Michigan Football Early Signing Day: Wolverines land Jacob Oden
According to reports, Michigan Football has officially landed one of the top prep players from the state as Jacob Oden has signed with the Wolverines. Oden, a 4-star safety from Harper Woods, MI, is the No. 6 ranked player in the state and the No. 29 ranked safety for the Class of 2024.
Scouting Report
Here is the scouting report on Jacob Oden via 247Sports:
Oden has a well-built frame with a good amount of proportion of lean muscle mass and definition from head to toe. Measuring in at 6-foot-1 with a 6-foot-4 and half-inch wingspan he has more than adequate length. He has broad shoulders and a lower half that provides him with the necessary explosion and burst. Weighing at 187-pounds he is ready from a mass standpoint to play on the collegiate level right now. The intriguing piece is that with a size-14 shoe one would believe that he still has a lot of room left to grow going forward.
From a movement and agility standpoint Oden is very smooth and comfortable in his pedal. He does a good job transitioning out of his back-pedal when he is breaking on the ball with little wasted movement. Possesses fluid hip movement when he has to turn and run without struggling to make the transition. He has very good overall body control that always for him to be in position often to make plays.
In coverage he understands how to use leverage on the receiver to stay in good football position and take away certain routes by his route recognition and football intelligence. He is willing to play physical on receivers to slow them down in regards to time and knock them off their routes. More than a willing tackler whether he is lined up at the corner position, nickel or from the safety spot where he comes down in the box from the deep middle as well as half field alignment.
Once he is able to settle in and focus on the nuances of playing on the backend in college I believe there will be a jump in game. The football instincts matched with the physical talent and traits give evidence to him becoming a player that will be a factor both on special teams and within the core of the defense as a Safety.
