame so he won't be handled by many cornerbacks in the Big Ten. Couple that with tremendous athleticism, and Jim Harbaugh could have a star in the making." Detroit Martin Luther King Head Coach Ty Spencer: "He's that guy that when you put the film on you're like, 'Okay, we've got to find a way to try to neutralize him.' He's just a dynamic athlete. There's nothing else to say really. He's been doing this stuff since his freshman year and he's just a good football player. "I really think he can be very good at his position and do some great things at Michigan. We still haven't even seen what he can really do because Cass runs a lot of zone read concepts, so he still wasn't getting the ball a lot. We haven't even talked about him on special teams either. He's fast, and he's a freak returning punts and kicks. He can really do it all in a dynamic way. "I think he can be dominant. He has that attitude and that demeanor to be great too. I just know I'm glad I don't have to play against him anymore." DONOVAN PEOPLES-JONES WIDE RECEIVER 6-2 • 190 CASS TECH H.S. DETROIT RANKINGS STARS NAT. POS. STATE ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ 12 1 1 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ 22 1 1 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ 26 2 1 ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ 22 4 1 Peoples-Jones is the high- est-ranked Michigan native in the Rivals.com rankings since 2007 (No. 8 Ronald Johnson). PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM RIVALS.COM WEST RECRUITING ANALYST ADAM GORNEY "Peoples-Jones has a great, physical frame so he won't be handled by many cornerbacks in the Big Ten."