3 Michigan commits move up, 1 moves down in latest rankings update

The 2019 247Sports composite rankings were updated this week, and it features mainly good news for Michigan commitments.

4-star running back Zach Charbonnet is now a fringe top-100 player, as he moved up 66 spots from 170 to 104. He is now ranked No. 3 in Michigan’s 2019 class, right behind 5-star safety Daxton Hill and 5-star defensive lineman Chris Hinton.

Michigan’s other highly-touted 4-star running back, Eric Gray, also got a boost in the rankings, going from 219 to 210. He is Michigan’s No. 6 player in the class.

Finally, a guy that was due for a ratings bump, 3-star cornerback DJ Turner moved up 52 spots from 452 to 400. He is still a 3-star talent, but is now Michigan’s second-ranked 3-star recruit, right behind...

Newly downgraded defensive end Mike Morris. He was once a 4-star talent, but slipped from 326 to 380. The former Florida State commit, listed at 6-foot-5 and 255 pounds, is one of three players to lose a fourth star, joining uncommitted defensive end Dante Walker and Purdue wide receiver commit TJ Sheffield.

So what does all this mean? Pretty much what we had been expecting this whole time. Charbonnet was set for a big rise in the rankings thanks to phenomenal tape and a great senior year in his limited action (92 carries, 920 yards, nine touchdowns, according to our own Jon Simmons).

Gray, per Simmons, has 26 total touchdowns this year, so it’s fair to say he was due, too.

Turner was originally ranked lower due to playing all over the place in the secondary. Now that he found his home at cornerback, it’s fair to give him a boost, too (11 tackles, four pass breakups, three tackles for loss, two interceptions, one pick-six, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery).

Morris is the interesting one here. According to Simmons, Morris has recorded 46 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, one sack, one fumble forced and one fumble recovery this season. From Simmons’ statistics, Morris actually leads all U-M commits in tackles for loss, something Michigan defensive ends rack up under defensive coordinator Don Brown.

But at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if you are No. 1 or No. 1,000. All that matters is the work you put in.

Sophomore defensive end Kwity Paye is a perfect example. Paye was the No. 486 overall player in the 2017 class — the lowest-ranked lineman in that class for the Wolverines. But he has also been their best defensive lineman thus far in that class; yes, even better than 5-star Aubrey Solomon.

Ronnie Bell was the No. 1,476 player in last year’s class. He was originally committed to play basketball at Missouri State, but now has 80 yards and two touchdowns as a true freshman reserve.

Then there are the highly-recruited players who never lived up to their rankings (Derrick Green, Shane Morris, Kareem Walker, the list goes on).

Bottom line — don’t be discouraged by Morris’ downgrade, but also don’t be overly encouraged by the boost for Gray, Charbonnet and Turner. Once these guys get to Michigan, all their stars will be gone and they will have to work to earn their stripes, as cornerbacks coach Mike Zordich put it last week.