U-M commits sit for Cass Tech

DETROIT, Mich. - Detroit Cass Tech entered yesterday's game against Detroit Renaissance with a 5-3 record, needing one more win to qualify for the MHSAA State Playoffs. Making matters more difficult for the Technicians, they'd have to do it without a couple key players.

"I'm sitting out with a deep thigh bruise," said four-star linebacker Royce Jenkins-Stone, a Michigan commit.

Jenkins-Stone - dressed in street slothes - wasn't the only future Wolverine who missed the game for Cass. four-star cornerback Terry Richardson was in his jersey, but using crutches to get around.

"I have a sprained ankle," Richardson said. "It might be a kind of bad one, but I'm not sure."

Despite lacking two star players, Cass Tech managed to take down Renaissance for a 6-0 win and earn its qualification to the playoffs. The Technicians will find out their playoff fate this Sunday, when the brackets are revealed. Both Michigan commits could be back in the lineup by next week.

Though the two players were unable to suit up for Cass Tech on Thursday, they were ready to support their team in other ways. Richardson in particular acted as another coach on the sidelines, giving technique pointers to younger defensive backs and wide receivers, including 2013 prospect Jourdan Lewis.

Next year, Lewis may be a prospect to keep an eye on. He is yet another in Cass Tech's long line of Division-I caliber defensive backs. He doesn't have the same elite straight-line speed of Richardson, but he has slightly better height, standing about 5-11. He also has good instincts for the game, excelling as a polished route-runner on offense and making solid breaks on the ball as a cornerback. He is a prospect to watch in the 2013 class.