Michigan’s latest commitment is a familiar face in the film room at Maize n Brew. Three-star Markus Allen was included in my breakdown of a few outside wide receiver prospects that Michigan has recently offered last month.
At the time, I was highest on Allen out of the trio that I scouted. He has received a good bump in the rankings from 247Sports since then, and is now just within the top 500 nationally. I’ve fleshed out my previous assessment of Allen now that he has a report dedicated solely to him.
He was very productive in Ohio’s largest classification, catching 51 balls for 1,099 yards and 15 touchdowns. That’s good for 21.3 yards per catch, making Allen a big play threat whenever he gets the ball.
Allen stands 6-foot-2, 190 pounds and will definitely start out on the outside. Here’s what I wrote about his skillset before.
“He also has jump ball skills to rival (Hal) Presley, possessing good instincts and high-pointing the ball to reach it before the defender can. Here’s a good example where Allen has to come back to the ball and leaps over the cornerback to make the catch.
Before Allen even makes the catch, I like how he decides to break off his route and go deep behind the cornerback instead of cutting in front. He shows savvy in finding spaces in the coverage and gaining separation.”
I was also impressed with his athleticism, calling Allen “extremely fluid and athletic in his movements. He has the ability to adjust on the fly and change direction after the catch to break away from defenders. I really like how smoothly Allen is able to adjust to the ball over his shoulder on this touchdown grab, making it look easy along the way.”
I wasn’t able to find a 40-yard dash for Allen, but he doesn’t look like a burner on film. He is able to easily get by the cornerback on this play because of his terrible positioning, but the safety gains ground on Allen down the field.
Another knock against Allen would be his lack of diversified route running that shows up on tape. Mostly, Allen runs fly routes, fades, and slants. Those are simple routes that don’t require much footwork, but Allen usually didn’t need to do much more to get open. It will take some time to refine his skills under Josh Gattis before he can participate in the entire playbook.
Allen will be a reliable target on the outside that can get open with his savvy and athleticism, while also winning contested balls with his body control and instincts. His lack of top-end speed puts a ceiling on his upside, but he can make up for that in a myriad of ways.