Hello: Chuck Filiaga

[Photo: Michael Bruntz/247Sports]

Michigan added a huge piece to their 2017 class in four-star Aledo (TX) offensive tackle Chuck Filiaga, who announced his commitment to the Wolverines over fellow finalists Nebraska and Oklahoma live at the Army All-American Bowl this afternoon.

Filiaga is Michigan's 27th commit in the 2017 class and the sixth along the offensive line. Given Michigan's depth at offensive tackle, he'll have the chance to make an immediate impact as a freshman.

GURU RATINGS

Filiaga's rankings are in a remarkably tight bunch; all four sites place him within a four-spot range in the offensive tackle position rankings and just outside the top 100 overall prospects.

Thanks to Filiaga's participation in the Army Bowl, we have up-to-date and detailed measurables:

The strength and conditioning program at Aledo High School has served Chuck well. He's trimmed down from the summer and he's looking lean at 326 pounds. He's massive at 6-foot-5 1/8 with 36-inch arms and the biggest hands in attendance at 10 3/4 inches. Oklahoma, Michigan and Nebraska are finalists.

6'5", 326 with long arms (second-longest at the Army Bowl) and big hands screams tackle, which is almost certainly where Filiaga will play at Michigan.

SCOUTING

Filiaga was initially regarded as a two-way prospect. The first scouting report on him, from his sophomore year at Vista Murrieta (CA), mentions he played both offensive tackle spots and was a "powerful" run blocker. At the RCS and Opening Los Angeles regionals the next spring, however, he worked out at DT; 247's Barton Simmons said he was "extremely raw" but with "elite" length and size.

After his junior year, Filiaga began focusing exclusively on the offensive side of the ball, at least in camp settings. While still quite raw, he stood out to Simmons at this year's Opening LA regional because of his size and potential:

While Chuck Filiaga didn't make the final five on the offensive line, he remains one of the most intriguing prospects out west. He's gained 60 pounds in the last year and is embracing offensive tackle but he's extremely raw. The athleticism and movement skills are there, as is the size.

He used his power to earn a top performer mention at the RCS LA:

Filiaga has an excellent frame to play offensive tackle and the Murrieta (Calif.) Vista Murrieta four-star is physical, has tree-trunk legs and a powerful base. Sometimes, he lets defensive ends get into his body too much, but because Filiaga is so strong that usually doesn’t matter and he wins with power and technique.

247's Texas outlet did detailed film evaluation of their top offensive line targets and continued the theme—Filiaga showed great size and potential in his junior film but has a ways to go to reach that potential, especially in pass protection:

STRENGTHS: Shows good athleticism, size, quickness and agility for a big kid. Good bounce with good feet and mobility. Shows good hand placement, can lock out defenders, steer and control. Plays with excellent leverage and leg drive to overpower defenders. Has the ability to punish defensive tackles when he is asked to secure a down block. Excellent athlete with good upside.

AREA TO IMPROVE: Pass protection. Lines up in the back field at times and doesn't have a true kick slide, most of the time he just mirrors his opponent at the line of scrimmage. Does not play with great technique.

They mentioned that he has "good knee bend and flexibility," which is encouraging to hear; that can be a significant issue with bigger OL prospects and it's not something that's easy to develop.

Filiaga displayed improved technique at this summer's Rivals Five-Star Challenge. Rivals's USC outlet said he "had great technique and was very productive," while their Oklahoma site went into a little more detail:

You'd struggle to find a bigger player inside the GeorgiaDome but Filiaga isn't just a huge mauler. He didn't take many reps but when he did he showed an ability to move his feetand battle players on the edge though clearly he is a guy best built to operate with his hands locked onto a defender and running his feet.

That suggests he could be better-suited for guard.

Scout got out to see him play live in November and saw a player who could make a big impact sooner rather than later:

The big man who transferred in from California plays with a chip on his shoulder and has the size and dominant nature to enforce his will and that is why you quickly see why there are so many top-tier college trying to convince him to come to their campus. What I really like about his game is that even though he is massive right now he still has a very high upside from a frame potential. He is going to be an absolute beast in a year or two from now.

