Kevonte Henry was the most edge-shaped commit coming out of Michigan's Victors Weekend, and while he's currently sitting in generic three star territory the shape of his recruitment indicates Michigan may have jumped on him before he flies up some rankings. That goes double since we're coming off a COVID season and rankings are significantly more wobbly than usual. Let's play the feud!

GURU RATINGS

Rivals	ESPN	247	247 Comp
3*, 5.6 rating NR WDE, #51 CA	3*, 78 rating #51 OLB, #39 CA	3*, 88 rating #60 LB, #44 CA	3*, #709 overall #72 LB, #52 CA
3.68	3.78	3.76	3.63

The sites list Henry at 6'3" or 6'4" and around 220 pounds, thus slotting him in as one of those guys who gets called a linebacker but is likely destined for an Uche-like role after he maxes out around 250 pounds. 24/7 recently bumped him from an 85 to an 88, FWIW. Rivals started him out as the #69 player in California—nice—and slid him up to #51 in their most recent update.

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

SCOUTING

As befits an alpaca-out-of-nowhere riser in the aftermath of COVID season, scouting is scanty. 24/7 has a smattering of articles but as of yet no scouting; Rivals has very little. Henry was unranked until March and has just two articles on his profile, neither of which has any scouting. One does have a useful quote from Henry about his role and current weight:

“I’m known for my speed when I get off the edge. The o-line has a hard problem because I get off too quick. They always tell me like, ‘4-4, you’re too fast. You have to slow down.’” … I’m trying to get to 240 or 245 pounds. I’m at 227, so I’m not that far off.”

EJ Holland did post an article on his commitment and included some scouting takes:

…upside take with a lot of potential. His film pops as he plays with reckless abandonment on both sides of the ball. … Speed and athleticism … bit of a project. He is raw from a technical standpoint … a kid [Michigan coaches] view as a Top 250 type of recruit

247 has a useful quote from his coach:

"The coaches love him as an edge rusher," Manumaleuna said. "That's another thing that attracted him to Michigan. They have had a lot success getting edge rushers developed and getting them drafted and obviously that's his goal. … he's not even close to scratching the surface of where he'll be in a few years. He has long arms, is quick getting up the field and is a natural at getting to the quarterback."

Lorenz asserted that Henry was one of the top two OLB/edge guys on Michigan's board shortly before Henry committed.

There are two scouting takes from outside the recruiting-industrial complex, one from Touch The Banner…

Henry’s height, weight, and playing style suggest he will be playing an edge role in college … plays with a welcome reckless abandon that sees arms and legs flying everywhere. … I find those guys exceptionally difficult to play against, because they move in such a unique way that it’s hard to predict what move they’re setting up. Henry’s solid speed, low center of gravity, and ability to bend make him tough to block coming off the edge.

I see two particular areas for improvement, and those are 1) upper body strength and 2) focus. As for the first point, there are times where he wraps up ball carriers but doesn’t seem to possess the strength to yank them down. As for the second, he sometimes seems to lose gap responsibility, though he has the athleticism to make up for it in high school.

The other from cneils44, a 24/7 board poster who played LB in college:

…good length. Super long arms which is always a plus as an edge defender. … Really solid get off from the edge. Quick first few steps. Has a pretty good bend on his speed rush. Appears to have pretty good use of hands in the run game … Not a ton of tape

I checked out his tape as well and did not get the crazy Uche burst vibes I was hoping to see, but he's an active guy with good range.

OFFERS

Henry was sitting on a smattering of low-level P5 offers including Kansas, Colorado, and Washington State before much of the rest of the Pac-12 offered in short order. Both Arizona schools, Utah, Oregon, and USC all threw their hats in the ring before Henry's visit and quick commit to Michigan. As always, the commitability of those offers is unknown. FWIW, 24/7's Greg Biggins says Oregon was but USC was a maybe.

HIGH SCHOOL

Leuzinger has not sent a player to Michigan in its history. FWIW, teammate DE/OLB Aubrey Scott was also on Henry's trip to Michigan. He doesn't have an offer yet but is on the radar.

STATS

I did not find any.

FAKE 40 TIME

I have not seen a 40 time out there.

VIDEO

These are from Henry's abbreviated spring season:

He has a longer sophomore reel.

PREDICTION BASED ON FLIMSY EVIDENCE

Don Brown may be at Arizona but that doesn't mean Michigan threw out the Uche playbook when he left. Henry is an attempt at an Uche reboot: oversized linebacker or undersized DE with explosion off the edge and a need to add 20-30 pounds. More than that is tough to say given the lack of you know, stuff, out there.

UPSHOT FOR THE REST OF THE CLASS

Henry is unlikely to be the last edge missile sort Michigan adds to the class, especially as they transition to more of a 3-4 look. (Yes, they are "multiple.") They currently have 100% of the crystal ball predictions for four-star FL DE Mario Eugenio, another 6'3" guy who fields a lot of references to burst in his scouting. Three-star Joshua Josephs is another OLB/DE sort who Michigan is apparently pushing for hard, per Lorenz. Top-150 IL DE Sebastian Cheeks is coming off a Michigan visit as well but is currently predicted to ND or Texas; Oregon gets his last visit.

The class as it stands: