When Ron Bellamy made his draft pitch to Jacob Washington, he showed him clips of Nico Collins.
Long before he became a rising star and earned a lucrative contract extension with the Houston Texans in May, Collins generated intrigue in Ann Arbor.
At 6-foot-4, he was a tall, lanky receiver who had a penchant for making plays. But he never seemed to get the ball enough to generate a sustained impact with Michigan Football. In three seasons, he caught 78 passes for 1,388 yards and 13 touchdowns — numbers that would compare to totals produced by the NCAA’s best wideouts. last autumn alone.
Collins’ career, in many ways, helped solidify the perception of the Wolverines’ offense, which was described as top-heavy, unbalanced and particularly unfavorable to outside players like Washington.
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But Washington — a four-star prospect from Archbishop Shaw in Marrero, Louisiana, just outside New Orleans — didn’t see it that way. Collins not only arrived in the NFL as a third-round pick in 2021, but he ended up becoming one of the league’s top targets. Perhaps Washington, with his 6-foot-3, 180-pound frame, could chart a similar trajectory.
The man who sold him that idea was none other than Bellamy, Michigan’s offensive passing game coordinator and third-year receivers coach, who was considered a wideout for the Wolverines at the turn of the century. Bellamy had credibility because he previously attended the same school and played under the same coach as Washington.
“We have developed a strong relationship based on trust and respect,” Washington told the Free Press after committing to the Wolverines this month.
Because of this relationship, Bellamy was able to dispel any concerns about the negative effect of Michigan’s ground-centric offensive philosophy on receiving production, noting that many starters’ production was suppressed last year because they did not play all four quarters in several matches. victories. Despite the argument’s validity, it’s one of many explanations in recent years that have failed to satisfy skeptics who have complained that the Wolverines don’t play enough to attract talented receivers.
“It’s a hard sell,” said the father of a former Michigan player who transferred. “It doesn’t take a genius to recognize, hey man, all these guys want the ball.”
That left Bellamy facing an uphill battle in marketing the Wolverines to get past catchers across the country. Since he joined the Michigan team in 2021, Bellamy has bounced back just three blue chips wideouts, according to 247 Sports composite rankings. Two of those signatories, Darrius Clemons and Karmello English, have since departed. The other, I’Marion Stewart, is still two months away from starting his first college season.
Considering Michigan hasn’t had a 1,000-yard receiver since 2013, Bellamy’s pedestrian track record on the recruiting trail isn’t surprising. But he has tried to get around his obvious obstacles by exploring his contacts and returning to areas where he is a familiar face. To that point, he’s taken sophomore Semaj Morgan out of West Bloomfield, the school he coached to a Division 1 state championship in January 2021. He also made a pilgrimage to the New Orleans area, where he reconnected with Hank Tierney, his old coach at Archbishop Shaw.
Before returning for a second stint at Catholic school in Louisiana, Tierney was 60 miles away overseeing the football program at Ponchatoula High. There, he introduced Bellamy to Amorion Walker. Walker arrived at Michigan as a receiver two years ago, left as a defensive back in January and was moved back a few months later to play his original position on offense.
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“I don’t know if you know much about Amorion, but he’s a physical freak,” Tierney told the Free Press.
Former UM coach Jim Harbaugh made a similar observation last year, calling him a “unicorn.” But the 6-3, 180-pound Walker never found his footing as a wideout, catching just one four-yard pass before moving to the other side of the ball. Going through this transition in 2022, Walker came to accept that he would have a limited ceiling if he stayed where he was.
“Do I think anyone (here) could get 100 catches?” he said then. “Not frankly. … You just have to do it very efficiently, whatever you’re doing.”
Michigan’s outfielders understood this.
As Roman Wilson, the team’s 2023 leading receiver, said last summer: “It is what it is. … We’re really good at running the ball.”
The Wolverines chose to emphasize that strength last season, and the results followed.
Michigan kept the ball on the ground nearly 60% of the time, achieving an undefeated record and a national championship. Thirteen players were drafted in April, including Wilson and fellow receiver Cornelius Johnson. Wilson was defeated in the third round and Johnson in the seventh.
“It’s a pro-style offense,” Bellamy told the Free Press in December 2021. “There are schools where you can catch 100 balls. Will this prepare you for the next level? Then there are systems that help you refine your tools, develop your skill set, and then give you the opportunity to do well at the next level. We pride ourselves on that.”
Collins, in many ways, showed proof of this concept.
That’s why Washington was so intrigued by the idea of playing at Michigan, where he saw a path to a better future after hearing Bellamy pitch.
“He showed me my role in the offense and how I could contribute,” he said. “They don’t have a lot of tall receivers on the roster. So I could jump right in and be unique.”
Michigan’s courtship with Washington has intensified over the past five months. Bellamy flew to New Orleans at the beginning of the year. So in April, Washington went to Ann Arbor, where he attended spring training and fell in love with the fast-paced drilling work.
When taking into consideration Michigan’s strong academic profile, the Wolverines’ recent success and Washington’s connection to Bellamy, Tierney said, “It’s a good fit.”
After all, Washington should have no trouble adjusting to the Wolverines’ offense because Shaw, with his spread-option scheme, is also a trailblazer, powered by another Michigan commit: three-star tailback Jasper Parker.
Last year, after Washington transferred from nearby Jesuit High, Tierney saw him continually improve throughout the season and then capitalize on the opportunities he was given. The progress carried over into this offseason as Washington spent hours in the weight room bulking up and more time on the field honing his technique with a trainer. An outstanding performance in a spring game left Tierney convinced he is ready to take the next step.
“He’s doing everything in his power to get better,” Tierney noted.
When he enrolls next year, Washington hopes to be ready to make an impact at Michigan. His size gives him the confidence he can.
“What really impressed me is that all of Michigan’s big receivers in the past were tall receivers,” Washington said.
Look no further, Collins.
The NFL’s rising star, who once symbolized the Wolverines’ inability to maximize their best pass catchers, is now being used to illustrate why Michigan should be a destination for the likes of Washington. As the program’s latest recipient commitment can attest, it’s a pretty convincing argument.
Contact Rainer Sabin at rsabin@freepress.com. Follow him @RainerSabin
This article originally appeared in the Detroit Free Press: Michigan Football’s Big Task in Recruiting WRs, Fueled by Nico Collins
