Michigan Football Signee Bio: DE Kwity Paye

• At Nike’s The Opening regional camp in New Jersey in 2016, ran a 4.75-second 40-yard dash and a 4.47 20-yard shuttle. Also recorded a vertical jump of 35.2 inches and recorded a power throw of 34.0 feet.

• As a senior, Paye had 65 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and one pass breakup. He also had 44 carries for 651 yards and 13 touchdowns.

• During his junior season, Paye made 68 tackles with five hits for a loss, and had 5.5 sacks, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and a blocked field goal. Also rushed the ball 19 times for 244 yards and eight touchdowns, and returned one kick for 15 yards.

• As a sophomore, Paye notched 76 tackles, six tackles for a loss, four sacks and one forced fumble. He also returned four kickoffs for 90 yards.

• Named the 2016 Gatorade Player of the Year for Rhode Island.

• Selected the 2016 USA Today Defensive Player of the Year for Rhode Island and named to the publication’s All-USA Rhode Island first team for the second straight year.

• Providence Journal All-State first-team pick as a junior and senior.

• Participated in the Under Armour All-American game and notched a tackle for loss and a quarterback hurry in the game.

• Attended Rivals Camp Series New Jersey in 2016.

• Paye originally committed to Boston College in December of 2015 while Don Brown was still running the defense in Cherry Hill.

• Nine months later, Brown was at Michigan and offered Paye an opportunity to play in Ann Arbor.

• Paye officially visited Michigan Oct. 1, 2016 for the Wisconsin game and flipped to the Wolverines Oct. 23.

• Brown was the key cog in snatching Paye from Boston College.

• Born Nov. 19, 1998 in a refugee camp in Guinea and immigrated to the United States with his mother and brother when he was 6 months old.

• Named “Kwity” after his grandfather who was killed by rebels in a civil war.

• Won the fan vote to play in the Under Armour All-America Game.

• His high school has won seven consecutive state championships in Rhode Island.

• Was a member of the state champion 4x100 meter relay team.

• Won the state championship in the long jump as a junior with a mark of 21 feet, 5 inches.

Paye is an intriguing prospect because he brings a lot of athleticism to the defensive line. The unit needs depth in 2017, and that will make room for some youngsters to contribute. Other commits like James Hudson, Luiji Vilain, and maybe even Donovan Jeter might appear to be more ready to play as freshmen, but Paye has a knack for getting to the quarterback and is an extremely hard worker who could find his way into a rotation.

Rivals.com Mid-Atlantic Recruiting Analyst Adam Friedman: "He’s seeing competition in Rhode Island that players in other regions don’t even see at the JV level. He’s so much better physically than everyone else on the field that he looks like a man among boys on tape.

“That being said, he is very physically talented, and it would likely translate to wherever he plays. At a place like Michigan, with coaching from Don Brown, he could really blossom into a special player."

Warwick (R.I.) Bishop Hendricken Head Coach Keith Croft: “Kwity does a little bit of everything for us, but his main position is defensive end. We put him at running back and he breaks off big runs.

“He has the stuff that you can’t really teach — it’s a lot of God-given talent. He’s one of those freak athletes. He’s the state long jump champion, he runs one of the legs of the 4x100 meter relay that won a state championship — he’s got it all, speed, size, and strength.”