Washington (DC) Gonzaga defensive end Carter Meadows committed to Michigan on Sunday afternoon. He picked the Wolverines over Georgia, LSU, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Penn State, and South Carolina, among others.
Meadows is listed at 6'6" and 225 pounds. Playing in just six games as a junior in 2024, he made 33 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, and 1 forced fumble.
RANKINGS
ESPN: 4-star, 83 grade, #10 DE, #88 overall
On3: 5-star, 98 grade, #2 edge, #6 overall
Rivals: 4-star, 5.8 grade, #19 edge, #241 overall
247 Sports: 4-star, 94 grade, #5 edge, #34 overall
Hit the jump for more.
Meadows hails from the alma mater of 2025 Michigan signee Kainoa Winston, so there was some familiarity within the program. However, anytime Michigan goes up against other elite programs for a 5-star-level talent, it's going to be difficult to gain traction. Usually the Wolverines do not come out on top in these types of recruitments, but defensive line coach Lou Esposito hung in there and the combination of elite academics with elite football development won out. (I always ignore NIL talk because nobody really knows what the deals are behind closed doors.) Ohio State, Penn State, and South Carolina all got official visits, but the official to Michigan on June 20th sealed the deal.
The intrigue of Meadows's traits is obvious. He's tall and athletic - he has at least one Division I basketball offer - and you can't teach that combination of advantages. His wingspan makes it difficult for offensive linemen to get into his body, and when he decides to go, he can get the edge, track down quarterbacks, create turnovers, and chase guys to the sideline. One of the best things I see from him is that hustle to stop players from getting to the edge; he has the quickness to catch them from behind and is willing to lay out to make those diving tackles that are necessary near the sideline.
For better or worse, Meadows is an extremely raw prospect at this point. He plays very tentative, almost like he's trying to protect his lower body, and I'm not sure if that's just who he is or whether he has in the back of his mind that he wants to stay healthy for basketball season. He's willing to attempt to lock out offensive tackles and has the arm length to do it, but it's very robotic and not reactionary at all; it looks like he's doing a drill in practice. He usually aligns as a 5-tech on the outside shoulder of an offensive tackle, but occasionally he's called upon to spike inside to the B gap; when he does, once again he looks like he's doing a drill and he doesn't rip inside with gusto. There are times even where he has a chance to get dirty and jump in on a tackle, but he makes sure to keep his body clean and away from anybody rolling up on his legs.
Overall, I view Meadows as a boom-bust prospect. There are some very good raw traits to work with, but without an adjustment to his mentality, he's going to have a very difficult time at the next level. Physically, he needs to get stronger so he can take on blocks and lock out tackles; mentally, he needs more reps so he can react quicker to what he's seeing; and emotionally, he looks like he needs to spend some time training with the likes of Mason Graham, who might be able to teach him how to get a little bit dirty. Obviously, they play different positions and nobody goes from Meadows to Graham when it comes to that kind of attitude, but Meadows needs to find his inner ferocity. He could end up like Taco Charlton, who was a 1st round draft pick, or he could end up like Shelton Johnson, who . . . well, yeah.
"Who?" is what you're probably asking yourself right now.
I think Esposito has done a good job of developing players wherever he's been, so I'm going to count on him to chisel Meadows into a good NFL prospect. If he can add some weight, get some confidence, and get some experience under his belt to quicken his reaction time, Meadows could be a situational pass rusher early and then a dominant force by the time he's an upperclassman.
Michigan now has 17 commitments in the class of 2026, where Meadows joins fellow edges Tariq Boney and McHale Blade. The Wolverines have never landed a player from Gonzaga before Evan Link in 2023, but they have had some contributors from the District of Columbia, including safety (turned NFL linebacker) Cato June from Anacostia and safety Quinten Johnson from St. John's. If everyone sticks, there will be three Gonzaga products on the team in 2026, including Link, Winston, and Meadows.
TTB Rating: 86
"Meadows needs to find his inner ferocity"
ReplyDeleteIs there any way to coach or develop that? Do you pair him up with someone already with that temperament, and hope it rubs off? Can it be brought out by coaching "tough love" where you push the kid to the point of getting him mad, then channel that to field activity?
I think there are lots of ways that it can be developed. One is physical strength; when you become the hammer, things get a lot easier. I mean, take any kid who used to get beaten up or picked on, and then put them in the gym for a few years to build up their strength, and they're not the same kid anymore.
