[jwplayer ijCrlIvI-XNcErKyb]
WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. — 2022 might be a minute away as far as recruiting is concerned, but Michigan already has two prospects in the fold for that class. And it’s trying to add another in West Bloomfield (MI) ATH Dillon Tatum.
[lawrence-related id=21139]
Tatum is listed by the recruiting services as a running back, but he’s much more versatile than that. Michigan is recruiting him as both a RB as well as a potential defensive back.
Last summer, West Bloomfield head coach Ron Bellamy, a former Wolverines WR, told WolverinesWire that Donovan Edwards was going to be one of the most sought after recruits in the 2021 cycle, a premonition certainly turned prescient. With Tatum up in the next class, he sees a similar trajectory, made possible by his incredible versatility.
“He’s a fantastic football player, high character kid,” Bellamy told WolverinesWire. “He’s a kid – he reminds me of the Honey Badger at LSU. He can return kicks, you can put him in the slot, he can play running back, defensive back, safety, linebacker – whatever it is, he’s just a football player. He will be one of the top prospects in the state and one of the top national prospects in the 2022 class.”
[lawrence-related id=20817]
Given that Tatum and the aforementioned Edwards both play in the offensive backfield, however, it’s easy to note the competition there.
As WolverinesWire took in West Bloomfield’s in-school practice and weightlifting session last Friday, you could see that competition in earnest, as Edwards and Tatum tried to constantly out-race and out-work each other at every turn.
But every drill finished with the two laughing with one another, their enemy status relegated solely to the moments they were going up against each other one-on-one.
And it’s only made both better.
“They’re both alpha dogs, they both want to be the best,” Bellamy said. “They know, in order to be the best, you’ve gotta push each other. Dillon’s not bowing down to Donovan and Donovan won’t bow down to Dillon. And they love each other, and they understand that if they push and challenge each other, it’s going to only make those two better.”