There is a genre of December commitment who will get a hundred thousand adults to watch an Instagram feed or spam refresh on message boards. And then there's there's the type who sneaks in right after that wave, before all the replacement F5 keys are installed, the one day per year that recruiting reporters and attendant media are not at their keyboards. The type who doesn't even get a commitment alert, or so much as a mention on MGoBlog's front page until a week has passed. A person so anonymous he's either some kind of secret agent or a Michigan offensive lineman. Or both:

Excited to announce my commitment to @UMichFootball #GoBlue 〽️ @4Warinner @CoachJim4UM @grant_newsome @DeBordCoachMike @Thee_Matty_D @PalmerRidgeFB @SixZeroAcademy @GroundupSP @JBernstine pic.twitter.com/1l7QBj0B6u

— Connor Jones (@77ConnorJones) December 25, 2020

Jones is the fifth player in Michigan's 2022 class, and the first offensive lineman.

GURU RATINGS

Bottom row is my conversion of the above to a 5-star scale. Links are to profiles.

Jones at this point is deep in unscouted territory. That wouldn't be surprising in a normal year; projecting offensive linemen for 2022 who aren't already at major programs is futile after most junior seasons and the accompanying camps were wiped out. Those like Jones who did play aren't getting graded or ranked because of travel restrictions and the incompleteness of national information.

Connor's dad is originally from Ohio and rooted for Michigan, which became Connor's rooting interest, he told Maven's Brandon Brown. Michigan visited before COVID, offered in early September, and Jones committed on Christmas after taking a self-guided tour the week prior. Connor has been telling recruiting reporters that a degree in sports medicine/kinesiology, NFL development, and a good team atmosphere were his main criteria, so one can assume he enjoyed the esprit du corps in the aftermath of Ohio State lucking out of a certain loss in the Game around that time.

[Hit THE JUMP for scouting, video, and the rest.]

SCOUTING

There's precious little at the moment. Rivals' EJ Holland got the (understandably biased) views of Matt McChesney, who runs the training academy Jones went to.

He uses his length well rather than just having it. There is a huge difference. He’s really consistent on that and playing on the inside of his feet rather than on his toes or his heels.

… There are a lot of guys that [don't train as much as seniors]. But I can’t keep his ass out of the room. Connor has all the tools to be a special player. He’s good in space. He can block 1-on-1 all day. He understands the inside out concepts. He’s not a double hand puncher. He understands independent hand concepts.

McChesney lists hip flexibility and core strength as areas of improvement. Also here's a quote from an offensive line coach about offensive line coaching:

Every offensive lineman is developmental. They’re babies and are going to get punched in the mouth by a grown man when they get to college.

Just saving that. Touch the Banner watched the film and thinks there's not a lot of athletic upside:

I see a lineman who is somewhat lumbering. He has heavy feet and his base gets too narrow. His turnover is not ideal in the run game. There’s a saying that “pass pro isn’t passive,” and that’s something that comes to mind when watching Jones’s highlights. He’s too passive in his sets and does not punch well or, in general, show as much aggression as I would like. He talks about being a finisher, but I don’t see that on film.

Overall, Jones has good size, but I don’t see him being able to do much more than wall off a side and make someone run around him. His lack of athleticism makes him unlikely to be able to reach a C-gap player without help or do a whole lot to be able to climb to the second level. I think his upside is that of a Juwann Bushell-Beatty, someone who could potentially become a late-career starter but without much of an NFL future.

Before you ask, no, Magnus hasn't been this negative about a Warinner OL recruit that I can recall; in fact I think the last guy who got this kind of writeup was Nolan Ulizio.

FWIW Jones offered a self-scout to 247's Brice Marich:

“I would definitely like to say I’m fundamentally sound technique wise," Jones said. "I’m a very smart player and I like to break down defenses when I’m down in my stance. I have a really high football IQ, so I’m able to spot out blitzes before they come and see little things like if the defensive lineman will stunt or not. Of course, it is that finish piece. Whenever I engage in a block, my goal is to finish until the whistle whether that guys ends up on the ground with me on top of him or ends up on the ground in general."

