Here are my thoughts from watching Markus Allen and Rod Moore last night.
*** I mentioned earlier this offseason that I was impressed with the improvement four-star Michigan wide receiver Markus Allen made in terms of his route running. And that's a big reason why I pushed for Allen to get a bump to four-star status. On his junior film, Allen spends most of his time running simple vertical routes and catching 50/50 balls. That's cool and all, but I wanted to see Allen run the entire route tree. He did that well at practice and in a private workout and really showed off his quickly progressing skillset in-game.
*** Allen finished the game with eight receptions for 87 yards and a touchdown. Most of his catches were for 7-11-yard gains. Allen didn't make a big play deep or moss a kid in the end zone. Instead, he ran more complicated routes and used his size and strong hands to his advantage. Allen made a killing on quick outs and stops. His ability to get in and out of breaks at his size at his age should get you guys really excited. I know Allen is capable of being a physical presence on the outside, I wanted to see a big guy run small guys routes, and he delivered.
*** The intangibles stuck out to me about Allen as well. Allen isn't a super vocal leader, but he gets fired up when his teammates make plays and is obviously a guy the team respects. Remember, Allen is playing through a torn labrum. He could have easily packed it in, gotten surgery and focused on his future at Michigan. But Allen cared so much about his team and community that he decided to play. That exemplifies team first more than anything. I also liked Allen's willingness as a blocker. He likes using his size and strength to dominate opposing corners. Allen is also young for his grade — he just turned 17 — so the sky is the limit for him.
*** When I went out to see Moore at practice a few weeks ago, I mentioned the two things that stood out to me the most were his physicality and closing speed. And those were the same two traits that were on full display on Friday night. Moore spent most of the night in and around the box and recorded a whopping 15 tackles. He comes downhill in a hurry, fills gaps and lives for contact. Moore also takes great pursuit angles and shortened the field on options and tosses. I would like to see Moore wrap up a little more, but his striking ability usually knocks guys down at the high school level. Moore also showed off his athleticism by lining up at wide receiver and making a highlight touchdown catch.
*** In my two live evaluations of Moore, I haven't see him do much in terms of coverage. This was probably a poor game choice to see Moore because the opposition ran the triple option and kept the ball on the ground about 98 percent of the time. Right now, Moore is rated as a 5.7 three-star recruit, and I would probably keep him there for now. He checks the boxes in terms of speed and physicality and his overall ability against the run, but I still want to see him in pass coverage. That's the missing piece for me. I'm not saying he can't do it, I just haven't been able to see him do it.
*** Despite this, I see Moore being a really solid player at Michigan. I would project him as a two-year starter later in his career. The biggest thing for Moore will be developing in the Michigan strength and conditioning program. Right now, he looks about 170-175 pounds and could easily carry 20 more pounds. Again, Moore loves to hit, but he'll need to add strength to keep that playing style at the next level. Again, I'm not too worried about his weight. He has a good frame to add pounds and maintain his speed. Like Allen, Moore is also young for his grade — he turned 17 this summer.
*** I mentioned earlier this offseason that I was impressed with the improvement four-star Michigan wide receiver Markus Allen made in terms of his route running. And that's a big reason why I pushed for Allen to get a bump to four-star status. On his junior film, Allen spends most of his time running simple vertical routes and catching 50/50 balls. That's cool and all, but I wanted to see Allen run the entire route tree. He did that well at practice and in a private workout and really showed off his quickly progressing skillset in-game.
*** Allen finished the game with eight receptions for 87 yards and a touchdown. Most of his catches were for 7-11-yard gains. Allen didn't make a big play deep or moss a kid in the end zone. Instead, he ran more complicated routes and used his size and strong hands to his advantage. Allen made a killing on quick outs and stops. His ability to get in and out of breaks at his size at his age should get you guys really excited. I know Allen is capable of being a physical presence on the outside, I wanted to see a big guy run small guys routes, and he delivered.
*** The intangibles stuck out to me about Allen as well. Allen isn't a super vocal leader, but he gets fired up when his teammates make plays and is obviously a guy the team respects. Remember, Allen is playing through a torn labrum. He could have easily packed it in, gotten surgery and focused on his future at Michigan. But Allen cared so much about his team and community that he decided to play. That exemplifies team first more than anything. I also liked Allen's willingness as a blocker. He likes using his size and strength to dominate opposing corners. Allen is also young for his grade — he just turned 17 — so the sky is the limit for him.
*** When I went out to see Moore at practice a few weeks ago, I mentioned the two things that stood out to me the most were his physicality and closing speed. And those were the same two traits that were on full display on Friday night. Moore spent most of the night in and around the box and recorded a whopping 15 tackles. He comes downhill in a hurry, fills gaps and lives for contact. Moore also takes great pursuit angles and shortened the field on options and tosses. I would like to see Moore wrap up a little more, but his striking ability usually knocks guys down at the high school level. Moore also showed off his athleticism by lining up at wide receiver and making a highlight touchdown catch.
*** In my two live evaluations of Moore, I haven't see him do much in terms of coverage. This was probably a poor game choice to see Moore because the opposition ran the triple option and kept the ball on the ground about 98 percent of the time. Right now, Moore is rated as a 5.7 three-star recruit, and I would probably keep him there for now. He checks the boxes in terms of speed and physicality and his overall ability against the run, but I still want to see him in pass coverage. That's the missing piece for me. I'm not saying he can't do it, I just haven't been able to see him do it.
*** Despite this, I see Moore being a really solid player at Michigan. I would project him as a two-year starter later in his career. The biggest thing for Moore will be developing in the Michigan strength and conditioning program. Right now, he looks about 170-175 pounds and could easily carry 20 more pounds. Again, Moore loves to hit, but he'll need to add strength to keep that playing style at the next level. Again, I'm not too worried about his weight. He has a good frame to add pounds and maintain his speed. Like Allen, Moore is also young for his grade — he turned 17 this summer.
