Signee Spotlight: Michigan OL signee Jake Guarnera on sticking with Wolverines, enrolling early, more

Three-star Ponte Vedra (Fla.) High offensive lineman Jake Guarnera officially signed with Michigan on Wednesday.

The Wolverine’s EJ Holland caught up with Guarnera about putting pen to paper and what it means to be a Wolverine. Watch the full Q&A in the video above.

The Skinny

Height: 6-foot-4
Weight: 283
Senior Stats: Guarnera‘s team finished with 2,353 passing yards, 2,142 rushing yards and 50 total touchdowns
Industry Ranking: No. 37 interior offensive lineman, No. 449 overall
Interesting Facts: Father, Jim Guarnera, was a defensive lineman for Rutgers and had a brief stint in the NFL. Also lettered in track and field and was considered one of the best in the shot put in the state of Florida. Selected to the Under Armour All-America Game. Transitioned from tackle to center as a senior.

Recruitment

Michigan evaluated multiple center prospects this cycle, but Guarnera claimed his spot first by committing to the Wolverines in April. Guarnera picked U-M over offers from Florida State, Miami, Michigan State, Ole Miss, Penn State and others. Michigan offensive line coach Sherrone Moore served as his primary recruiter.

He Said It

“I just needed to think about what was important to me. I want to be competing for national titles and be developed into the best player who I can be. Also, just the bond with the rest of the 2024 commits so far is one I didn’t have with any other school.”

They Said It

“It’s hard to put into words how proud Cheryl and I are of Jake. His family out of Long Island follows along. Michigan is such an unbelievable school and program. He’s going to be joining an unbelievable group of people. We had these conversations about whether Jake would take the opportunity to enroll early back in the spring. He did all the academic work. While it’s going to stink that our oldest kid is leaving in less than a month, it’s really the best thing for him. The opportunity to spend time with Coach Herb (Ben Herbert) and his team and the nutrition team and getting the development in spring practices is unbelievable.” Jim Guarnera, Jake’s father

Scouting Report

“I think Jake Guarnera has very good agility and plays with good leverage. He has good functional strength and you can see that with his shot put number. He’s one who’s a pure center but he projects pretty well at the position because of his movement skills and play strength. He’s a pretty well-rounded prospect without a ton of weakness. He has a high floor. With Jake, he’s not the biggest, so what will his size and frame top out at? He’s probably a center only at this point but he could possibly play guard. That’s the biggest one. Just the ultimate size factor.” — On3 Rankings Director Charles Power