Photo Credit: David McGregor/Gwinnett Prep Sports

New Michigan Man: RB Christian Turner Commits

Posted onAuthorGarrett Fishaw

Running back recruiting was one of the biggest questions for Michigan heading into 2018, especially after missing on 2017 RB Najee Harris and losing freshmen RB Kingston Davis to transfer. But after casting a wide net across the country, the staff went back to the newly built Georgia well for its 2018 running back as Buford (GA) RB Christian Turner has committed to Michigan.

Commitment

Scouting Report

Turner is a talented back that’s starting to rise up the rankings. Though he’s not exactly a burner, he makes up for it in vision, patience, balance and the ability to put his foot in the ground and go. His highlight tapes are filled with strong run after strong run. Setting up blocks and breaking tackles to turn simple runs into big time gains. He’s a guy who should only continue to get better as he matures. Once he gets into a college program, he should become valuable member to the running back rotation.

Though his early rankings are a little low, his offer list should tell you all you need to know about his potential. Wisconsin, Georgia and Michigan State are some of the top programs in the country at finding running back talent.

Recruitment

Turner burst onto the recruiting scene this winter as he added offers from the likes of Wisconsin, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Notre Dame, MSU and, of course, Michigan’s in the first two months of the year. But it was his first unofficial visit to Ann Arbor on Thursday, April 6th that put the Wolverines out front for good.

The Georgia standout didn’t wait long to make his decision as he announced his commitment on Twitter just days after his visit. And now he becomes the third recruit out of the Peach State to pledge to the 2018 class.

  • Height: 5’11”
  • Weight: 190lbs
  • Hometown (School): Buford, GA (Buford)
  • Notable Offers: Georgia, Notre Dame, Michigan State, Wisconsin
  • Rankings: Scout (3*, #72 RB) – Rivals (3*, #26 RB) – 247 (3*, #29 RB) – ESPN (3*, #289 overall)
  • Composite Ranking: Three star, #495 overall, #30 RB, #47 in Georgia

Highlights

As for the Rest of the Class

Turner is the 5th overall commitment, first running back commitment, 3rd commitment out of Georgia and the 2nd commitment in three days for Michigan. With him now on board, it’ll be interesting to see how the staff approaches the running back position. The class will be small and it looked like there would only be one guy in 2018. This looks like it could be another situation where the staff only goes after “must have”, super backs from now until NSD.

Some of the names that Michigan has looked to be in decent shape with prior to Turner’s commitment were Jashaun Corbin, Keontay Ingram and Asa Martin. We’ll see how UM continues to target them throughout the cycle.

Photo Credit: David McGregor/Gwinnett Prep Sports

Garrett Fishaw
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