Jeremiah Beasley, Wolverine

 

Jeremiah Beasley (image via Twitter)

Belleville (MI) Belleville linebacker Jeremiah Beasley committed to Michigan on Wednesday night. He picked the Wolverines over offers from Florida, Michigan State, Missouri, and Tennessee, among others.

Beasley is listed anywhere from 6'1" to 6'2" and 208-220 lbs. As a junior in 2022, Beasley ran for 1,250 yards and scored 27 touchdowns, along with making 108 tackles.

RANKINGS
ESPN: 3-star, 79 grade, #15 ILB
On3: 4-star, 90 grade, #20 LB, #264 overall
Rivals: 4-star, 5.8 grade, #28 OLB
247 Sports: 4-star, 90 grade, #25 LB, #237 overall

Hit the jump for more.

Beasley was offered by Michigan in June of 2021, just before his sophomore season. Belleville and Michigan have had a notoriously difficult relationship in recent years, so there was some doubt about whether Beasley would give Michigan a serious shot. But some things have changed in recent months, with Belleville having a new head coach after Jermain Crowell was fired, and then new head coach DeJuan Rogers leaving for Tiffin. Crowell did not like Michigan - and perhaps for good reason - but for several years, the Wolverines could not get a foothold with some star recruits. They did get a commitment from so-so recruit Tyrece Woods at one point, but he ended up signing with Buffalo after some things did not go his way; and 4-star cornerback Andre Seldon, Jr. signed with Michigan but transferred after two seasons. Beasley's older brother Maliq Carr, who was offered by Michigan out of Oak Park High Schooll, signed with Purdue, then transferred to Michigan State, so there was a bit of a hump to get over there. (Carr wanted to play receiver, but Michigan wanted him as a tight end, so naturally he went to Purdue/MSU and became . . . a tight end.)

Beasley is a good all-around athlete with a nice mix of size, speed, toughness, and change-of-direction skills. His toughness and athleticism really show at running back, where he has nice balance, breaks a ton of tackles, and has good speed. He also shows off some good vision and a downhill running style. Defensively, Beasley's athleticism also shows in his ability to change direction and chase down ball carriers. He has good acceleration in pass coverage, and if he gets into the backfield, quarterbacks don't have much of a chance of escaping. He plays with a low pad level and gets on the legs or the waist of ball carriers, which helps him be a solid tackler.

What I don't see much of in his highlight film is reading and reacting on defense. Most of his defensive highlights come on blitzes or in pass coverage, but not reading run and/or fitting his gap. Whether that's a weakness or just not something he felt like highlighting is left to guesswork, but that may be something to watch. If he were to play running back at the next level, his speed is good but not great. However, for an inside linebacker, he runs pretty well.

Overall, Beasley is a good prospect who seems just about right as a 4-star, though I would probably expect him to be ranked higher than he is, which is at #319 overall in the 247 Composite. Assuming he adds some weight and strength in college, I think he will be a solid inside linebacker. Going back through the years, it's tough to find a good comparison for an athletic running back/linebacker who ended up defense, which is where Beasley is expected to play. Hassan Haskins ended up at running back, and Kalel Mullings seems to be on that path, too. Other guys like Ben Mason and Ben Gedeon were more bruising types who ended up at fullback and linebacker, respectively. One might have to go all the way back to Belleville's own Ian Gold, who was 6'0", 223 lbs. and drafted in the 2nd round.

Michigan now has 24 commitments in the class. Beasley is the fourth commit who's listed as a linebacker, joining Mason Curtis (LINK), Cole Sullivan (LINK), and Zach Ludwig. He would be the first Belleville Tiger to sign with Michigan since Seldon in the class of 2020.

TTB Rating: 80