*** After some rocky travel courtesy of Spirit, I made my way to Los Angeles to see three-star Michigan edge rusher commit Kevonte Henry. This was my second time seeing Henry live as I also saw him in a spring workout. Let's start off with the positive. The Lawndale (Calif.) Leuzinger product is extremely athletic for his size. He comes off the edge in a hurry and gets downhill fast. Henry also played some running back and picked up some chunk yards. He runs with physicality and has some nice burst. Henry is at his best when he lines up as a wide nine, pins his ears back and gets after the quarterback. I really like his length and motor. Simply put, Henry oozes of potential.
*** With that said, Henry still has a lot to work on. The whole time I was standing on the sideline watching him, I was thinking 'man, this kid has so much ability, but he doesn't know what the hell he's doing.' Literally, Henry just ran around looking to make plays. He had no technique or discipline and as a result wasn't very productive in a blowout loss. Henry often over pursued and missed ball carriers, got walled off and couldn't fight through double teams. Henry still needs to hit the weight room hard. While he has the speed and length, he lacks strength and power. Henry finished the game with a couple of tackles, one tackle for loss and a few quarterback hurries.
*** Henry is the ultimate boom or bust prospect. He is the poster child of a class full of guys with tremendous ceilings and low floors. If Michigan hits, they've got a guy that can be a multiple All-Big Ten selection. Henry has the frame to add a ton of weight and can be a monster off the edge at about 245-250 pounds. He has never been in a real weight room (his high school one is out in a parking lot) or strength and conditioning program. Development will be so key with Henry. The mental aspect will be as well. Henry lives in a rough part of LA and needs a program like Michigan, where he can focus on school, football and development in a positive and nurturing environment. Again, I feel like he's going to be a star or a guy we never hear from again.
*** Because of this, it makes Henry an extremely tough prospect to rank. Rivals has him graded as a 5.6 mid-three-star. 247 has him graded as an 88 high-three-star. On3 has him graded as a mid-four-star and a Top 120 prospect nationally. That's quite a bit of disagreement. Honestly, I can't bring myself to grade him purely on upside like On3. I would side more with 247 and grade him as a high-three-star. He's just too raw right now. But again, he has everything you want and is going into a great situation at Michigan with Courtney Morgan, who can help him get adjusted from a personal standpoint, and Ben Herbert, who can help with his development.
*** Michigan has an early offer out to three-star 2023 La Puente (Calif.) Bishop Amat defensive end Tiu Afalava. This is another really interesting prospect. Afalava wasn't productive in terms of the stat sheet, but he was a difference maker along the defensive line, logging multiple quarterback hurries and commanding extra attention. Afalava is shorter than his listed 6-foot-3, 250 pounds, so I'm not exactly sure what he best projects at. He has good length for a lack of height (I think he's closer to 6-1 or 6-2) and the frame to add more weight. He may be a defensive tackle in Michigan's new defensive scheme. He played mostly a five-tech for Amat and helped lead a strong defensive effort. Michigan likes him and wants to get him on campus.
*** Before heading out to California, I spent my Thursday on the south side of Chicago watching 2023 Rivals250 wide receiver Malik Elzy. I saw Elzy on multiple occasions this offseason, but this was my first time seeing him in game action, and he didn't disappoint. Elzy racked up more than 100 yards received and scored a pair of touchdowns in Chicago (Ill.) Simeon's blowout win over Chicago (Ill.) Hubbard. Elzy is a big, physical wide receiver at 6-foot-3, 195 pounds. He bullied subpar inner city competition with his size and athleticism. I love Elzy's catch radius and ability to go up and snatch the ball. He's still a bit of a raw route runner, but there is a lot to like here early on. Michigan was the first school to offer.
*** With that said, Henry still has a lot to work on. The whole time I was standing on the sideline watching him, I was thinking 'man, this kid has so much ability, but he doesn't know what the hell he's doing.' Literally, Henry just ran around looking to make plays. He had no technique or discipline and as a result wasn't very productive in a blowout loss. Henry often over pursued and missed ball carriers, got walled off and couldn't fight through double teams. Henry still needs to hit the weight room hard. While he has the speed and length, he lacks strength and power. Henry finished the game with a couple of tackles, one tackle for loss and a few quarterback hurries.
*** Henry is the ultimate boom or bust prospect. He is the poster child of a class full of guys with tremendous ceilings and low floors. If Michigan hits, they've got a guy that can be a multiple All-Big Ten selection. Henry has the frame to add a ton of weight and can be a monster off the edge at about 245-250 pounds. He has never been in a real weight room (his high school one is out in a parking lot) or strength and conditioning program. Development will be so key with Henry. The mental aspect will be as well. Henry lives in a rough part of LA and needs a program like Michigan, where he can focus on school, football and development in a positive and nurturing environment. Again, I feel like he's going to be a star or a guy we never hear from again.
*** Because of this, it makes Henry an extremely tough prospect to rank. Rivals has him graded as a 5.6 mid-three-star. 247 has him graded as an 88 high-three-star. On3 has him graded as a mid-four-star and a Top 120 prospect nationally. That's quite a bit of disagreement. Honestly, I can't bring myself to grade him purely on upside like On3. I would side more with 247 and grade him as a high-three-star. He's just too raw right now. But again, he has everything you want and is going into a great situation at Michigan with Courtney Morgan, who can help him get adjusted from a personal standpoint, and Ben Herbert, who can help with his development.
*** Michigan has an early offer out to three-star 2023 La Puente (Calif.) Bishop Amat defensive end Tiu Afalava. This is another really interesting prospect. Afalava wasn't productive in terms of the stat sheet, but he was a difference maker along the defensive line, logging multiple quarterback hurries and commanding extra attention. Afalava is shorter than his listed 6-foot-3, 250 pounds, so I'm not exactly sure what he best projects at. He has good length for a lack of height (I think he's closer to 6-1 or 6-2) and the frame to add more weight. He may be a defensive tackle in Michigan's new defensive scheme. He played mostly a five-tech for Amat and helped lead a strong defensive effort. Michigan likes him and wants to get him on campus.
*** Before heading out to California, I spent my Thursday on the south side of Chicago watching 2023 Rivals250 wide receiver Malik Elzy. I saw Elzy on multiple occasions this offseason, but this was my first time seeing him in game action, and he didn't disappoint. Elzy racked up more than 100 yards received and scored a pair of touchdowns in Chicago (Ill.) Simeon's blowout win over Chicago (Ill.) Hubbard. Elzy is a big, physical wide receiver at 6-foot-3, 195 pounds. He bullied subpar inner city competition with his size and athleticism. I love Elzy's catch radius and ability to go up and snatch the ball. He's still a bit of a raw route runner, but there is a lot to like here early on. Michigan was the first school to offer.
