Michigan Football Signee Bio: DT Phillip Paea

• Paea has recorded 14 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press and maxes out at 340.

• As a senior, he blocked for a rushing attack that ran for 3,242 yards and 48 touchdowns. Paea also had 56 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, three sacks, one forced fumble and one pass breakup on defense.

• As a junior, Paea had 62 tackles including 12 for loss, one sack and two fumble recoveries.

• While playing linebacker as a sophomore, Paea recorded 69 tackles.

• USA Today All-USA Michigan first-team offensive lineman.

• Named to the Detroit News and Detroit Free Press All-State dream team.

• Named the No. 9 senior in the state by the Detroit Free Press; checked in at No. 11 on the Lansing State Journal’s Catch 22 list and the Detroit News Blue Chip List.

• 2016 Division 5-6 Associated Press All-State Player of the Year.

• 2016 and 2015 Division 5-6 Associated Press All-State first team.

• Attended Nike’s The Opening regional camp in Salt Lake City in 2015.

• Selected for the inaugural Polynesian Bowl Jan. 21, 2017; he was the only participant to play on both offense and defense.

• Committed April 2, 2016 and never wavered. An official visit to Oregon was discussed but never materialized.

• Defensive line coach Greg Mattison and former director of player personnel Tony Tuioti were both instrumental in Michigan landing Paea.

• Born March 25, 1999.

• Is of Tongan descent and led his Berrien Springs team in the haka, a traditional war cry, dance or challenge from the Māori people of New Zealand, before each game.

• Paea is a distant relative of Michigan defensive tackle Bryan Mone. Their families originated from the same island in Tonga.

• Roomed with fellow Michigan commit Josh Ross at the Polynesian Bowl.

Paea is a big, strong and athletic lineman who can realistically play on both sides of the ball. He’s listed as an offensive guard by Rivals.com but will start out playing defense at Michigan. His natural abilities have yet to be molded, giving him a lot of upside that he’ll likely realize down the road. He seems like a safe bet for a redshirt in 2017 unless that process goes much quicker than expected starting this fall.

Berrien Springs (Mich.) High Head Coach Tony Scaccia: "I think that his ceiling is a little higher on the offensive side because of his athleticism. There are other athletic, 300-pound defensive tackles. He's about 285 or 287, so he'll be at 300 pounds eventually and I just think he is a devastating run blocker. We don't have a seven-step package or a lot of passing in our offense so I think he could still grow leaps and bounds in his pass protection. It's just not something that we do that much. I don't think he's even scratched the surface on what he can do as an offensive lineman. He wants to run, chase and tackle though, and he's going to be really good at that too. For a kid his size, to be able to run like he does — and with such agility — is special. He is strong as a bull too, so he'll excel at both I think."

Rivals.com Midwest Recruiting Analyst Josh Helmholdt: "He’ll translate no matter what position he plays. We made him about as high of a three-star as you could make a guy without having seen him much in person. We’re always going to be conservative when we haven’t seen a guy in person, so just off of film he’s already on the cusp of four-star status. … He’s a very talented kid and has a lot of potential. In my opinion, he was a no-brainer offer for the in-state schools. I’m excited to see more of him because I do think that his upside and his ceiling are very high."