Commitment breakdown: Three-star Brooks Bahr picks Michigan

One of the best 2023 defensive ends in the Midwest, Brooks Bahr, will be leaving his home state of Illinois to play for Michigan. Bahr chose the Wolverines over offers from the likes of Illinois, Iowa, Northwestern, Wisconsin and others.

The Loyola Academy (IL) standout saw his recruitment blow up following an impressive junior season which saw him go from a single offer in September to 15 offers when he committed to Michigan earlier today.

Bahr is a physical freak that resembles a young JJ Watt. He transformed himself from a skinny pass rusher as a freshman into a massive defensive line prospect with the size and athleticism to play anywhere on the defensive front. The most exciting thing about Bahr is that he is not even scratching the surface of what he will be in a few years. He is a tad bit raw right now, but that is what you love about him, and he has all of the tools to be a dominant player at the next level. As a junior in high school he is already physically ready to play in college and with improved technique he will have a chance to be a contributor right away. Bahr is the type of prospect that has a chance to be a high round draft-pick once everything clicks. There really is no limit to how physically dominant he can be when you consider the size and strength he already possesses at this point in his career. Along with having a ton of upside, Bahr is a high character kid that will be a great team guy and make the locker room better as well. Once fully developed he has a chance to be a force on the Michigan defensive front.

This is big for Michigan on many fronts, but most importantly they just beat a number of their Big Ten opponents for his commitment. Bahr becomes commitment No. 6 for the wolverines in the 2023 class, and comes in at a position of need due to the the departure of big time defensive lineman like Aidan Hutchinson and Christopher Hinton who are headed to the NFL draft.

This commitment is not shocking when you consider the way Bahr described his first game day visit to Michigan as being like nothing he had ever experienced before. This quote comes from an interview in November prior to Bahr even receiving an offer from the Wolverines.

"Same thing with Michigan, I liked the staff a lot," Bahr said. "I went to the Northwestern versus Michigan game up there. The Big House was packed and it was really loud. I had never experienced anything like that before. The coaches told me that they want to stay in touch and the would like me to visit again. The coaches invited me to come back for their game against Ohio State, but I can't go because of playoffs."