Previously: Last year’s profiles. P Tommy Doman Jr. S Rod Moore. CB Ja’Den McBurrows. LB Jaydon Hood. LB Junior Colson. LB Tyler McLaurin. DE Kechaun Bennett. DE TJ Guy. DE/DT Dominick Giudice. DT George Rooks. DT Rayshaun Benny. NG Ikechukwu Iwunnah. C Greg Crippen. C/G Raheem Anderson. T Giovanni El-Hadi. T Tristan Bounds. TE Louis Hansen. WR Cristian Dixon. WR Xavier Worthy. WR Andrel Anthony Jr.

Del Valle, TX – 6’0”, 222
With Coach Burton (whose kid is going to OSU). [Twitter]		247:                4.09*	4*, 91, #237 overall #15 RB, #37 TX
		Rivals:                3.75*	3*, 5.7, NR overall #29 RB, #78 TX
		ESPN:                3.69*	3*, 78, #117 Midlands, NR Ovr #38 RB, #91 TX
		Composite:                3.85*	3*, .8860, #408 overall #26 RB, #59 TX
		Other Suitors	OklaSt, ND, USC, Utah, UCLA
		YMRMFSPA	Hassan Haskins but fast.
Previously On MGoBlog	Hello post by Brian.
Notes	Twitter. Early enrollee.
Film:
Junior (2019) highlights (Senior unavailable): More Film: 2020 vs West Lake (best team in TX).  Pore-o-vision version of 2019 from his school.

We had a handshake deal, 247Sports. Do you not remember, while apologizing for Charbonnet’s fifth star, that you looked us right in the eye and said (not in writing), that you were going to continue to pretend like running back speed matters? I thought when you let Hassan Haskins remain a three-star that your word was good—friends don’t sign contracts with each other—remember when you said that?

And yet here you are, with another late-rising running back that Jay Harbaugh recruited, one whom every other site was willing to overlook because of his forty time, one who cuts like a banshee, accelerates like a Venom GT, dusts everyone in a super-high Texas league, crumples any object that gets in his path, and will not go down for fewer that two of them, and you did this.

An 86 to a 91 in six months. In THAT six months. I did not expect this of you, 247Sports. Now no more jokes: Sign here acknowledging you will continue to pretend Jay Harbaugh hasn’t been one of Michigan’s most effective assistants of the decade or I swear I’ll start acting like ESPN is actually watching film on the guys they rank as much as you seem to.

[After THE JUMP: People in the Midlands getting run around, run over, and generally made to look rather foolish for getting in the way of the inevitable.]

Jokes aside, 247 explains themselves truly, madly, and deeply. Gabe Brooks, their 247 Midlands analyst, wrote the official eval. Highlights:

“…frame to play in the 220 neighborhood. Terrific north-south hole puncher with requisite long speed to hit the home run…Not the type to string moves together in the open field. Power Five running back at his best getting north-south or in one-cut situations with juice to hit the long ball.” and “thrives when getting north-south as quickly as possible, showing impressive initial burst for a back on the larger end of the spectrum.”

Brooks chose Oklahoma’s Kennedy Brooks (no relation) as a comp. That’s a weird one; Brooks (the RB) is extremely effective (3rd returning RB to PFF), but he ran a 4.48 forty, doesn’t have great balance, and starts dancing when he doesn’t know what to do—like a more compact Chris Perry.

Mike Roach, their Texas analyst, got to Dunlap at #39:

Dunlap is flying too far under the radar for my taste. A big back with a huge frame, Dunlap put together strong testing numbers last time he verified and his production is impressive as well. An upright runner without a lot of wiggle, Dunlap is a great fit for a one-cut system that wants a workhorse to pound the rock.

