I believe, the state of Michigan's 2021 class has at least 10 Division I-level quarterback prospects. If the Great Lakes State's five D-I college football playing schools (MSU, U-M, CMU, EMU, WMU) can't find, properly evaluate and sign at least one signal-caller from Michigan's class of 2021, the above mentioned schools' individual recruiting coordinators and recruiting staff should have their collective eyes checked and their ability to evaluate talent questioned because the prospect level at the quarterback position is off the charts for 2021.
That being said, here are the Top 10 quarterbacks for Michigan's class of 2021 --
Top 10 Quarterback Prospects for the class of 2021 --
1. Christian Dhue-Reid-5-11, 220-Belleville -- He might not be the tallest or the fastest, but this kid is just a flat-out gamer and winner. He's tough, hard-nosed and a true leader. He's a "Brett Favre-like" competitor who consistently makes big plays in big moments for Belleville. I love Dhue-Reid's moxie and poise. I look for a quarterback who values the football and can move the chains, as well as make highlight-reel plays when called upon. Dhue-Reid is that type of player. A four-year starter for the Tigers, one of the Midwest's top high school football programs, which every year sends multiple players to Big Ten-level schools, Dhue-Reid threw for 2,706 yards and 33 touchdowns last season, with only three interceptions. Behind Dhue-Reid, Belleville reached the Division 1 (big school) state semifinals last season. Dhue-Reid completed 63 percent of his passes last year, while also scoring four rushing TDs. Big Ten, c'mon, where are you on this kid? Miami (OH) offer.
2. Brendan Sullivan-6-3, 190-Davison -- Sullivan can do it all on the football field. A true dual-threat signal-caller, Sullivan led Davison, a school near Flint, to Michigan's Division 1 (big school) state championship last season. Behind Sullivan, whose father (offensive tackle from East Lansing) played college football at the University of Michigan, the Cardinals averaged 44 points per game last year en route to their state title. Last season, Sullivan passed for 3,044 yards and 33 touchdowns, while also rushing for 700 yards and 11 TDs. Sullivan earned Associated Press Division 1-2 first team All-State honors last year. An all-around athlete, Sullivan is also a high-level basketball player, garnering All-Saginaw Valley first-team honors last season as a junior. Verbal to Northwestern
3. Colin Parachek-6-4, 195-Dexter -- Parachek already looks like a Big Ten quarterback. Long, lanky and athletic, Parachek should flesh out to a solid 6-4, 215-220 at the next level. With a strong, powerful arm, Parachek passed for 2,817 yards and 39 touchdowns last season, with three rushing TDs, as well. With Parachek under center the Dreadnaughts, a school near Ann Arbor, have reached the state football playoffs the past two seasons, going 8-2 last year and 6-4 the previous season. While that might not be too impressive to the casual observer, one has to realize before Parachek, Dexter football went winless for four straight years (0-36) and as a program had never made the state playoffs in school history. With the talented Parachek at quarterback, Dexter has gone 14-6 the past two seasons, which is an incredible turnaround for a program thought to be basically dead only three years ago. Unbelievably, Parachek isn't being recruited heavily by D-I schools. This is one of the reasons why I write this blog. How can a player of Parachek's talent, size and leadership not be on every Big Ten and/or MAC football program's radar? This kid is the real deal and a bonafide, high-level D-I college football prospect. I just shake my head...
4. Zach Trainor-6-2, 205-Walled Lake Western -- The latest big-time quarterback prospect out of Walled Lake Western (Sam Johnson, class of 2019, Boston College signee), Trainor enters his second season as a starter for the Warriors. Last year, Trainor finished with video-game-like numbers, passing for 3,843 yards and 44 touchdowns, achieving a 74 percent completion rate, with only four interceptions. On the ground, Trainor rushed for four touchdowns. Last season, Trainor teamed with wide receiver Abdur-Raheem Yaseen (86 receptions, 1,646 yards, 20 TDs, Purdue commit), Michigan's AP Division 1-2 Player of the Year, to form one of the most explosive pass-catch combos in the nation. For his performance last year, Trainor was named to Michigan's AP Division 1-2 first-team All-State squad. Florida Atlantic, Southern Miss, EMU offers.
5. Mareyohn Hrabowski-6-4, 210-River Rouge -- I love this kid. Hrabowski might have the highest ceiling, talent-wise and skill-wise, as any player on this star-studded list. Hrabowski burst on not only the statewide scene, but the national scene, after last season's performance in the Division 3 state championship game against Muskegon. Behind Hrabowski, River Rouge defeated the nationally-ranked Big Reds (No. 18 in the country by USA Today), 30-7 in the D-3 state title contest. Hrabowski out-performed Muskegon's all-everything quarterback/playmaker Cameron Martinez (Ohio State commit) in the game. Arguably the top dual threat quarterback in the Great Lakes State, if not the Midwest, Hrabowski passed for 1,045 yards and 11 touchdowns, with only two interceptions last year, while rushing for 1,175 yards and 14 TDs. Big, strong and quick, Hrabowski is a handful for opposing defenses. A bit raw right now, this kid's future is bright, indeed. Verbal to WMU
6. Drew Collins-6-3, 210-Montague -- Most years, Collins would be a top three quarterback prospect, but in this stacked 2021 class of signal-callers, I have him ranked as Michigan's No. 6 recruit at the position. Like the players above, Collins is a big-time Big Ten-level prospect. A coach's son, Collins is polished and knowledgeable football-wise, but possesses a high-level skill as both a passer and runner. Last season, Collins led the Wildcats to the Division 6 state semifinals, passing for 2,425 yards and 28 touchdowns, with only three interceptions, while on the ground, he rushed for 807 yards and 16 TDs. Last year, Collins was named to the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association Division 6 All-State first team and to the Detroit Free Press D-6 All-State first squad. Incredibly, like Dexter's Colin Parachek, Collins isn't receiving the D-I college football interest he so richly deserves. Where are you MSU, U-M, Indiana, Purdue, Illinois, etc. and MAC schools?
7. Braylon Silvas-6-1, 180-Flint Kearsley -- Silvas is another top-rated dual-threat-type of quarterback for Michigan's class of 2021. Neck-and-neck with Davison's Brendan Sullivan as the Flint area's best quarterback, Silvas passed for 1,800 yards and 16 touchdowns last season, while rushing for 1,022 yards and 19 TDs. The Flint Journal's Offensive Player of the Year as a sophomore (Davison's Sullivan was the Flint Journal's Offensive Player of the Year last season), Silvas recorded 2,822 yards of total offense last season for Kearsley.
8. Conor Easthope-6-2, 200-Ann Arbor Pioneer -- From John Harbaugh's (Baltimore Raven head coach) and Jim Harbaugh's (University of Michigan head coach) former high school, Easthope is one of the state of Michigan's top quarterback prospects. A strong pocket passer, with scrambling ability, Easthope, a three-year starter for Pioneer, was 107-for-210 passing for 1,884 yards and 18 touchdowns last season. On the ground, Easthope ran for 368 yards and eight TDs last year. Verbal to Harvard
9. Carson Gulker-6-3, 190-Zeeland West -- I just like this kid's athleticism and play-making ability. One of the top basketball players on the state of Michigan's west side, Gulker is a top-level athlete. A quarterback on a power-running team, Gulker still managed to pass for 1,239 yards and 19 touchdowns last season. A three-year starter for Zeeland West, a school near Grand Rapids, Gulker has excellent speed and mobility and a strong arm. I think once Gulker gets into a D-I college football program, redshirts, learns the system and gets bigger and stronger, the sky is the limit for this kid. There won't be too many quarterbacks a better all-around athlete than Gulker, that's for sure.
10. Jalin Pitchford-6-0, 205-Wyandotte -- Maybe the best pocket presence out of all the top 10 quarterbacks on this list. Excellent movement, lateral ability and footwork in the pocket, Pitchford is strong and accurate throwing on the run while scrambling or from a drop back position. Plays good competition in Detroit's blue-collar Downriver suburbs (southern suburban area), Pitchford will be a three-year starter for Wyandotte. A team captain, Pitchford holds a 4.0 grade point average. It's a bit of a cliche for quarterbacks Pitchford's size, but his game does resemble Russell Wilson's somewhat in his skill as a passer and runner. Pitchford runs a 4.7 40 and a 12.2 100-meters. Pitchford already holds multiple Division I college football offers, including CMU, Buffalo, Bowling Green State, EMU and Miami (OH).
Other top quarterback prospects for Michigan's class of 2021 (all are Division I prospects) -- Gavin Ganun-6-2, 190-Blissfield (will be four-year football starter for Royals, a strong southern Michigan program, an outstanding all-around athlete, Ganun, also a four-year varsity performer on the diamond, has verbally committed to play baseball at Bowling Green State), Austin Myers-6-3, 215-New Boston Huron (News-Herald Dream Team selection, was 84-of-141 passing for 1,351 yards and 12 TDs, with four interceptions, had 678 yards rushing and 11 TDs, News-Herald covers the southern Downriver Detroit suburbs), Bobby Skinner-6-1, 180-Montrose (will be a four-year starter for Rams, helped lead Montrose to Division 6 state quarterfinals as a junior and state semifinals as a sophomore, has led Rams to 27-8 overall record in three years as starter), Ali Beydoun-6-2, 220-Dearborn Fordson (led Tractors to 9-2 overall record last season as junior), Brady Hessbrook-6-1, 190-Ithaca (led Yellowjackets to 8-2 overall record last season as junior, head coach's son, Ithaca is a five-time state championship program and two-time state runner-up, the Yellowjackets had a national-best 69-game winning streak from 2009 through 2014, Morehead State, Valpariso, Butler offers), Al Money-6-0, 180-Midland (Midland Daily News Dream Team selection, passed for 1,433 yards and 21 TDs, while rushing for 463 yards and four touchdowns, will be three-year starter), , Owen Swanson-6-2, 190-Muskegon Orchard View, Alex Tholes-5-10, 185-Schoolcraft (small town prospect, Kalamazoo Gazette Dream Team selection, 145-of-199 passing for 2,999 yards and 38 TDs with only three interceptions), Noah Beaudrie-5-11, 190-Erie-Mason (another southern Michigan standout, Beaudrie is one of the top dual threat quarterbacks in the Great Lakes State, might be the best scrambler/open field runner at the QB position in Michigan, finished 109-of-190 passing for 1,636 yards and 12 TDs, while rushing for 1,470 yards and 25 TDs last season).
