Michigan Wolverines Football Signee Bio: Defensive End Michael Morris
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Boca Raton (Fla.) American Heritage four-star weakside defensive end Michael Morris is officially a Wolverine.
Statistics
• As a senior, Morris recorded 89 tackles, including 25 for loss and five sacks. He also caused two fumbles, recovered two fumbles and blocked a punt, which he returned for a touchdown.
• As a junior, Morris tallied 84 tackles and four sacks.
• As a freshman at Cardinal Newman, Morris racked up 55 tackles overall and also finished with a team-high 13 sacks.
Honors
• Per one of the coaches at American Heritage, Morris was a first-team all-state honoree as a senior.
• He was the runner up in the Palm Beach Post’s Super 11 at the end of the regular season in 2018.
• Morris checked in at No. 16 on the preseason list of the top 30 prospects in the class of 2019 from Palm Beach County put together by The Sun Sentinel.
• As a junior, Morris was a first-team all-area pick despite playing with a torn labrum for most of the season.
• As a freshman, was named first-team all-county and second-team all-state for Division 4A.
Recruitment
• Morris had been committed to Florida State from Feb. 2016 all the way until Sept. 2018 before ultimately flipping his commitment to the Wolverines after a stellar official visit. He pledged to U-M on Sept. 9, 2018.
• Michigan defensive line coach Greg Mattison spearheaded Morris' recruitment, but defensive coordinator Don Brown was a very big part of the flip as well.
• Morris chose the Wolverines over schools like Clemson, Florida, Miami, Tennessee, Oklahoma and West Virginia, among others.
Did You Know?
• Father, Michael Morris Sr., played football at Florida State in the 1980s.
• A torn labrum kept Morris from competing in offseason camps this past year.
They Said It
Rivals.com Florida recruiting analyst Rob Cassidy: "Morris has got a great build. He looks incredible getting off of the bus and he's got a giant ceiling because he has the traits you can't teach. He's got great size and is pretty athletic, but he needs to stay injury free; he's dealt with that in high school.
"He really needs to hone in and develop as a defensive end too because he spent some time playing tight end earlier in his career. If he could become less of an athlete and more of a football player, I think he could be great. I don't think he'll play right away and he could really benefit from a redshirt season, but he's a high-upside guy that just might not pay off right away."
American Heritage head coach Keith Hindsley: “He’s definitely got a huge ceiling, with the way he works, and his character is phenomenal. He came to Heritage as a sophomore and has been a Heritage kid. His character is what makes him a man.”
2019 Projection
It feels like Morris has several options once he gets to Michigan. His current size and growth potential give him a chance to play on the inside, but if he stays close to where he is now and gets faster, playing the anchor defensive end seems very realistic.
Wherever he ends up, he'll have a chance to learn and get comfortable with high-level football before he'll ever be truly needed.
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