DeleteAlso, if you're sitting on the sideline until the coach sees those traits, that can be a great motivator.
I don't think you can just yell at him to "be tougher" or "be more physical" or whatever. It needs to be trained in the weight room and there need to be rewards/consequences.
Wow. I was excited but missing an intangible in the trenches can be a big deal ... anywhere on this defense for that matter
ReplyDeleteThere's still reason for excitement. I mean, any of these kids can become great, and any of them can be duds.
DeleteOf course. But coupled with "basketball" I was triggered by preconceived notions
DeleteInteresting to note the contrast between speculation ignored because we don't know for sure (NIL) but open to speculate about character traits like tenacity and effort and confidence of a teenager. Are we more sure about those things going forward than NIL rumors right now?
ReplyDeletehttps://touch-the-banner.com/goodbye-michael-onwenu/
Effort was questioned here throughout his career but on the field it was nothing but success and now Onewnu's a very good NFL starter, who still weighs in at 350 pounds. Doesn't look like bad weight for an OL either.
That point aside, it's an intriguing scout by Thunder for a highly ranked kid. Charlton really didn't do anything until his senior year production-wise and was a bust in the NFL. He was always flanked by high level NFL talent at Michigan so it seems like he might have been riding some coattails. Impressive physical size (height especially) can fool people sometimes. I hope Meadows is better than Charlton and more productive too, but perhaps our 2 best EDGEs (Gary and Hutch) came in bigger than him, as did our current best. The lesson from Charlton might be that patience is warranted for the long lean ones.
The boom/bust thing does seem apt though as these long lean edge types tend to flame out pretty often. Especially recently. Is he going to be able to hold his ground if they run at him against NFL-caliber OTs? Is he going to have the bend and burst like an Uche or Ojabo? Clearly with his athleticism and frame he has the potential to do some things. We'll see if those things translate to football excellence at edge. He's probably too tall to play anywhere else.
I'll trust Thunder's scout that the kid is a little mechanical in how he plays. This might not be a bad thing though -- a more optimistic assessment might be that he's coach-able. Tim Duncan was mechanical too. (different sport same idea)
Interesting assessment. Thank you Thunder.
Well, one aspect you can see on the field, and one you cannot. The one you can't see is NIL.
DeleteYou CAN see how hard a player runs, his body movements, whether he takes on/avoids contact, etc. compared to other players.
Nobody knows what NIL Michigan offered vs. Ohio State or South Carolina, how much Michigan offered to Meadows vs. Tariq Boney vs. McHale Blade vs. some other prospect who committed elsewhere. Numbers aren't made public, and I doubt Michigan's coaches/GM are saying, "Yeah, we're giving McHale Blade a package worth $30,000, so we'll give you $75,000."
Here was Lance Zierlein's take on Onwenu's weaknesses going into the draft, and some of them indeed point to potential issues with conditioning/effort level:
Weaknesses
Can be a step slow getting out of his stance. Athletic limitations must be accounted for with scheme. Lacks desire level of range as run blocker. Doesn't always play as wide as he's built when attempting to sustain blocks. Needs better post-strike footwork to get blocks sealed. High hands prevent optimal leverage at point of attack. Gets over-extended when patience fails him. Will have trouble against quality rush counters and twisting fronts.
Onwenu also had some struggles early in his career and was benched for a stretch in 2021. You say it was "nothing but success" but he was drafted in the 6th round - which is obviously good, and of course we all wish we were good enough to get drafted into the NFL - and didn't become a consistent starter until his third year in the league.
It's possible for him to both be talented AND have certain weaknesses. Chase Young is a guy who was a 1st round pick and Rookie of the Year, and yet there are also questions about his effort level. He's both talented AND flawed.
It doesn't have to be one or the other.
yeah, aNoN's take is weird
DeleteWithout either verbal acknowledgement or leaked contract details, we can only assume NIL
But tangibles & intangibles can and are assessed on tape, in practice, in the weight room ... even outside of the game
You sure you can see work ethic on the field? The Onwenu example seems to indicate you cannot accurately make this call.
Delete@ Anonymous 4:30 p.m.
DeleteWhere was work ethic mentioned?
the return of aNoN
DeleteAre work ethic and effort not synonymous? Do people who work hard not put in effort. Are people putting in high effort not working hard?
DeleteTo quote myself above: "speculate about character traits like tenacity and effort and confidence of a teenager."
