After a standout career at Michigan State, the "Kohler Bear" spurned blue-blood programs to return home, aiming to propel the Cougars past the NCAA Tournament's opening rounds.
Four teams had been pursuing the “Kohler Bear” since the announcement was made that Kohler would be returning to college basketball for a fifth year of eligibility.
Those teams included Kentucky, Kansas and a late push from Louisville, but ultimately, it was BYU that was able to convince Kohler to come home and play basketball.
Many would have thought Kohler would be returning to the school that gave him a chance and an opportunity to grow into the man and player he has become. However, Tom Izzo made it clear that Michigan State’s roster was already set, and if this ruling had come in April instead of August, maybe there would have been room for Kohler to spend a fifth year in East Lansing.
The aforementioned ruling came from an injunction filed in Colorado that granted players from the high school graduating class of 2022 a fifth year of eligibility. This came after the NCAA adopted the “5-in-5” rule, allowing college athletes five years of eligibility while simultaneously getting rid of the traditional redshirt path that had previously allowed many athletes to spend five years in college sports.
Kohler was born in American Fork, Utah, and played for two different Utah high schools before being targeted by Tom Izzo and recruited to move across the country to East Lansing.
After four years at Michigan State, Kohler had developed into one of the Spartans’ most important players. As a senior, Kohler averaged 12.5 points per game and a team-leading 8.9 rebounds per game.
Following his time at MSU, Kohler went back to Utah to play with the Jazz in the NBA Summer League this season, where he was only able to appear in two games and received very minimal playing time.
For a while, it looked like Kohler’s basketball-playing days may have been coming to a sad ending.
Until he was granted permission to play basketball one more time.
Now, despite being pursued by some of the biggest names in college basketball, Kohler is staying home in Utah and joining the BYU Cougars in hopes of helping propel the program to elite status.
BYU has made the NCAA Tournament in each of the last three seasons and reached the Sweet 16 two years ago before losing to Alabama. This past season, the Cougars fell short in the first round to No. 11-seeded Tennessee. In fact, BYU has been a No. 6 seed in each of its past four NCAA Tournament appearances, something Kohler will look to help change as the Cougars aim to climb even higher.
Michigan State and BYU are not currently scheduled to face each other during the regular season, so if Spartan fans are hoping to see a Kohler reunion or even a revenge game against his former team, it will most likely have to come in the NCAA Tournament.
Spartan fans should wish nothing but the best for a man who helped bring so much happiness to the Breslin Center and all around Spartan Nation.
Jaxon Kohler plays with intensity and passion oozing out of every pore, and Spartan fans should expect nothing different as the “Kohler Bear” heads home to Utah for one final season with BYU.
