The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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62 THE WOLVERINE MAY 2018 COMMITMENT PROFILE H ollywood (Fla.) Chaminade Ma- donna four-star safety Te'Cory Couch committed to Tennessee in June 2017, but after the situation fell apart in Knoxville under former head coach Butch Jones he immediately started looking around for other op- tions and Michigan instantly became attractive to him. "When I first got an offer from Coach [Mike] Zordich and Coach [Don] Brown we've been talking ever since that day, and we just built a great relationship," Couch said. The Michigan coaches did a good job with Couch as soon as they got involved with him and that ulti- mately led to an offer in mid-Janu- ary. The 5-10, 165-pounder loves the way U-M plans to use him within Brown's scheme and cited that as the main reason why Michigan is the place for him. "I just love what they do defen- sively," he said. "They like to play a lot of man-to-man and really pressure receiv- ers. They said that they would use me in the nickel, but they think I can play outside too." With a commitment, a de- commitment and another commitment now under his belt, Couch doesn't plan to mess around with his recruitment anymore. He saw everything he needed to see while in Ann Arbor and considers himself rock solid to Michigan. "At the moment my re- cruitment is shut down," he said. "There are still a lot of schools recruiting me, but I don't really even want to say who." With his own commit- ment in place, he now plans to work on teammates and fellow visitors from the April 14 weekend, four-star wide receiver John Dun- more, and four-star corner- back and Kentucky commit Keontra Smith. Couch hopes he can convince them to join him in Ann Arbor. "John and I have been close since third grade, and I met Keontra in eighth grade and we've been close ever since," Couch explained. "I'm trying to get them to go to Michigan. Go Blue! "I just told them that they liked it when you were up there so why not? Go up there and be different." Couch's "different" comment re- fers to the fact that so many Florida kids choose to stay close to home, but there's a pretty strong contingent of Sunshine State natives in Ann Arbor. There are currently 12 Floridians on U-M's roster, which does create some comfort for the young men who attend school so far from home. Rivals.com considers Couch the No. 41 player in the loaded state of Florida and the No. 20 safety in the country. As a junior, he was a big part of a dominant secondary that helped Chaminade Madonna win its first state title since 2005. According to MaxPreps, Couch re- corded 57 total stops, two tackles for loss, one sack, two interceptions and 25 passes broken up in 10 games as a junior. As a sophomore, he was a first-team all-county selection after recording six interceptions. Couch has also already been se- lected as an Under Armour All- American. — Brandon Brown Turmoil At Tennessee Leads Safety Te'Cory Couch To U-M FILM EVALUATION Strengths: Listed at just 5-10 and 165 pounds, Te'Cory Couch plays bigger than that. He's long limbed and moves extremely well in cov- erage, allowing him to make up ground quickly and cover more space like a taller defensive back. He's also known as a solid tackler and again plays bigger than he's listed with physicality and a tenac- ity of someone 20 pounds heavier. Areas Of Improvement: Some of his improvement will depend on exactly how Michigan wants to use him. If he is a safety, he'll need to bulk up and continue to prepare to be more physical. If he's purely a cover nickel then he'll have to con- tinue to work on his footwork in or- der to deal with small, quick receiv- ers in tight spaces. The good news is that Couch is already solid in both areas, and once he has a specific po- sition to focus on he should be able to improve in either area. Michigan Player Comparison: The coaches have told Couch that he'll be used to cover slot receiv- ers because they see some Jourdan Lewis in him. Lewis wasn't the big- gest guy, but he basically shut down opposing team's top receivers. Couch may not be the pure cover corner that Lewis was, but he's got a similar build and brings a fierce intensity to the position despite be- ing on the smaller side. Couch is also known for being more physical than he looks and for sticking to receivers regardless of their size. Lewis was known for the same traits. — Analysis from TheWolverine.com Couch is listed as a four-star talent, the No. 41 player in the Sunshine State and the No. 20 safety in the country by Rivals. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS.COM Couch on the Wolverines "I just love what they do defensively. They like to play a lot of man-to-man and really pressure receivers."