And we are now caught up. I had this whole conversation with a guy who follows recruiting really tightly where he was like “We got Damani!” And I was like “For real?” And he was like “Yep, he’s going to announce!” And I was like “Oh wow that’s huge! Is he coming as a safety or a cornerback?” And he was like “At safety, specifically Dax Hill’s position, but he could play anywhere in the secondary!” And I was like “That’s amazing, all glory to Courtney Morgan!” And he went “Actually all glory to George Helow—he’s the dude who recruits Jacksonville and was recruiting Dent to Maryland before.” And I was like wait, what?

I may have confused an ‘a’ for an ‘o’ but the rest of this conversation holds up, and as soon as the recruiting rankers get caught up themselves it seems there’s a good chance that Michigan finally managed to reel in one of these late-breaking, hyper-athletic safeties they kept finding on their way up the rankings last year. I’m thinking of Donovan McMillon, Daymon David, D’Arco Perkins-McAllister—you know, a D guy!

And yes, Courtney Morgan and Ron Bellamy were of course highly involved, as was the head man himself. Michigan clearly made Dent a priority. Meanwhile the people who do the recruiting rankings were determined to make sure that twit who thinks recruiting stars are the only measure of a life’s value would burn another $5 MGoBlog account to say so.

GURU RATINGS

Rivals: 6’1”/179	ESPN: 6’0”/185	247: 6’0”/190	247 Comp
3*, 5.6, NR Ovr NR S, NR FL	No rating	3*, 86, NR Ovr #55 S, #95 FL	3*, 0.8355, #1406 Ovr, #100 S, #192 FL
3.50*	NR	3.61* ⬆⬆	3.36 ⬆

Arrows show trend of recruiting rankings. An arrow is like a third of a star.

So yeah, we were expecting there to be quite a few players in this class (and many more in the next one) who popped late because a crucial year in their scouting was wiped out, and Dent fits the bill. 247 went from 81 to 84 in late July, then up to 86 (still a middling 3-star) at the end of September. ESPN doesn’t have a rating yet. Rivals recently slapped a 5.6 on him without ranking him among his position or state. FWIW, their #50 (last ranked) safety right now is MSU commit Quavian Carter, who’s a 3.56 on my 5-star scale, and their #100 player in Florida is DT Jordan Phillips, the guy from Ocoee who nearly committed to Michigan earlier this cycle, who would be a 3.53.

With all due respect to Michigan State recruiting and Phillips, neither of those guys were getting heavy interest from Oregon and Georgia when they committed.

[Hit THE JUMP for scouting, video, and the rest.]

SCOUTING

Right, so the problem with a guy nobody’s scouted is nobody’s scouted him. The best we’ve got outside of camp performances and coach quotes is this assessment from 247’s staff (probably contributed by area scout Andrew Ivins) when they bumped him to an 86 at the end of September:

Damani Dent is an intriguing projection to safety in the long term given his two-way snaps and the ball skills likely fostered by that experience. He has ample meaningful snaps at multiple levels of the defense, and his body control in contested situations and general on-field play strength are also encouraging. Dent is a natural football player who displays some short-area suddenness that should help him as he continues to develop his man coverage abilities. In the first four games of Jacksonville (Fla.) Parker's season, Dent has recorded 30 tackles and two pass breakups as a consistent presence against the run and the pass (he also has caught three passes for 31 yards at receiver). Dent ascends from an 84 rating to an 86 on 247Sports.

That’s not that high of a ranking, and seems short for that description. Dent tried Alabama’s camp but got lost in the cascade of 5-stars, despite, according to Dent himself, performing as well as anybody there:

“I was at Alabama, I locked up everybody at Alabama camp and did my thing and stood out and they said they had too many spots, spots were closed so Nick couldn’t offer me that day,” Dent explained. He fully reopened his recruitment in August. “They wanted to offer me but they couldn’t offer me. After that a coach at Alabama knew somebody at Oregon, Coach Chance and he got on me and didn’t hesitate to talk to me.”

Sounds nice to be Alabama. 247’s (the state of) Florida guy Andrew Ivins got to see Dent at UF’s camp:

Akron might be getting a bit of a steal in Jacksonville (Fla.) Terry Parker safety Damani Dent as he proved to be one of the top defensive backs over the course of the three-hour camp. He's got a smooth backpedal.

The UF camp performance precipitated the Pitt offer, but it was the Oregon camp in late July that really put Dent’s name on the map:

Perhaps the biggest diamond in the rough of the day came in the form of three-star safety Damani Dent of Jacksonville (Fla.). There might not have been a more consistent performer in 1-on-1 reps than the Akron commit. He was physical at the line of scrimmage, quick in recovery, and broke up numerous passes. While his current offers list features schools like Georgia State, Eastern Kentucky, and Florida A&M, it seems highly likely bigger schools come calling soon — possibly even the Ducks.

Maven’s Oregon site also seemed to notice:

During the camp portion of SNL, the Jacksonville native was one of the key standouts on the field. He routinely stuck with the talented receiver group in coverage and physically looked far more impressive than his rating would suggest.

And so did NBC Sports, whom I guess was on hand because Oregon calls their camp Saturday Night Live?

