The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/859588
SEPTEMBER 2017 THE WOLVERINE 57 COMMITMENT PROFILE Jim Harbaugh and his staff have enjoyed recruiting success in India- napolis over the last couple of re- cruiting classes. In 2016, they signed Avon (Ind.) High four-star pro-style quarterback Brandon Peters and Indianapolis Ben Davis three-star athlete Chris Evans. One of U-M's first commits in the 2018 class was Indianapolis Cathe- dral four-star offensive guard Emil Ekiyor. Just a few days after the July 29 BBQ at The Big House, the trend con- tinued when Indianapolis Lawrence Central four-star outside linebacker Cameron McGrone popped for the Wolverines. The newly formed Indy pipeline certainly helped McGrone feel comfortable with his choice. "It impacted my decision a little bit," he admitted. "I know when I go to that school I'll have some people that I know that I can bond with." During the BBQ, Ekiyor was defi- nitely trying to play the Indy-to-Ann Arbor angle. He said that he wanted to make McGrone feel welcome and knew that the Indy connection would help in doing so. "It makes you feel more comfort- able with everybody up there," Ekiyor said. "We already know each other from being in the same city. You get more people from Indy supporting you, too, because basically all of the best players are heading to Michigan. … I'm really excited to get up there and get to work with those guys." It wasn't all about Indy, though. Michigan was McGrone's last offer, but the coaching staff did a phenom- enal job in earning his trust and mak- ing him comfortable with U-M in a short amount of time. Once he spent some time around future teammates and current players, he knew Ann Arbor was the place for him. "My main thing was having a home feel," he said. "Michigan defi- nitely felt like a second home to me the most out of all the schools. Also Don Brown and Chris Partridge, the defensive coordinator and linebacker coach at Michigan, even though they just offered me this past month, made sure that they talked to me every day. "Just their coaching experience, too. Coach Brown has showed me how he wants to use me, and it is just really appealing to me." Harbaugh was another one of the main reasons why the defender picked the Wolverines. "He's a great man, and I had been hearing that from everyone," he said. "To finally sit down and talk with him and hear his plans for the program and just how he is with his family, that was great, and that was a big pull for me, too." McGrone fits the Michigan mold in terms of his personality and why he picked the Wolverines. Very fo- cused academically, he'll also be able to handle the academic workload. On the field, Rivals.com Midwest recruiting analyst Josh Helmholdt thinks he'll shine just as bright as he will in the community and in the classroom. "When I first saw Cameron Mc- Grone he was almost completely unknown in recruiting circles, but he was a guy who made you imme- diately stand up and take notice," Helmholdt said. "He brings a com- bination of size, athleticism and in- stincts to the position that earned him four-star status." McGrone tore his ACL last year in the regular-season finale, but was still named to the USA Today All- USA Indy-area football Super Team after recording 75 stops, 15 tack- les for loss and five sacks. He was also named to the Indiana Football Coaches Association Class 6A Junior All-State team. Rivals.com considers him the No. 4 player in Indiana and the No. 16 outside linebacker in the country, and he'll have a chance to improve both of those rankings dur- ing his senior season now that he's healthy again. — Brandon Brown Michigan Continues To Harvest Indianapolis, Landing LB Cameron McGrone FILM EVALUATION Strengths: Cameron McGrone's strengths as a linebacker are his speed and athleticism. He couples those at- tributes with a very instinctive style of play that allows him to blitz effectively and get into the backfield in a very short amount of time. It also allows him to be fly around the field and get in on a lot of tackles. Areas Of Improvement: He is a bit light at just 6-1 and 210 pounds, and he'll have to bulk up and get stronger in order to line up as an effective mid- dle linebacker, which is the position Michigan recruited him to play. His agility and quickness allow him to get through traffic and around blockers effectively, but if a 240-pound fullback or 315-pound offensive tackle gets hands on him he could have some problems. Michigan Player Comparison: For- mer Michigan linebacker Larry Foote (1998-2001) was 6-2 and 215 pounds as a freshman, and that's probably about where McGrone will be when he gets to Ann Arbor. Foote finished his Michigan career at 228 pounds and compiled 212 tackles, 44 stops for loss and 11 sacks. He played very ag- gressively with good speed and solid instincts. McGrone could have a simi- lar future because of his comparable size, build and skill set. — Analysis from TheWolverine.com McGrone will join three fellow Indianapolis natives — sophomore running back Chris Evans, redshirt freshman quarterback Brandon Peters and senior OL commit Emil Ekiyor — on the U-M roster when he arrives in 2019. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM