Michigan Football: Additional thoughts on Tristan Bounds commitment

The Michigan football program added its 17th commitment in the 2021 class and here’s more in-depth thoughts on offensive lineman Tristan Bounds.

When you look at the work Michigan football offensive line coach Ed Warriner has done on the recruiting trail and on the field, you have to come away impressed.

In two years, he has transformed Michigan football’s offensive line back into a strength and the Wolverines have been killing it with recruiting too. Monday, U-M added its fourth offensive line commitment in the 2021 class in three-star recruit Tristan Bounds.

Bounds isn’t highly rated but he has the physical tools to be a left tackle at Michigan. He’s 6-foot-8 or close depending on the measurements you believe and he’s about 280 pounds. Certainly, he will need to add some weight and he will need time to develop, but Warriner and the Wolverines are getting a guy with tons of upside.

More from GBMWolverine

• 3 things to watch for Michigan football vs. Rutgers
• Michigan football vs. Rutgers: Prediction, Odds, Spread and Over/Under for College Football Week 4
• Michigan Wolverines news: Jim Harbaugh wants J.J. McCarthy ‘gunslinging’, plus a drop in recruiting rankings
• Grades, game balls for Michigan football vs. Bowling Green
• Michigan Wolverines news: Jake Moody is money in the NFL, plus more

Bounds didn’t make my list of 10 ideal commitments to close out the 2021 class, instead I went with Garrett Dellinger, but the addition of Bounds makes a lot of sense too. For one, it doesn’t mean that Michigan football is suddenly giving up on Dellinger, a top-100 recruit from in state.

Even though LSU seems like the favorite now, if Dellinger wanted to come, the Wolverines would take him and Bounds. Heck, Michigan could take as many as six or seven offensive lineman, depending how things work out with Drew Kendall and Rocco Spindler.

Michigan also has a commitment from Giovanni El-Hadi, another top-100 offensive tackle from the state of Michigan. He’s a really solid building block and that kind of gives the Wolverines a chance to swing for the fences with Bounds, who had strong interest from Notre Dame, Virginia and Boston College.

You know you are getting a really solid prospect in El-Hadi and now Bounds gives you a kid with the potential to become a starting left tackle too. He has the size and athleticism, he just needs to be refined and needs to get stronger.

Playing in Connecticut, it’s harder to judge too because the competition isn’t at the level it is in other parts of the country. That means it could take Bounds some time to adjust and he will certainly need a year to redshirt, maybe another before he’s ready to compete for a starting job.

But with a bunch of young, talented offensive tackles, Michigan won’t have to rush his development and now, even if U-M strikes out on Dellinger, it will still come away with a left tackle with starting caliber traits.