Michigan Football: Dynamic 2020 athlete RJ Moten commits to Wolverines

Michigan football is hosting its annual recruiting BBQ this weekend and things have already got off to a strong start as 2020 four-star, RJ Moten has committed.

The Michigan football program has been building momentum on the recruiting trail over the last couple of months and that momentum continued Saturday as the Wolverines landed a key commitment from 2020 four-star RJ Moten.

Moten is one of the top players from the state of New Jersey in 2020 and is ranked in the top 100, No. 93 to be exact according to the 247 sports network rankings, while the composite rankings have him as the No. 287 prospect overall.

The dual-sport athlete from Delran, New Jersey, stands 6-foot and weighs 200 pounds. He played both running back and safety in high school, but projects to be a defensive back with Michigan football. 247 sports has him as the sixth-best safety in 2020, he’s 27th in the composite.

Many expected Moten to commit to Michigan football. All of the crystal balls have been trending in that direction and when said he would decide today, while at the UM BBQ, it seemed like a done deal. He then announced early Saturday morning on Twitter.

Moten is an intriguing prospect because of his versatility. When you watch his high school highlights, he is a very natural runner and seems to excel in that role, which could possibly give Michigan an option to play him there if depth required it down the road.

But at safety, he’s just a perfect fit. He doesn’t have blazing speed in the 40. He was tested in the low 4.6 range. However, he tested really well short shuttle and had a 40-inch vertical jump. Those skills translate perfectly to the safety position.

Some teams even looked at using him as a slot receiver, however, he is a physical defender that has good range on the backend. His tackling is sound and he also offers some return ability, which could help him get on the field right away.

While football has always been a huge part of his recruitment, Moten is a dual-sport athlete and one potential hangup was whether or not Jim Harbaugh would let him play baseball too. Other schools had made that promise, but when Michigan football gave him the go-ahead to also play baseball for the Wolverines, that sealed the deal.

Moten is the 23rd player to commit to the Michigan football in 2020 and he is the second safety. Jordan Morant, also of New Jersey, also pledged to join the Wolverines this summer. Another safety, Makari Paige who is visiting this weekend, could join them.

Michigan now holds 100 percent of his crystal ball projections and the Wolverines have been on the rise. Like Moten, don’t be shocked if Paige joins the 2020 class by the end of the weekend.

For now at least, with Moten, Michigan gets another dynamic athlete who has the potential to help the Wolverines in all three phases of the game.