He moved up to #125 overall in their postseason rerank:

On his senior tape, he has shown great strength and close-quarters power as a drive-blocker. He plays with a high motor and finishes blocks with his unusual tenacity. He could still improve his body control and balance, but that's a common trait for prospects who are as massive as Filiaga is.

At the Army Bowl, Filiaga has had some trouble in practice with elite edge-rusher Jaelen Phillips, the #5 player in the composite rankings, but otherwise performed well on day one, per TMI's Josh Henschke:

He has all the tools to be a good one at the next level. The first thing that stood out was how massive of a kid he is.  He lined up versus five-star defensive end and UCLA commit Jaelan Phillips for several reps, winning only twice.  Phillips is a monster, and beat Filiaga with his speed.  Our scouts are bullish in their opinions that Filiaga is a great run blocker (mauler), but suggest his technique needs to improve as a pass blocker.  Now don't get things twisted, he dominated in all his other reps. Again, it’s just a matter of him learning to play with consistent technique.  The coaches had Filiaga pulling and trapping, so that kind of gives you an indication that he moves well.

There hasn't been much else on Filiaga from this week but there should be more to come after today's game. Based on the above, this week has confirmed the scouting reports: while Filiaga has the requisite physical ability to be a dominant tackle, he's going to need to improve his technique before he's going to be reliable in pass protection. While that's not at all unusual for a high school prospect with Filiaga's build, it could be an issue if he's pressed into immediate playing time.

OFFERS

Filiaga took his other official visits to Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Oregon, and he also held notable offers from Alabama, Arizona State, Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, BYU, Cal, Colorado, Florida, Ole Miss, South Carolina, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, UCLA, USC, Utah, and Washington, among others.

HIGH SCHOOL

Filiaga is a California native who transferred to Aledo (TX) for his senior season, so this isn't your normal recruitment from that state. Filiaga is the second-highest-ranked prospect to come out of Aledo in the Rivals era (2002-present) after 2012 five-star RB Johnathan Gray, who signed with Texas. Filiaga is the first Aledo prospect with a three-star or better rating to go to a school outside of Texas/Oklahoma.

STATS

OL, no stats.

FAKE 40 TIME

Filiaga has a SPARQ-measured 40 time of 5.59 seconds, which gets zero FAKEs out of five. He did relatively well in the more relevant testing results for an offensive tackle with a 4.66 20-yard shuttle and 39-foot powerball throw.

VIDEO

Senior highlights:

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

PREDICTION BASED ON FLIMSY EVIDENCE

As we discussed extensively on Thursday, Michigan's razor-thin depth on the offensive line is going to provide Filiaga the opportunity to see the field right away, especially if Grant Newsome isn't healthy enough to play. If Michigan wants to keep Mason Cole at center, the only other competitors at tackle will be Juwann Bushell-Beatty, Nolan Ulizio, perhaps Ben Bredeson (if M can find another starting guard), and Filiaga's fellow freshmen. Filiaga is the incoming freshman most likely to be college-ready from a size and strength standpoint; he and Andrew Stueber have the best chance among the current commits of cracking the 2017 starting lineup. That battle should come down to how far Filiaga has progressed with his pass pro technique; if it's at an acceptable level, he should win the job.

Even if Filiaga doesn't earn a starting job, Michigan may have no choice but to play him as an extra tackle in 2017, much like they did with Newsome, in preparation for a potential starting role as a sophomore.

UPSHOT FOR THE REST OF THE CLASS

Filiaga is Michigan's 27th commit in the class and the sixth along the offensive line, joining Cesar Ruiz, Kai-Leon Herbert, JaRaymond Hall, Andrew Stueber, and Joel Honigford. Herbert's standing in the class is far from certain; he's taking visits to Auburn, Florida, and Miami (YTM) this month, with the Gators emerging as a serious threat to flip him. Expect the Wolverines to go after at least one more lineman in the class, with Virginia three-star OT Mekhi Becton the most likely addition to the class.

Other top targets include CA RB Najee Harris, GA DT Aubrey Solomon, UT DT Jay Tufele, AL WR Nico Collins, MS OLB Willie Gay, and CT CB Brandon Sebastian. With Georgia making a strong push for Collins, none of those guys are locks to Michigan, so expect some new names (and/or some old names with renewed interest) to emerge on the board, especially if M can't bring in one of the two DTs.

Here's the class as it currently stands: