Michigan DL commit Manuel Beigel quickly adapting to life, football in America

What seems like an endless number of towering, green trees surround a small-capacity stadium at The Lawrenceville School in New Jersey. It’s a warm fall day — perfect weather for football. Some spectators pull up lawn chairs, while others walk various breeds of dogs.

There are no gates keeping fans away from the playing field. No bands. No cheerleaders. This is football in its purest form.

Here, Manuel Beigel is set to take the field in the United States for the very first time. A native of Germany, Beigel is more than 5,000 miles away from his home country. Despite the transition and only being with the program for a month, Beigel gets the start at right tackle for Northeast power Wallingford (Conn.) Choate Rosemary Hall.

With only two years of football experience under his belt in Europe, Beigel remains a work in progress. However, he quickly flashes the athleticism and size that made him an early take for the University of Michigan. By the time the third quarter rolls around, Beigel is really finding his grove.

He belongs here.

On the same drive late in the game, Beigel serves up a pancake and follows that up with a physical knockdown. Beigel and his teammates continue to impose their will in a 37-0 blowout victory.

“It was very exciting,” Beigel said. “I was shaking at the beginning because I was nervous. But I think I did pretty good. I just played offense today. I’m learning a lot, but I do think today was a good day for me.”

Beigel wrapped up school in Germany in July and was in Connecticut just a few weeks later. After bouncing around the homes of three different teammates, Beigel enrolled at Choate Rosemary Hall and immediately made an impact

A quick learner by nature, Beigel impressed head coach LJ Spinnato with his work ethic and ability to adapt to any circumstance in just his first few weeks on campus.

“He’s super humble,” Spinato said. “He wants to excel. He asks for extra film. He wants to learn both sides of the ball. I think he feels a little bit of pressure from Michigan, but he’s handling it all really well. There is a maturity there that is beyond his years. He’s a Clydesdale. He’s learning how to use all his gifts. Once he puts it all together, it’s going to be pretty exciting.”

Beigel did play at the club level overseas, but high school football in America has been a little different so far.

 “It’s faster and more physical playing here,” Beigel said. “But I have learned a lot here so far. It’s insane. I can’t even tell you how much I’ve learned. The coaches here are so great. I think I’m adjusting well.”

Beigel has also adapted well to general life in America.

He joked after the game that the best part of the US is the food. At 6-foot-5, 295 pounds, Beigel was especially excited about portion size. In Germany, Beigel was forced to ask for seconds. At Choate, Beigel is satisfied with downing a few slices of gold, old-fashioned pizza.

Communication hasn’t been much of an issue, either. Beigel began to learn English as a youth and is taking big steps forward to becoming fully fluent. Simply put, the transition away from the field has been as smooth as can be.

“He’s learning a lot,” Spinnato said. “We put him with a tutor over the month of August. He was Zooming with him. He did home stays and learned how to live life in the US. Through that, he was immersed in an English-speaking household. He’s asked a lot of questions and is doing all the right things.”

Beigel’s move to Choate will better equip him with the tools needed to play football and succeed academically at Michigan. By this time next year, the expectation is for Beigel to be a high-level prospect with improved technique and an unlimited ceiling.

So how did Beigel end up at Choate in the first place?

“He was doing some workouts with an ex-NFL player, Paul Alexander, out in Germany,” Spinnato said. “He connected with a friend of mine in Connecticut. He asked about me and Choate. Of course, he went to camps through Brandon Collier, and he went to Michigan and earned an offer.

“Manuel went through a long application process to get into Choate. It’s one of the best boarding schools in the world. Manuel did a great job with his essays and interview. He’s a conscientious, hardworking kid. He’s the perfect fit for our program.”

Alexander and Collier have worked together through Collier’s PPI Recruiting, an international database and recruiting service that helps European prospects gain exposure. Collier, who had brief stints in both the NFL and CFL, identified and started to train Beigel roughly two and a half years ago.

And it didn’t take long for Collier to realize the type of player he could become. 

“The size and athletic ability popped out right away,” Collier said. “When I met him, he was 265 pounds and really athletic. Just looking at his size and his footwork, I knew he was going to be special.”  He was really good at soccer, but he outgrew the sport. He’s currently 6-foot-5, 295 pounds. He’s in the high 4.8 or low 4.9 range at his size. He’s broad jumping over 9’5. His explosion and athleticism is rare. The sky is the limit for that kid.”

Beigel dedicated more than a decade of his life to soccer, but with his size, he eventually outgrew the sport. American football quickly became an obsession for Beigel after he consumed various forms of content online.  

“I saw YouTube videos and Netflix shows about football,” Beigel said. “I wanted to play so bad. I tried out in Germany, and I fell in love with it.”

Beigel made his mark as a legit football prospect this summer when he joined Collier for a camp tour across the US. Beigel worked out in front of the Michigan staff at one of the Wolverines’ on-campus camps and opened the eyes of defensive line coach Mike Elston after earning DL MVP.

Elston, who had a previous working relationship with Collier during his time at Notre Dame, offered Beigel on the spot and accepted his commitment a month later.

 “It’s a great school,” Beigel said. “There is no better place than Michigan. The people are really nice. The coaching staff really impressed me. They wanted me. I think it’s a great fit academically and athletically. I think I can learn so much from Coach Elston at Michigan. I’m excited to work with him.”

Beigel returned to Ann Arbor earlier this month and took in his first game in The Big House — a dominant U-M win over Hawaii.  

“It was impressive,” Beigel said. “It was a night game under the lights. I haven’t been to a lot of games in stadiums, so it was a different experience. It was insane. In soccer, you might have some violence. It seemed a lot more family-oriented at Michigan.”

Before getting to put on the winged helmet, Beigel still has two full seasons to go at Choate. For now, Beigel is exclusively playing along the offensive line, but the plan is for him to get quality time on both sides of the ball moving forward.

If his first game was any indication, Beigel is well on his way to a bright future at Choate and the University of Michigan.

“We’re lucky to have him here, and In a year, there is no doubt, he’ll be someone Michigan will be lucky to have,” Spinnato said.