Michigan football lands top-100 safety Kainoa Winston, top player in Washington D.C.

If “slow and steady wins the race” really does hold true, then the Michigan football program is trending in exactly the right direction.

Though the Wolverines landed just their seventh high school recruit in the 2025 class — only the third directly committed to new head coach Sherrone Moore — it comes in the form of four-star safety prospect Kainoa Winston out of Washington Gonzaga High School.

The 5-foot-10, 185-pound defensive back is the No. 88 rated player in America for the class of 2025 according to 247Sports Composite rankings; he also comes in as the country’s No. 9 safety and the top player from the city of Washington, one of the nation’s top athletic hot beds.

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Winston committed to defensive backs coach Lamar Morgan, defensive coordinator Wink Martindale and the Wolverines over the likes of Oregon, North Carolina and Penn State, where his cousin, Kevin Winston, is a defensive back.

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“Quick to locate the football and is not afraid to jump a route,” writes 247Sports director of scouting Andrew Irvins. “Has proven to be a rather spirited tackler in run support and seems to frequently be seeking out contact. Agile and fluid enough in the lower half to man-up with wide receivers and tight ends, but hasn’t been asked to press a ton on Friday nights.

“Based on what he has put on tape thus far, should be viewed as a potential defensive playmaker for a Power Five program that could play over the top, in the box, or even in the slot. Likely to add plenty of value on special teams units at the program of his choice.”

Though seen as potentially undersized for the Power Five level, Winston…


Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/michigan-football-lands-top-100-170249876.html

Author : Detroit Free Press

Publish date : 2024-06-14 17:02:49

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