Damani Dent is underrated

Arguably the top performer on the defensive side of the football was Damani Dent, an Akron commit from Jacksonville, FL. He routinely broke up passes during 1-on-1s against the wide receiver and tight end prospects, including a few near-interceptions. The 6', 175-pound cornerback nearly intercepted a ball while lined up against a much taller tight end, due to proper positioning and closing on the ball while in the air. Dent will not be committed to Akron for much longer if I were to speculate.

This was also the very first bullet point in that article. Like this NBCsports guy went to the camp, wrote an introduction, then went right to the <h1> tag:

The Ducks had already offered by the time these article posted. 247 Oregon writer Jared Mack spoke to Dent the next day about one of the plays everyone noticed, and this struck me because can you remember a recruit talking about subtleties like this before?:

One moment, in particular, stood out in Dent’s performance, as he perfectly read a slant & go route to the boundary. Dent didn’t cover the receiver to the boundary, understanding through a technique that the receiver would make his next move going up the sideline.

“Because he's not fully committed to his route,” said Dent. “If he came and leaned on me then I would have committed but he never took the action to lean on. You got to realize I'm fast so I can get to the sideline quicker than him. So I could have made a play if it was an out route, but he never committed the drive all the way outside and turn his head. All he did is went that way and cut up, so I knew the route.”

That was an aspect of Dent’s game that his assistant coach Mike Holloway chose to stress in a long, paywalled, well-worth-your-time interview with Brice Marich($):

He has really grown accustomed to memorizing things what teams do. … He’s mastered that to the point where it almost looks like he’s cheating because he knows pretty much what they’re doing. If he watches film on you and knows what you like to do and you give him a game plan, then he will play in that game plan, but at the same time, he’s studying tendencies to a T right now. I told him that’s something that’s real valuable going forward because that’s what is going to help him out in college with studying other plays and teams tendencies that he can pick up on. I would say mentally.

247 Director Steve Wiltfong also talked to Holloway about his “student of the game”:

The opposition has been hesitant to throw at Dent who has three interceptions this season, two he returned for touchdowns and another he ran back 60-plus yards.

“He’s versatile,” Holloway said. “He can play down in the box, can play back, play safety, anywhere in the secondary. He’s a Swiss Army knife. He can be anything, linebacker, cornerback, safety, strong safety, he can do it all. His attention to detail, he understands going in every week certain plays and tendencies the offense is trying to do he’s been big in getting our younger guys in proper position to make plays.”

With so little from the professional scouts, the recruiting reporters are chiming in. Steve Lorenz says Dent “is not an 83 (composite),” emphasis his. His compatriot Brice Marich called Dent “one of the more underrated pledges in this class” and a guy Michigan “identified and viewed Dent as a high level player and that has a ton of upside”:

Michigan is getting a player with plenty of swagger and with a ‘dog mentality’. Physical prospect that plays both ways, but will play on defense in college and has the ability to really excel in the back end of the defense after a year or two in my opinion.

This can be interpreted to mean Dent wants to play outside, then come inside, then go outside again, then back inside, then outside to run off a squirrel, and come back inside, then circle around 182 times to find the perfect spot to nap until it’s time to kill the person carrying something that looks like an Amazon package.

EJ Holland said Michigan “fell in love with Dent” and had him the #1 safety on their board. It sounds like Holland fell in love as well:

I'm a big fan of Dent's length and athleticism. He reminds me a bit of Michigan freshman Rod Moore. Like Moore, he is still filling out his frame but loves to come into the box and bang heads. Dent is also a natural playmaker on the back end and fits in well as a pure safety or nickel. Also like Moore, Dent is athletic enough to make plays at wide receiver at the high school level. Right now, he is still really raw — even more than Moore at this stage in his recruitment — but his ceiling is sky high. Dent also has that 'dog mentality' that U-M is looking for and plays with a chip on his shoulder.

On their podcast, Holland presented Dent as another high-ceiling, low-floor guy, and credited Courtney Morgan for Michigan’s focus on filling the class with guys who could really pop. Holland also spoke with Harrison Smith, Dent’s 7v7 coach, who was all about the athleticism/brain combo

"He can recognize formations and knows what routes receivers are going to run. He's really rangy. He has a knack for the ball. He has great ball skills. He can actually play wide receiver if he really wanted to. He understands where to be at on the field to make plays on the ball. I see him playing safety at the next level. … He can play in the box. He's really physical. But he does have enough speed to play corner."

…and made a comparison to former Bama safety (and Tallahassee native) Ronnie Harrison, who’s at least two inches taller, and went in the 3rd round after a three-year college career. Coach comps are always highly localized and thus ridiculous.

For his part, Dent told all of the recruiters he spoke with that Michigan plans to use him in the Dax Hill role.

OFFERS

Before the blow-up Dent had MAC offers and was committed to Akron. Word got out when Dent stole the show at a Ducks camp in Eugene; Oregon offered, and Michigan and Pitt followed, and then Michigan won out with their visit and Helow connection. Mo Linguist continued to recruit Dent to Buffalo. Florida offered but Dent told Rivals’ Adam Gorney that “communication wasn’t sky-high.” Tennessee wanted him to camp. Georgia had him up for an unofficial visit a week after his Michigan trip, and Gorney said they would be in his top two if they offered. They did not, and three weeks later Dent decided between Michigan, Oregon, and Pitt.

