Michigan football struck gold Friday, landing four-star wide receiver Xavier Worthy and here’s an in-depth breakdown of his addition.
Following the news that Michigan football and the rest of the Big Ten was only going to play a conference schedule in the 2020 season, there was a lot of doom and gloom to start Friday.
But, thankfully, Michigan football and basketball fans alike had something to cheer about. It started with the commitment of four-star basketball player Kobe Bufkin. And shortly after he pledged to Juwan Howard, four-star wide receiver Xavier Worthy, also committed to Michigan.
To say landing Worthy is huge is an understatement. While he’s ranked as a three-star prospect by Rivals (who in the hell knows why) he’s ranked in the top 100 overall by 247 sports and in the 247 composite, the 6-foot-1 Worthy is ranked 175th. He also runs a 10.55 in the 100-meter dash.
https://twitter.com/Xavierworthy2/status/1281688509351223298
Talk about speed in space.
Offensive coordinator Josh Gattis played a key role in securing the commitment of Worthy, as did rising sophomore Giles Jackson, who is also from California.
Not long ago, all of Worthy’s crystal ball projections had him going to Oregon and it looked like he was going to be a Duck. However, the Wolverines never wavered in their pursuit, viewing Worthy as a core piece and eventually, there was a sea change in his recruitment.
The crystal balls started trending to Michigan football and Friday, Worthy picked the Wolverines over other top contenders which included Alabama and Georgia.
In terms of commitments, it’s a significant one and here are three takeaways.
Wolverines are getting a Desean Jackson type
When it comes to Worthy and his scouting report, a simple word to use is explosive. Here’s a part of his scouting report from 247 sports’ Brandon Huffman:
"“Explosive speedster with elite speed (10.55 PR in 100m as sophomore), dynamic playmaker with the ball in his hands. Projects as immediate impact Power 5 player and second or third day NFL draft pick.”"
Worthy has the kind of elite speed that Michigan has been trying to add in recent years. Jackson is obviously a dynamic player too and Worthy will be used in much the same way, the difference is that he’s 6-foot-1, which adds to his playmaking ability.
Gattis really sold Worthy on the Wolverines offense and with his ability to get deep, to carry the football and run routes, his potential is almost unlimited.
Worthy also gives 2021 quarterback commit J.J. McCarthy another prospect to get excited about in addition to Christian Dixon and Markus Allen, as well as four-star tight end Louis Hansen. It also gives Michigan the elite receiver it was lacking so far in the 2021 class.
Speed-in-space isn’t talk
When Josh Gattis came to Michigan football he said he was going to bring an offense focused on speed-in-space. In other words, getting guys who have speed, the football in space to do something with it.
It’s not really a complicated philosophy. The biggest trick is having the players to do it and after the last two recruiting classes, the Wolverines are definitely in a good spot.
Giles Jackson and Mike Sainristil were big additions in the 2019 class as the Wolverines already started adding more slot-type players on offense. It continued last year with A.J. Henning and each of the past two classes have brought a really good vertical wideout too. In 2019, it was Cornelius Johnson and in 2020, it was Roman Wilson.
In 2021, Michigan is hitting all the targets at wide receiver, getting three of the top guys on their board according to Steve Lorenz of The Michigan Insider ($). Worthy can basically do it all. He can play outside, line up in the slot and kill it in both roles. Allen and Dixon are bigger bodied, outside receivers. Both show a knack for catching the ball in traffic and getting deep, even though they don’t offer blazing speed.
Pairing Worthy with those guys, along with Henning, Jackson, Sainristil and Johnson in the future is an exciting prospect, not only for Gattis, but all Michigan’s future quarterbacks.
The next domino
As the third receiver in the 2021 class and the 20th commitment overall, Worthy makes the addition of another receiver less likely, although Michigan still has interest in four-star Jayden Thomas. It’s just going to come down to numbers. Four receivers does seem possible though.
With 20 verbal commitments, there aren’t tons of spots left in the class, especially considering guys like Donovan Edwards, Rocco Spindler, Rayshaun Benny, George Rooks, Drew Kendall and Kamonte Grimes are all out there and have each been projected to Michigan.
Thomas and running back Tavierre Dunlap, who just included Michigan football in his updated top list, are also possibilities. Either way, Worthy is significant and according to Sam Webb of The Michigan Insider, it could even help convince Edwards further to commit to Michigan.
Webb writes how Edwards wants to be part of a really talented class and the addition of Worthy, plus the possible commitments of Benny, who is trending to Michigan in crystal balls and Rocco Spindler, who is now expected to decide Aug. 8, would seem to suffice.
The biggest worry I’ve had about Michigan’s class is a lack of elite offensive talent around McCarthy. Allen and Dixon are solid. Hansen is really good too. That’s not a knock on them.
But Worthy is a different kind of player and while he doesn’t make getting Edwards any less important, his commitment ensures Michigan football will get at least one elite, future NFL-caliber skill guy to go with their five-star QB.