Onwenu's character was ... let's say "questioned" to put it kindly. They were questioned before he arrived in AA and after he saw the field as well, and after he proved himself a high performing starter too. He proved the doubters -- including Balas and you Thunder - dead wrong. He's highly successful as an NFL player. Depicted by some as a talented but low effort player at Michigan, he had a highly successful and decorated career. Despite lacking elite NFL talent (drafted only in the 6th round after a successful college career) he has gone on to, once again, put in work and thrive in the NFL. Those questions, those narratives -- dispelled with authority by his success at the highest level.
Now Meadows character is being questioned in this post.
I'm questioning the doubters and the efficacy of being able to speculate on character traits on "film" aka youtube highlights.
I'll be direct -- you've been wrong before trying to speculate on character and so maybe be careful about how you throw these kind of accusations around. Examples: "he wants to stay healthy for basketball season", "he makes sure to keep his body clean and away from anybody rolling up on his legs", "without an adjustment to his mentality, he's going to have a very difficult time at the next level.", "needs to find his inner ferocity.", "get some confidence"
You're calling this kid soft. You don't use that word but it's clear in the same way that it was clear you thought Onwenu was lazy.
Maybe Meadows is soft. I have no idea. But since he's a high school kid maybe speculation like this is premature. Maybe not something you can really judge from highlight clips.
So let me reiterate my initial point. Here is a quote:
"I always ignore NIL talk because nobody really knows what the deals are behind closed doors.)"
Here is an equally valid statement:
I always ignore character talk with High School kids because nobody really knows what the deals are behind closed doors.
So when somebody says a kid lacks confidence or is saving himself for basketball season or whatever else, I don't take that too seriously. Write whatever you like of course but speculation is speculation. NIL speculation is one kind. Character speculation is another kind. We lack full info in both. It's the same thing ultimately - maybe not entirely baseless but definitely far from rock solid evidence.
"But tangibles & intangibles can and are assessed on tape, in practice, in the weight room ... even outside of the game"
DeleteWho here has access to Meadows in practice and in the weight room and outside of the game?
NIL info is mostly still breadcrumbs here or there but it does come out in interviews and from insiders. It's not all just blind guesses.
Delete3x, lol
DeleteCoaches & recruiting staff talk to HS staff ... the Intel on intangibles is readily available. Beyond "breadcrumbs"
It appears we have different meanings of some of these words. You appear to be using character, work ethic, and effort interchangeably, and I don't agree with that usage.
DeleteCharacter is a MUCH larger issue that I rarely address on here, and to question a player's character would be to question whether they're a liar, criminal, etc.
Work ethic is something I can't really see on the field. What do they do in practice? In school? Do they lift? Do they skip weight room sessions? Do they make excuses? I dunno.
Effort is a totally different thing. If a guy isn't hustling on the field or isn't putting his body on the line 100%, then I can and will question his effort. For example, when there's an interception and a QB doesn't hustle or really try to make a tackle, then "He didn't make much of an effort to make the tackle." It's pretty simple to see.
You're conflating three different things, and you seem to be addressing the two (character, work ethic) out of three that I wasn't talking about.
lOl, yEp
Delete@je
Delete"Coaches & recruiting staff talk to HS staff" -- Just like they talk about NIL. You are confusing Public knowledge (available to fans) with the knowledge available to Coaches (not available to fans). Inconsistent perspective and role seem to be a recurring point of confusion with you.
@Thunder
Character and legality are different things. So yeah we have a different interpretation of these words. No argument there. If you call someone out for being soft or lazy you are impugning their character. While I do believe language is fluid, one doesn't just get to make up their own definition when there is already an accepted one.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/character
Effort is something you need to put in off the field not just on it. As a coach this is something that should be especially apparent to you.
To give you a specific example of where your on-field assessment could be 100% wrong is a guy appearing to not give maximal effort because he is out of shape and he is out of shape because he doesn't have the work ethic off the field to be in shape. Maybe he is giving maximal effort for him - individual effort is not something that you can observe, you only see the relative activity level.
You can defend yourself arguing nuanced semantics if you want but the point is you are taking shots at the kid. Call it what you want. You are making some assessments based on your speculation, without having the full information about what is going on with the kid. To be very specific you have no clue if he is thinking about basketball while playing football. But you say it anyway. This is no different than saying a portal transfer went to the highest bidder, and it has less merit than when that take is backed by insiders talking about how money was a big factor directly or indirectly. You don't have all the facts in either case.
Every coach involved in a kid's recruitment can get inside info on a player's intangibles ... but only the school who signs the kid will have exact NIL details
DeleteNo, the two are not the same
@ Anonymous 5:04 p.m.
DeleteI didn't say he was thinking about basketball while playing football. I threw it out there as a possibility, and yes, we do see that sometimes. I've seen it with my own eyes on the field and I know it to be the case sometimes.
Once again, you're trying to tell me what I'm saying, and I'm saying you're wrong. I know more about what I'm saying than you do.
l0L, yEp
Delete@Thunder
Delete"I threw it out there as a possibility"
LOL yes that's called speculating.
@ Lank 6:10 p.m.
DeleteLank, you have a habit that I've mentioned before of taking something I wrote, re-writing it to mean what you interpret it saying, and then operating throughout a thread like "your truth" is the one and only truth.
There's a difference between saying "I don't know whether Bryce Underwood got $500,000 or $2 million to come to Michigan, but Michigan did enough to get him" and "No, for sure, Michigan broke the bank and gave him $2.1 million per year."
One is saying there are different possibilities, and one asserts that they know the truth.
Likewise, here's what I said exactly: "He plays very tentative, almost like he's trying to protect his lower body, and I'm not sure if that's just who he is or whether he has in the back of his mind that he wants to stay healthy for basketball season."
That's not asserting the truth. That's not questioning his character. That's not even questioning his work ethic. That's saying "He plays tentative, and here are a couple reasons why that could possibly be the case."
I know in Lank's world (because that's who you are, right, Lank?), Thunder questioned Meadows's character because Thunder says he's just trying to save his legs for basketball season.
But it's not the truth, no matter how many times you try to repeat it.
lMa0, yEp
DeleteYour TTB ratings are a bit lower for the last three players (Robinson, Meadows, Dabney) relative to their rankings / how they were pursued by Michigan. Robinson and Meadows have a bit more variance to them relative to a typical Harbaugh recruit, but I hope that this isn't a broader reflection of Moore doing a bit more "stargazing" relative to the prior regime.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if they are. Dabney is a 3-star and the #401 overall player in the country. There were 257 players drafted into the NFL last year, so that basically tracks as him being undraftable.
DeleteIf you start at Michigan during a good era (not like the Rich Rodriguez or Brady Hoke era, but when there are actual good coaches in place), you should probably be getting drafted or at least be close to it.
So if Dabney plays like the #401 overall player in his class, I think the odds are that someone else draft-worthy is going to play over him or be brought in as a transfer to play ahead of him, leaving Dabney as either a career backup . . . or someone who transfers to try to play elsewhere.
I think Meadows got a fairly good grade.
DeleteAnd Zion Robinson...we'll see. The number of receivers who perform well at Michigan is pretty small. Maybe the presence of Bryce Underwood will change that, but the guys Michigan throws out there at receiver on a yearly basis is actually very surprising when you think of Peyton O'Leary, Nate Schoenle, Jake McCurry, etc. No offense to them or their work ethic because they earn the playing time, but highly recruited guys like Karmello English have disappeared and guys like Andrel Anthony have transferred while walk-ons or lightly recruited guys are getting playing time against Ohio State.
It's not like this is a unique situation at WR. Walk-ons have made impacts at QB, RB, TE, OL, DT, CB, S. I think edge might be only position we haven't seen walk-ons play meaningful role while some highly rated recruits bust or transfer out.
DeleteThis is all about stats and putting too much weight into volume stats. Michigan continues to put pass catchers into the NFL on a regular basis but because they aren't a high volume passing team (and show no signs of becoming one) people act like certain things are impossible.
Here are the facts -- we had a WR win the heisman here in the 90s and WRs get drafted in Round 1 in the 00s and a guy put up a 1300 yard seasons in the 10's, and the 3 top receivers on the 2023 team all got drafted. At no point anywhere in there was Michigan a high volume passing offense - it was always a run first run often identity, through the Bo tree, Harbaugh, even Rich Rod.
And on the recruiting front Michigan continues to get 4 star recruits at WR and/or TE on a pretty regular basis despite not having a high volume passing attack. The "something has to change on the field before something changes in recruiting" crowd is being proven wrong again with Michigan landing multiple 4-star WR in this 26 class on the heels of landing Marsh in 25, English in 23, etc.