HIGH SCHOOL

Terry Parker (in Jacksonville) plays in Florida’s 5A, or fourth division. As with many cities, the talent has since shifted to the local major programs like Bartram Trail, Creekside, Mandarin, Oakleaf, and Sandalwood. The assistant coach quoted above owns a Jimmy King jersey, made the trip up to Ann Arbor, and gave quotes in all-caps($) about the visit, in case you’re wondering if Michigan is going to have success at Terry Parker going forward. They churned out a stream of 3-stars and one 4-star in the 2000s who went Miami, USF, Illinois (WR Alfred Jenkins), Western Michigan (CB Joshua Price) and Cincy.

STATS

MaxPreps lists his current season stats at 45 tackles (31 solo), 3 INTs, and 4 PBUs. They also give his size (via the roster) at 6’1”/185. Via 247, Dent in his junior had 327 yards 2 TDs as a receiver, and 58 tackles and 3 INTs on defense.

FAKE 40 TIME

Only one I could find was from one of those pay-for scouting services that listed a 4.5. They also list his personal info so I don’t want to link it. It gets the full five FAKES out of five because I have no idea where it came from, even if it’s legit.

VIDEO

His Hudl page hasn’t been updated in awhile. Here’s the junior reel:

His YouTube channel has that and his first two games this year. It looks like he’s grown a few inches.

ETC

Oregon’s camp is called Saturday Night Live, which is just life imitating art.

PREDICTION BASED ON FLIMSY EVIDENCE

Michigan’s safety evaluations have been pretty on point the last few years. Rod Moore looks like an immediate hit, Moten is in line for freshman of the year honors, and the guys they scouted early but didn’t get all blew up into 4-stars or higher. They have also been excellent athletes whose coaches gush about their brains and preparation. Dent’s game seems to start with the head, though nobody’s knocking his athleticism. I bet you 247 is waiting for measurables before giving him a big bump, however.

Also, often with 247 when the ratings don’t match the description there’s a size issue. They list him as an athlete and can’t seem to decide between WR, safety, or cornerback, which to me says they’re seeing a safety in an ideal cornerback’s body—a 3-star version of Dax Hill if you will. Hopefully Dent pops enough that we can make that comp next summer without feeling foolish.

After next summer, Michigan has two safety jobs to replace, and right now it looks like Moore and Moten are first in line. Makari Paige is still around, and Jordan Morant is coming off injury, but walk-on Caden Kolesar has been ahead of both of them this year. So there’s room right away for Dent to be an impact player. He definitely seems to fit what Michigan wants to be recruiting in the secondary for Clinkscale’s coverages.

UPSHOT FOR THE REST OF THE CLASS

They finally have a safety in it, albeit a safety who’s first going to try to play the Dax Hill nickel position that CB recruit Cody Jones is ticketed for. Michigan certainly isn’t done at defensive back this cycle, with offers still out to LA 4* Austin Ausberry, CA 3* Zeke Berry, Kentucky CB commit Andre Stewart, and still a good chance to pry #5 overall recruit and fellow Washington visitor Domani Jackson out of a USC commitment that feels pretty wobbly right now. I haven’t checked in on the board in general since August, so that comes next.

OFFENSE
Pos	Player	State	Stars	In a nutshell
QB	Jayden Denegal	CA	4.0⬇	Navarre or Speight
RB	CJ Stokes	SC	3.7	SC hesitated, Hart didn’t, Stokes doesn't.
WR	Tyler Morris	IL	4.5⬇	Golden Tate smooth.
WR	Tay'shawn Trent	MI	4.0⬇	Big, leapy. TE/LB?
TE	Colston Loveland	ID	3.8⬆	Flex by own admission
TE	Marlin Klein	GA	3.7	Grow-a-dude
OT	Alessandro Lorenzetti	CT	3.7	Quebecois steal, if workouts are to be believed.
OG	Connor Jones	CO	3.4⬇	Puts water in the harbor.
DEFENSE
Pos	Player	State	Stars	In a nutshell
NT	Kenneth Grant	IN	3.7	Mammoth.
DT	Mason Graham	CA	3.7⬆	Wrestler, non-stop motor, late riser.
EDGE	Kevonte Henry	CA	3.9⬆⬆	Uche edgebacker.
EDGE	Micah Pollard	FL	3.7	Braylon nephew, Marcus son, Frank Clark clone.
LB	Deuce Spurlock	AL	3.5	Grow-a-WILL.
LB	Aaron Alexander	MI	3.3	Raw hybrid from Belleville.
S	Damani Dent	FL	3.5	Rising cornerbackish safety.
CB	Will Johnson	MI	4.8	Everything and tall. Deon's kid.
CB	Kody Jones	TN	4.0	Nickel athlete, Walter Nolen's pal.
CB	Myles Pollard	TN	3.7	Stribling. Loved you on Colson’s film!

The board, which updating this is next on the list.