And a second-hand report about what Indiana saw:

“They like my athletic ability with the size I am,” Jones said about the message from Indiana. “They also like the way I finish in my film.”

A CU writer who speaks to Six Zero Academy noted Connor was "one to watch" after starting at right guard as a freshman, at 6'6.5"/240.

OFFERS

Jones reports offers from Indiana, Northwestern, West Virginia, Virginia, Oregon State, Colorado State, and New Mexico, as well as interest from others, including Pen State, Oklahoma, Stanford, Nebraska, and most interestingly, Iowa($, info in title).

HIGH SCHOOL

Palmer Ridge is a nouveau riche (state champs 2017-'19) suburban power whose longtime 3* QB and WR combo recently signed with Colorado State and Boise State, respectively.

Often these days the football academies they train at matter more than the high schools they play for. Connor was at Six Zero Academy with current Michigan OL Reece Atteberry. Coach/owner Matt McChesney (a Colorado fan fwiw) has put 25 linemen in the NFL, including Will Pericak (CU), Sam Jones (ASU), and Connor McGovern (Penn State).

STATS

Is OL. Local newspaper lists 32 pancake blocks and yes I braved literally 600 ads to bring that to you.

FAKE 40 TIME

Hudl pages lists a 5.27. Our FAKE system is broken anyway but I'm going to say four FAKES out of five because it doesn't say where that's from, and 5.25 was the average laser 40 time for OL invited to this year's NFL combine.

The page also shows a shuttle of 4.94 (combine average: 4.75), vertical of 25.5 (28.5), a bench press of 305 (n/a, NFL bases it on reps), plus a Nike Football Rating of zero which I think means "n/a" as well. For what it's worth, the shuttle time seems to be the only measure of NFL success at OL.

VIDEO

Junior highlights:

Sophomore highlights and single-game reels can be found on his Hudl page.

Also because it's a COVID commitment to Michigan there must be a workout video and…ah yes:

Great tech session w/ @SixZeroAcademy @mrodrigue70 @4Warinner @Coach2J @CoachWozniakTE @FBCoachM @OLCoachHiller @LouieAddazio @CoachMooreWVU @CoachLenz @OLINEPRIDE @SeanDillonNU @CoachLMeadows @CoachDeVan @CoachCRiles @CoachJFrye @coachjharding @Coach_Henson @DarrenUscherBSU pic.twitter.com/hC9dBMNYnA

— Connor Jones (@77ConnorJones) November 17, 2020

PREDICTION BASED ON FLIMSY EVIDENCE

Jones is a big-butted offensive tackle prospect who'll get a redshirt and probably another two years of development before he's in contention. He's the size (6'7"/285) and shape (long arms, afore mentioned tushie) of a prototypical left tackle. With another year of high school and access to a former NFL lineman as a trainer The big question appears to be his feet, and if you just watched the highlight reels I can see why that's a concern: the competition level isn't very good, and Jones doesn't have to move very much to wall off or pancake a typical DE from Colorado Springs.

The workout clip shows at least average foot speed, and the potential for more as his leg strength comes along. There's a lot of inside stepping, which is clearly a major point of emphasis for McChesney.

With OL there's so much you don't know at this stage if you've got a guy with the rare OT shape and grew up with the right color pajamas, you take him and see where it goes. Warinner's visit and familiarity through Atteberry—whom the program reportedly adores—suggest the program is much higher than all of that.

ETC.

Already found the restaurant in town best known for its Linesman's Lunch.

UPSHOT FOR THE REST OF THE CLASS

Jones is the first OL commit, the second player on offense, and fifth overall to pledge to Michigan's 2022 class. He's the lowest-ranked, about 100 spots behind DT Davonte Miles, whose Christmas break hello is also forthcoming.

With 56/85 scholarships currently promised to players who will have some kind of freshman eligibility in 2021, not to mention staff changes expected to occur after the new year, how the 2022 class will shake out is anybody's guess. It's probably going to have more than one offensive tackle prospect in it, and Michigan's after several top targets, including TN 4* Fisher Anderson, who visited last fall.