4-Star OL Recruit Shockingly Spurns Ohio State and Michigan Offers to Play a Different Sport Entirely at Harvard

Bennett Pitcher was a highly-coveted offensive lineman recruit in the 2021 cycle, where he had the likes of the Ohio State Buckeyes and Michigan Wolverines heavily pursuing him. On Sunday, both programs received stunning news.

Pitcher announced that he committed to Harvard, but not to play football. Rather, he's committing to the Crimson's basketball program.

“The academic opportunities that Harvard opens the door for are absolutely amazing; second to none,” Pitcher said, via 247Sports. “There is no better place for me to further pursue my academic goals than Harvard.”

“As far as athletically, it is the perfect fit for me. I feel confident in my ability to fit into their system and help contribute to winning lots of basketball games.”

Harvard became an option for Pitcher after he broke his vertebrae during his junior season at Deerfield Academy (MA). After sitting out for five months, Pitcher decided that he wanted to play a sport he loves, while also receiving a great education to set him up for life.

Pitcher was ranked as the 29th best offensive tackle in the 2021 recruiting class by 247Sports, where he not only received interest from the two aforementioned Big Ten schools, but also Penn State, UCLA and Purdue. As for hoops, Harvard secured Pitcher's services away from UMass, Penn and Princeton.

The former center still has to go through the admissions process, but he's 100% committed to joining the Harvard Crimson in 2021.