Hello Hello: Gemon & German Green

German Green (left) and Gemon Green, Wolverines. [Horns247]

Never has the "commitments come in pairs" tag been more fitting. DeSoto (Texas) twin defensive backs Gemon and German Green bothcommitted to Michigan this afternoon, becoming the sixth and seventh commits in the 2018 class. The Wolverines got a leg up on the competition by offering both brothers; Gemon is the higher-rated and more sought-after recruit at least in part because German missed his junior year with a torn ACL. Their recent unofficial sealed the deal, per 247's EJ Holland:

“The reason why we have chosen to commit to Michigan is because when we got down there, it felt like family,” German said. “The coaches are father-type role models. They each have their own personality.

“They all have the same goals as me and my brother. They want to get us better, succeed in life and win a national championship.”

I can't wait to see their uniform nameplates. Please, please go the full name route, Isiah Thomas-style.

GURU RATINGS

Let's start with Gemon, the higher-ranked of the two:

Scout is easily the most bullish on Gemon, while ESPN and 247 have him as a fringe 3/4-star and Rivals has given only a cursory three-star rating.

As for German:

The sites are split on whether German projects as a safety or cornerback, and he's either a middling three-star or unranked—not a surprise for a prospect who missed his junior year.

The twins fit Michigan's recent predilection for lanky defensive backs; both are listed at 6'2" and in the neighborhood of 170 pounds.

[Hit THE JUMP for scouting, video, and more]

SCOUTING: GEMON GREEN

DeSoto is a Texas powerhouse coming off a state championship, and Scout cites the high competition level Green faces in practice every day in their free evaluation:

Evaluation

If you are looking [for] a cornerback with plus size and the ability to lockdown the opposition's No. [1] target, the[n] Green is a [CB] who is battle tested doing just that week in and week out. He also faces the best competition in practice each and every day as DeSoto sent multiple receiver to the P5 level. He is good playing close to the line of scrimmage with his long arms and physical style of play or he can drop back and be an effective zone-style defensive back. He reacts quickly and can make plays on the ball. He is more of a coverage guy, but does have the size to be an effective tackler. - Greg Powers

Strengths

• Ball Skills
• Body Control
• Burst Out Of Breaks
• Size

Areas to Improve

• Backpedal Quickness

Gemon caught the eye of the Horns247 staff as DeSoto worked their way through the state playoffs last year. EJ Holland mentioned him as one of the five prospects to watch from any class (2017 included) who didn't yet have a Texas offer after the championship game:

Absolutely love this kid. A tall, athletic cornerback, Green matched up with LSU commit Caden Sterns in the second half and made him irrelevant on the offensive side of the ball. Green frustrates receivers with his length, speed and athleticism. And what’s scary is Green has yet to scratch the surface of his potential— he receives no extra training from specialists. He’s a raw prospect waiting to blow up.

They added an extra defensive back spot so they could include Green in their All-Road Team (the best players Horns247 scouted last season), saying he "shut down receivers all season and had his best performance in DeSoto's state title victory."

Gemon similarly impressed 247's TCU outlet at the Next Level Athlete camp in January, showing the hip-flipping ability required for a taller player to stick at cornerback:

Green is very long at 6-foot-2, 170-pounds, but he has very good feet and hips. His long frame allows him to compete against taller receivers. Although he’s not very heavy, his long reach helps him in press coverage.

Gemon earned defensive back MVP honors and an invite to The Opening finals at the Dallas regional in March; he made the top performer lists of both Scout and 247. He followed that up with another standout performance at Under Armour's Dallas camp, prompting the Horns247 staff to name him the Texas prospect who most impressed them during camp season:

Which recruit impressed you the most between the four camps and why?

Holland: I’d say Gemon Green. I've been banging that drum since last spring, and I told Mike that he would be impressed. He was, and so we're all the other pundits. Green was extremely impressive at The Opening and had another big day at UA. Green frustrated receivers with his size, length and athleticism. He actually earned an invite to The Opening finals this week.

Howe: Why do I feel like this discussion is going to be dominated by defensive backs and wide receivers?

Anyway, I liked Green a lot in Frisco at The Opening. He’s long but he’s not a high-cut kid who’s going to struggle to sink his hips. He looked loose and fluid out on the field.

Finally, ESPN has an underclassman eval:

Strengths: Long, athletic and has excellent ability to use his size to play the ball. Reacts quickly to a quick pass game and leverages the route well. ... Areas of Improvement: Strength, run support and footwork coming out of transition on intermediate to deep routes. ... Bottom Line: CB prospect who fits best on the outside. Has excellent speed and the ability to defend high point balls. Further development to control his feet due to his length and his strength in the press will help him to realize his enormous upside.