And Tim Prister of Irish247 wrote “The more you watch Tavierre Dunlap, the more you realize this just might be a hidden gem…in broad daylight” at the start of an amazing evaluation I’m going to share a chunk of, just to demonstrate why I jump at everything he writes on a Michigan-ND battle. For example Prister discussing Dunlap’s vision:

The first thing that jumped out was the fluid hip-swivel when he turns the corner. That is a sign of a player with running back fundamentals, which also include the knack for seeing the hole and hitting it as opposed to dancing around and constantly seeking a lateral escape route. Dunlap is a decisive runner, which is essential on the next level where there’s no time to dance around.

Vision isn’t just seeing the hole; it’s seeing it early enough to set up your move to maximize what you do with that hole, which creates functional wiggle where there might not be as much physical movement. Prister also did this with pad level and lack of fumbles:

His pad level is generally very good. He knows when to lower the pads pre-contact and then churns his feet through contact. There’s a forward lean to his running style, which allows him to fall forward a vast majority of the time.

This is the part where you just say “Haskins.” Brooks:

Dunlap is a bit of an upright galloper in space, but an encouraging aspect of his game is that he regularly lowers his pad level for increased leverage and run-finishing ability when expecting contact. This makes him a tough second-level tackling assignment and is a key part of his big-play ability when he gets loose.

And national recruiting director Steve Wiltfong got that this was a focus from Dunlap’s coach, Charles Burton:

"He's put in tremendous work this summer,” Burton said. “I think he's gotten even faster and he's been doing a lot of work in the passing game so his route tree has expanded and his vertical catches have gotten better. The kid can run anything. That's the great thing about it. He's been staying low so he can cut between the tackles with good lateral movement and explode out of those cuts. That's been coming along well also."

That upshot as a receiver is on the highlight reel as well. It’s a very good reel. Brooks sees upside there—Dunlap’s receptions and yards per increased dramatically his junior year—and really just loves the whole package, coming just short of the word “stud.”

He's a horse in the open field who possesses the power and balance to take on and defeat a second-level defender, while continuing his downfield course to allow for his top-end speed to take over… If you get Dunlap's pads square to the line of scrimmage as soon as possible, you will see him at his best, and he his explosiveness translates to one-cut situations that don't require him to deviate much from that straight-line path. He's a hole-puncher with home run-hitting long speed who could potentially become a multi-year starter with a long-term ceiling beyond the college level.

If only they’d left it at that and not given Dunlap a spot among the top-247 players in the country I could have made him the sleeper of the year instead of the receiver I adore. Or not emphasized it by covering every insane Dunlap game with a separate article. Or not pointed out($, sorry, buy a subscription cheapos) Jay Harbaugh poached this guy after Oklahoma State thought they had it wrapped up.

What was up at Rivals? They were weird, moving Dunlap up near a fourth star (the 44th Texas guy is usually a 5.8 to them) and then dropping him more than even a big year of late bloomers can explain.

They didn’t say much, going into detail on Dunlap only on his commitment to Michigan. This is Sam Spiegelman/Rivals national analyst:

“Dunlap possesses a big frame, but he's nimble and shows a preference to bound runs outside. He's dynamic in a spread offense for Del Valle because he's a physical runner that powers forward and thrives off contact. Because of his combination of size and speed, Dunlap packs home-run potential. He has great feet and balance with the ability to keep his legs churning enough to pick up yards after contact. … Coaches at Del Valle praise Dunlap's ability to be catch out of the backfield … has enough speed to break away in the open field and enough agility to move well laterally. Once in span, Dunlap is a load to bring down …

“Dunlap can run high at times and takes indirect paths to the open field. At his best, he bursts through the line and breaks loose for big gains. On other occasions, Dunlap can stutter and be overly patient, but he's wildly productive and brings a ton of raw potential to the position. He possesses good speed to go along with his downhill running style and provides an element of physicality to his offense.”

Dunlap appeared in one article about regional players who deserve more attention article (Aug 2020):

Dunlap is a big-framed back that's light on his feet, can contribute in the passing game and is powerful enough to run over you or around you. –Spiegelman

…and in another by the same author about who might be in line to get a fourth star with a good 2020. Dunlap had another strong year, though his YPC was 6.0 (564 yards on 94 carries) not 10 like it was the previous two years.

They caught him last October versus West Lake, one of if not the best team in the state. That reel isn’t all touchdowns, but there’s a bunch of fools hurdled on a kickoff return. It wasn’t a great game to scout RBs, unless Michigan’s line is going to get really bad in the next few years.

…

Stop that.

Other People Saying One Vicious Cut and Accelerate. The scout on Tavierre Dunlap is so straightforward I won’t belabor the points. He finds the crease, cuts to it with reptilian agility, then blasts through it, straight forward.

• Spiegelman:
• Touch the Banner: Dunlap is a no-nonsense runner. He gets the ball and gets north-south quickly. He runs with some power, and he’s not afraid to lower his shoulder. (On the commitment)
• SI (Unsigned): Patient runner with subtle quickness and bounce. One-cut style built for spread/modern football with some finishing power when he plays behind his pads. Acceleration in the open field may be best trait with ability to make initial defender miss a close second. Vision and no-nonsense style makes for efficiency.
• Coach Hayes: (paraphrasing) Pros: are 1) Already got the size of a college running back, 2) vision to bend/break/bounce, 3) accelerated extremely quickly, 4) runs behind his pads (not one clip did he fall backwards on a tackle), 5) protects the football. Con: Need more pass pro on the clips. Hayes was really into Dunlap. “He’s smooth man—watch this jump cut.” “Referee almost pulled a hammy trying to catch up with this dude.” (This was the MGoSlack response when we were watching Dunlap when Michigan looked ready to get him).
• Tavierre Dunlap (via EJ Holland): I feel like I have a good combination of power and speed. If somebody else was looking at me, they’d say ‘this dude is huge, so he must be a downhill runner, and he’s probably slow.’ But I’m fast. That throws people off. I’m not one to get hawked down or anything like that. I’m a speed runner, but the power is there.

Believe the Forty or Your Eyes or Both I guess: 247 reports that Dunlap ran a 4.63 forty and an 11.23 in the 100-meter as a sophomore in March 2019 (at the Opening/Houston), as well as a 40-foot-10-inch triple jump that spring in track. That’s not a burner; it’s faster than Haskins I should think. They also said he “plays as fast or faster on the field” and that is evident from the highlight reel, where Dunlap is rarely stopped before the end zone. TTB also acknowledges “His breakaway speed against good competition appears better than his so-so forty time would indicate.”

For the record, Saquon Barkley ran a 4.66 in high school.

Room to grow? We’re going to dispense with all the talk that Dunlap could grow to 215 or 218 because Michigan claims he’s already 220. The other main complaint is a lack of wiggle. Brooks/247:

While Dunlap has shown enough agility in the hole to make the first defender miss, he can still improve his short-area fluidity in that department. Because he's bigger and a more straight-line explosive athlete, Dunlap sometimes needs some room and an extra step or two to gear back up after changing directions. He's not a make-you-miss back who will string together spin moves and jukes at the second level, but at the same time, you don't really want him to try that with his build and straight-line burst.

TTB was harsher.

Dunlap doesn’t show a whole lot of wiggle, and that breakaway speed could be deceiving. If teams can bottle him up at the line of scrimmage, I’m not sure how much he can create on his own.

Yes, we stole the guy from Oklahoma State. No, he’s not Barry Sanders.

Et tu, Rivals? 247 wasn’t the only site ruining one of the Great Takes.

EJ: It sounds like Michigan running backs coach Jay Harbaugh really won you over. What’s your relationship like with him?

TD: We have a really good relationship. I feel like we think the same. I’m kind of like a big overthinker. He understood that when we first talked. I don’t know how to explain it, but we clicked. He likes the fact that I think a lot. It’s a gift and a curse to think about what everyone else is doing on the field. I had this exact same conversation with him, too.

Etc. From Chicago (Schaumberg) originally, and good grades/test scores. Same head coach who had Troy Woolfolk, Darryl Stonum, and Brandon Herron at Dulles HS in Sugar Land (where my archaeologist sister’s been digging). This timeline of Fighting Irish recruiting isn’t a vaccine booster but I would like it injected nevertheless.

September 12: Commitment – RB Tavierre Dunlap (Michigan). With Logan Diggs onboard, losing Tavierre Dunlap to Michigan wasn’t considered a major loss. But it was notable in that the Texas running back represented another recruit the Irish may have managed to land had visits been available.

December 14: Offer – RB Audric Estime.  A surprise to few, with Donovan Edwards trending to Michigan, the Irish extended an offer to powerhouse running back Audric Estime. Although he was committed to Michigan State, it seemed Notre Dame was likely to pull out the win.

December 18: Commitment - RB Audric Estime & S Khari Gee

Also this is a pro-level coach quote:

“Oh man, first off all the dude, he’s super consistent and that’s with everything,” Burton said in the past. “That’s with his work ethic and approach to practice, his mentality, he doesn’t have any up and down days. He comes to work every single day, not saying that’s rare, but he never stops and I can appreciate that as a head coach, especially with him having a leadership position in our program.”

Also: Adam Gorney’s SEC specs Part ICVIII.

Why Hassan Haskins but Fast? Because I need a beverage, Fred. I mean, this comp is so close to Hassan Haskins that I feel like I learned something about Hassan Haskins while reading Tim Prister’s breakdown. There’s a section of Steve O (MGoFish)’s video breakdown for MnB on Dunlap where the video switches for several minutes to Hassan’s high school highlight reel, and until you realize it’s a different dude you’re just like “Why did they slow down Tavierre Dunlap?”

Variance: High. Rivals was up and down but settled well into 3-star zone (Teric Jones, Vincent Smith, Karan Higdon). ESPN kept him a low 3-star (Hassan Haskins, Pierre Rembert, Thomas Rawls). 24/7 went right past the low 4-stars and into the top 250 (Brandon Minor, De’Veon Smith, Sam McGuffie, Chris Perry, David Underwood).

Ceiling: High. I am a huge Hassan Haskins stan (if you can’t tell by his jersey hanging behind me when I’m on WTKA). That with more speed is a very good power back. That with more speed and vertical routes is a major weapon. That and the ability to score—mmm. Brandon Minor and De’Veon Smith were excellent backs here too. Speed removes the ceiling but that’s a small thing. A guy who can one-cut and accelerate faster than the defense can close ranks is such a good fit for Harbaugh’s dream offense the biggest thing to worry about (other than pass pro) is whether we should be giving Jim such a tool.

General Excitement Level: High. Match me to 247’s take exactly. This is a great find by Jay—Oklahoma State has had some great backs come through lately, including Dax Hill’s brother—and fills a need now that Charbonnet’s gone and Haskins is the only real Thunder on the roster.

Projection: Michigan only has four scholarship backs so Dunlap probably can’t redshirt. Good thing he’s already 220. That’s fine, even if his testing numbers won’t interest the NFL enough to take him immediately, because as soon as Haskins is gone they’re going to need Dunlap to be ready. If they lose Haskins this year, they’ll want Dunlap to be ready too.

Will he be? So far it’s been a clear three-man pecking order when they’ve discussed the backs. I can only assume that Dunlap is still adjusting to Big Ten football, and learning to pass block. His frame is right to be effective at stopping LB momentum without resorting to Hart’s duck-under strategy, but it takes a lot more time to develop that. The rest of his game is ready. I’m not expecting big breakaway runs, but if he’s just Haskins 2.0 that sets Michigan’s backfield up for success for a very long time.

And it’s probably long past time we recognize Jay Harbaugh for moving in when Michigan literally had a walk-on atop the depth chart, and building out this RB room. Hat tip to you, Jay, and thanks for all the backs. (Now go make All a Butt).