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P.J. Fleck is off to another torrid start on the recruiting trail this year. It is just the first week of March and the Broncos have already managed to gain nine verbal commitments.
Their most recent commitment is 6-foot-5 275 pound offensive tackle, Tom Kowalkoski. He chose the Broncos over offers from Ball State, Cincinnati, Miami, and Toledo. Kowalkoski was also receiving interest from Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Northwestern, and Purdue.
Kowalkoski, currently a junior attending Catholic Central High School in Novi, Michigan, is ranked 3-stars by 247Sports and joins seven other 3-star recruits in the 2016 recruiting class. He is also the 2nd offensive lineman to commit to WMU in the 2016 class, the other being 2-star Mike Caliendo.
The news of Kowalkoski's commitment was first reported by Scout's Allan Trieu.
Western Michigan adds a commitment from Detroit Catholic Central OL Tom Kowalkoski: http://t.co/MqCr4FwqBL
— Allen Trieu (@AllenTrieu) March 5, 2015
Shortly after his commitment to WMU, we caught up with Kowalkoski to find out why he chose the Broncos.
"Coach Fleck and his staff are elite and taking Western Michigan to a whole new level!"
As far as goals that he wants to accomplish while in Kalamazoo, Kowalkoski looks forward to great things during his time on campus.
"I want to go undefeated, win the MAC Championship, and help take Western to new levels with coach Fleck!"
Fleck and his staff's efforts have not gone unnoticed by both recruits and the recruiting services. 247Sports currently ranks Western Michigan's class 13th in the nation, putting them ahead of powerhouses such as Texas A&M, Alabama, Penn State, Auburn, and Oregon for the time being. Although it is early and it is unrealistic to expect the Broncos to be ranked this high come NSD 2016, this is still an extremely impressive accomplishment for coach Fleck and his staff.
It is clear that the WMU coaching staff is also excited about the recruiting class they put together as coach Howell shared his excitement with his Twitter followers recently.
Another oar has been added!! RTB!! #BeDifferent pic.twitter.com/JJ3DvyUJUP
— Andy Howell (@Andy_WMU) March 5, 2015
Kowalkoski could one day be a key blocker for star running back Jarvion Franklin, however he still has his senior year of high school to play before arriving in Kalamazoo. Once he arrives on campus though, look for Kowalkoski to be an impact player on the offensive line for years to come.
Unfortunately, Kowalkoski's Junior highlights are unavailable on Hudl but check out his Sophomore highlights below. For his junior highlights, click on this link.