‘Throwback’ linebacker with ‘swagger’ eager to learn under Avalos at Boise State
Unlike most college football recruits, Wyatt Milkovic didn’t whittle his list of scholarship offers down to a top two or three before verbally committing to Boise State.
Milkovic said he went with the flow and believed he would know when he found his perfect fit.
He said he found it at Boise State.
Milkovic was offered a scholarship during a visit to campus on the first weekend of April, and he shared his plans to commit with head coach Andy Avalos before he left. Milkovic shared his decision with the world on April 8.
“I wanted to commit to the place I was most comfortable with and was a perfect fit between me and the coach,” said Milkovic, who plans to graduate high school early and enroll at Boise State in January 2023.
The three-star linebacker said the Broncos’ history played a role in his decision to pick them over scholarship offers from Iowa State, California, Colorado, Army, Nevada, Utah State and New Mexico.
He’s too young to have watched many of Boise State’s iconic moments live — such as its Fiesta Bowl win over Oklahoma in 2007 — but he’s seen so many clips of the final moments of that game, he said the Statue of Liberty play is seared into his brain.
“Looking back on those games of the past shows the history this program has,” Milkovic said. “Boise State has always been a great program, and it’s only getting better.”
Boise State’s accomplishments aren’t what convinced Milkovic to commit, he said. It also wasn’t the Broncos’ facilities, the position meetings he joined or the practice he watched.
Instead, the opportunity to play for a defensive-minded coach who once manned Milkovic’s position is what made Boise State the right fit, he said. Avalos was a linebacker for the Broncos from 2001 to 2004.
“Just knowing that he played linebacker and takes care of his linebackers, I can use that to my advantage,” Milkovic said. “He’s someone else I can lean on to help me learn and grow.”
A ‘throwback’ at his position
Milkovic hasn’t always been a linebacker. He began his high school career as a freshman defensive lineman on the varsity team at Hamilton High in Arizona. After transferring to nearby Basha High, he spent his sophomore year as a defensive end and outside linebacker.
Last year was Milkovic’s first full season as a middle linebacker, but he looked like a natural, Basha coach Chris McDonald said.
“He has a high ceiling, being so new to his position, but he brings some swagger with him,” McDonald said. “People don’t realize how hard he hits until they’re on the field and feel it. I saw him hit a couple players last year and you could tell they didn’t want any more and kind of checked out.”
McDonald described Milkovic as a “throwback” to a time when linebackers were the most feared players on the field, and said he already has made a habit out of striking fear in opponents.
McDonald referenced a game against Perry High School last season when one of the Pumas’ first plays was a quarterback sweep. Milkovic, who began the play in the middle of the field, chased down the QB and delivered a hit McDonald said could be heard from far away.
Basha ran away with a 45-6 win.
“It completely deflated their entire team and their entire home section, and it was game over after that,” McDonald said. “I don’t think coaches realize how fast Wyatt is tracking ball carriers, but he really can play sideline to sideline.”
‘I’m full go,’ Boise State recruit says
Milkovic (6-foot-1, 233 pounds) had little trouble settling in at middle linebacker last year. He led Basha with 132 tackles and added 4.5 sacks while helping the team record its first undefeated regular season in program history.
“Playing middle linebacker is harder than being on the outside because everything is right in front of you and you have to be ready to read and react to whatever,” Milkovic said. “It forces you to get in the film room because you have to be prepared.”
Film study was vital to his breakout season, he said. Milkovic said he didn’t just study film with his position coach; he also sought out Basha’s offensive line coach to get a better understanding of blocking schemes.
“Nobody told him to do that,” McDonald said. “That’s being wise beyond your years and something you’d expect from a coach, not a 17-year-old kid.”
Whether it takes hours in the film room or weight room, Milkovic said the ultimate goal is seeing fear in his opponents’ eyes after he delivers that first big hit.
“I get jacked after a play like that, running around, screaming and jumping,” Milkovic said. “I’m a very passionate player, and I’m full go in everything I do — on or off the field.”
Boise State’s 2023 recruiting class
QB CJ Tiller, 6-3, 200, Rancho Cucamonga (California) High
LB Wyatt Milkovic, 6-1, 233, Basha (Arizona) High
OL Jason Steele, 6-4, 280, Murrieta Valley (California) High