Not saying WR was a strength last year, but Michigan had bigger problems. They don't really need to change anything that they are doing on the field to continue to bring in top WR talent (as they have done in the past) and develop NFL caliber WRs (as they have done in the past).
It was not so long ago (2017) that Michigan brought in 4 of the top 28 WRs in the country. One of them was a 5 star but the others weren't and the 3rd highest ranked one is now an NFL Pro Bowler even though he never produced a high volume season at Michigan. Recruits know this.
WR is just like any other position. Find talent. Pay to get it. Develop it. Put in a system that works. Win. Team success and individual success go hand in hand.
"Michigan continues to put pass catchers into the NFL ... "
DeleteCompared to ... Iowa?
How about Notre Dame and Oregon?
DeleteCurrently in the NFL you have Bell, Wilson, Collins, and DPJ. That's 4 and Cornelius Johnson knocking on the door . Not elite for WR production like Alabama or OSU, but that's the same number as Notre Dame and Oregon have in the NFL.
Similar situation as at any number of other positions that people don't whine about or dream up false narratives for. Like QB! or RB!
https://www.espn.com/nfl/players/_/position/wr
And less than Fresno, UCF and SMU. Your point?
DeleteNONE. Just desperate to talk with je93
#yep
#dub
#outsmarted
Do YOU have a point? Because you asked a question and it was answered.
DeleteMichigan isn't lacking for good players and talent at WR. NFL production is not worse than at QB or RB.
Michigan won a natty doing what they do, being who they are. It's not a problem.
Michigan is either going to pay to get elite WR talent at a 5 star level or they aren't. Hint: they aren't. They can continue to produce NFL caliber WRs anyway, just by developing the 4 star top 150 recruits they have gotten in the past. The recipe works, despite the narratives about volume.
Where the needle moved in 2023 was QB and where the ship sunk in 2025 was QB. WR is a secondary concern for a run heavy offense and Michigan allocates their resources (i.e., budgets their salary cap) accordingly.
Insults vs logic. Dub vs El.
Lmao, page2 resolution
Delete#outsmarted
#dub
That's fair. I sometimes forget that your TTB rankings reflect both your view of the player as well as their likelihood of success at Michigan.
ReplyDeleteA bit of a thought exercise, but is there any receiver to which you would assign a 100 score, or are you in wait and see mode to see if we'll throw the ball enough to warrant that type of score?
I try to tell people to read what I say about a player to see what I think of him, but yeah, the TTB Rating is a prediction of how he'll fit at Michigan. Some guys just aren't a good fit in Ann Arbor.
DeleteAt this point I can't see giving any receiver a score of 100. That may change in a year once we see Chip Lindsey and Bryce Underwood, but for now, that's too big of a jump.
Yep Mgoblog offers some interesting context on WR recruiting. "the composite/consensus rankings land Robinson inside the top 200, making him one of the more touted receiver prospects Michigan has taken in recent years. Seth's database ranks Robinson just below Greg Mathews, Nico Collins, Tyler Morris, and his WR coach, Ron Bellamy, while slotting in just ahead of Oliver Martin, Cornelius Johnson, Steve Breaston, and Junior Hemingway. "
ReplyDeleteNote -- that not-all-but-mostly NFL guys with a handful of star players -- all coming to Michigan despite Michigan being a run heavy offense.
Note also -- recent recruiting rankings are in line with this range. Karmello English was a composite 188 ranked WR (.927 in 247 composite point system) so a notch below Johnson (132nd / .937) and Robinson (144th / .941), but not by much. They are both a bit below Tyler Morris (133rd / .946) and Marsh (114th / 0.945), but again not very far off.
Anyway, the point is that Michigan continues to recruit at historically normal (good, not elite elite) levels of talent at WR (which tend to produce NFL caliber WRs at regular intervals but year in and year out like OSU/Alabama/USC). They are getting this level of talent despite last season's historically awful WR production (even if you don't count Loveland) and despite Harbaugh liking to run a lot (like Schembechler, Carr, Rodriguez, etc).
There's no evidence of correlation here between big volume receiving stats and incoming WR talent at Michigan. The program gets talent because of what it is.
So there's a point, but even after clarified, another paragraph is needed. Not even yEp agrees with yEp
Delete#page2
#resolution
#runfirstrunoftenjewasright