Brother of Michigan State basketball star commits to Oklahoma

AZ Compass    Jeremiah Fears (2) drives to the basket during the game between Bartlett High School and AZ Compass Prep School during Memphis Hoopfest at Bartlett High School in Bartlett, Tenn., on Saturday, January 6, 2024.
AZ Compass Jeremiah Fears (2) drives to the basket during the game between Bartlett High School and AZ Compass Prep School during Memphis Hoopfest at Bartlett High School in Bartlett, Tenn., on Saturday, January 6, 2024. / Chris Day/The Commercial Appeal / USA
facebooktwitterreddit

Michigan State basketball and Tom Izzo have been heavily pursuing the brother of current Spartan Jeremy Fears Jr. in Jeremiah Fears for quite some time.

Fears was a top target for Izzo and his staff in the 2025 class, but he ultimately committed to Illinois this past January. That commitment however didn’t stick as Fears decided to decommit from the Illini about a month ago.

Once Fears decommitted, Michigan State immediately got involved again. And why wouldn’t they? MSU was one of Fears finalists initially and they have his older brother already in East Lansing, so surely they would stand a good chance at winning him over right?

However there was one problem, Fears decided to reclassify to the 2024 class. The Spartans current roster is full and there is no room for a new member to this year’s team. So the only way to get the younger Fears to also come to Michigan State was to convince him to stay in the 2025 class.

It now looks like Izzo was unable to convince Fears of that because he has just announced his commitment to Oklahoma.

A commitment to Oklahoma seems random to me, but he likely didn’t have many options this late in the recruiting process. Typically a top 40 recruit essentially has his choice of any school he wants, but since he wants to play in college this year that severely limited his options.

Regardless I hope it works out for him at Oklahoma. And who knows, maybe Izzo will schedule a game with Oklahoma in the near future. Now that would be a site to see.

I also want to mention that losing this recruitment isn’t Izzo or his staff’s fault. Once Fears was decided on reclassifying there was nothing Michigan State could do.

So hopefully next time the Spartans get a little more fortunate when they are going after a top recruit.