With some strength and technique development, Gemon could be a significant riser in the rankings; his worst ranking comes from Rivals, which incidentally doesn't have a single scouting report on him. The above doesn't sound like a three-star.

SCOUTING: GERMAN GREEN

German tore his ACL last spring, costing him the entirety of his junior season. He was still working his way back to 100% this spring, so as you'd expect, there's not much in the way of scouting reports on him. German did participate in some recent camps, however, and what's out there on him makes him out to be a very similar prospect to his twin brother—a shocker, I know.

Before German's ACL injury, Holland named him and Gemon among the top 20 underclassmen he saw last spring:

The Green brothers are very similar in playing style. Both are taller corners with length and great ball skills. They will blow up soon.

Post-injury, German impressed TMI's Josh Newkirk at this year's Dallas Opening regional:

While not as highly coveted as his brother, German Green doubles up at safety and CB. He’ll need to add weight to his frame, but altogether showed good enough cover skills to earn even higher offers than he already has in place.

Holland called him one of the ten most impressive underrated recruits from that camp, saying the same thing about German—"frustrated receivers with his size and length"—as he did about Gemon. German also earned mention as part of a "terrific" group of defensive backs at the Under Armour Dallas camp.

Scout's Greg Powers posted his analysis of German after today's commitment:

German is just a bit bigger than his twin brother Gemon and there are not many folks out there who have had the opportunity to see him play at 100% as he missed his junior season with an ACL injury, but for those of us who ave we know that his upside and potential is through the roof as a safety prospect. He is long and has tremendous coverage skills, and plays with an attacking style. He is able to sink his hips and get into and out of breaks and coming off of his injury this spring he has been able to show that same ability. He will end up as one of the more highly recruited players in the state and his offer list reflects that major schools know he is special too.  

There's much less to go on here, but German seems like he'll be regarded as a defensive back of similar caliber to his brother once he's caught up from the missed year of scouting and development.

OFFERS

Gemon holds offers from Baylor, Colorado, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, TCU, and Wisconsin, among several others.

German's offer sheet includes Colorado, Fresno State, Houston, Iowa State, Oklahoma State, and Tennessee, as well as interest but no offer from Baylor, Oregon, Stanford, and Texas.

HIGH SCHOOL

DeSoto, as mentioned above, is coming off a state championship in the second divison of Texas's 6A (largest) classification. The program has produced a number of Power 5 commitments, most of whom stuck in the region, with former Ohio State H-back Dontre Wilson one of the rare exceptions.

STATS

According to MaxPreps, Gemon recorded 57 tackles (36 solo) and a whopping 25 passes defensed, two interceptions, and a fumble recovery in 14 games as a junior.

FAKE 40 TIME

Both players have full testing results from the Opening Dallas regional, though it's clear German was still recovering from his injury, as he posted a 4.95 40 time, 4.53 shuttle, and 30-inch vertical. Gemon recorded a solid 4.59 40 time, 35-inch vertical, and 36-foot powerball through; his 4.38 shuttle time could use some improvement or he might wind up at safety.

VIDEO: GEMON GREEN

Junior highlights:

Film from this spring:

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

VIDEO: GERMAN GREEN

A few clips from this spring:

Sophomore highlights:

PREDICTION BASED ON FLIMSY EVIDENCE

Gemon looks like he'll at least get a shot at cornerback, where he should stick if the recent camp reports on his agility hold up. German, based on the limited evidence, appears to be a safety prospect, though one who'll fit well in Don Brown's defense, which requires safeties to be adept in man coverage.

Both brothers need to fill out quite a bit, and Michigan's depth chart should afford them a redshirt year to do so. LaVert Hill, David Long, Keith Washington, this year's freshman duo of Ambry Thomas and Benjamin St-Juste, and possibly Brandon Watson should fill out the cornerback depth chart while Gemon develops. Ditto the safety group of Tyree Kinnel, Josh Metellus, Jaylen Kelly-Powell, and probably Brad Hawkins in front of German. They'll also compete with fellow 2018 commit Myles Sims, another CB/S hybrid type.

UPSHOT FOR THE REST OF THE CLASS

The dual commitments go a long way towards filling Michigan's need in the secondary for this class, which is expected to only reach 20 or so total prospects. With three prospects who could potentially wind up at safety, the coaches will probably turn their focus to pure cornerback prospects like Isaac Taylor-Stuart and Josh Jobe. Other needs in the class include QB, WR, TE, OT, DT, and WDE.

Adding the Green brothers moved Michigan up from 18th to 12th in the 2018 composite class rankings. Here's the class as it currently stands: