Jason Juno/Daily Globe Ewen-Trout Creek’s Jake Witt shoots over Rapid River’s Logan Hardwick March 13, 2017 at Lakeview Memorial Gym in Negaunee during a regional semifinal. Witt committed to play basketball at Michigan Tech.

HOUGHTON — Following three strong recruiting classes, the 2018 Michigan Tech men’s basketball class is off to a hot start. 

Jake Witt, a 6-foot-7 senior at Ewen-Trout Creek, announced his commitment to the Huskies Sunday afternoon on his Twitter account. Witt had Division I and II interest in football and basketball, but it was Tech’s academics and proximity to home that served as two of the major factors in his decision-making process. 

“Education-wise, Tech was superior to the rest of the other schools,” said Witt who has a 3.7 GPA and will look into majoring in exercise science or an engineering field. “At the end, it was an easy decision. I made a list of pros and cons, and Tech was the obvious choice with the level of their education… That’s going to set me up for the rest of my life.”

Witt’s commitment came a day before the first football practice. Coming to a decision before his senior sports season begins was a point of emphasis for him, and he didn’t want to wait for other Division I offers to come in while he already had offers from Division II schools. 

“It’s going to take a lot off my back and stress,” Witt said. “I won’t have to worry about anything my senior year or anything while other seniors decide where they want to go to college. I think it will take a big load off my shoulders.”

In addition to narrowing down a school, Witt had to decide on a sport to pursue at the collegiate level. 

Last season, Witt played football for the first time in his life and was selected to the All-U.P. Dream Team after catching 71 passes for 1,698 yards and 25 touchdowns. In basketball, he averaged 24.2 points per game, 17 rebounds, 5.1 blocks, shot 59 percent from the field and 50 percent from 3, despite being double-teamed and occasionally triple-teamed throughout the season. Witt was named to the Class D All-U.P. First Team after earning Second Team honors his sophomore year. 

But it was Witt’s experience in basketball outweighing his future potential in football that was the deciding factor. 

“It was ultimately that I’ve been playing basketball a lot longer; I know what the game is about,” Witt said. “I know I’m more prepared about what the next level is all about. 

“Playing eight-man (football) now, I think it would be a large learning curve, compared to basketball, if I did the football route.”

Witt made four visits to Tech during the recruiting process, one solely for academics, while the other three were to watch Tech play Northern Michigan, Saginaw Valley State and Kentucky Wesleyan. Those visits sold Witt on the program. 

“I think it was just the involvement that they really wanted me there and wanted me in their program,” Witt said. “I hung out with the guys and they made it seem like they cared and wanted me there. 

“Everyone I talked to said it’s a brotherhood up there. So many current and former athletes all have your back.”

For the past three years, Tech has had strong recruiting classes, with members of the 2015 and 2016 classes making an immediate impact. Junior Kyle Monroe was named the GLIAC Freshman of the Year in 2016 and earned All-GLIAC First Team honors in 2017. Sophomore Tommy Lucca was named GLIAC Freshman of the Year in 2017 and was selected to the All-GLIAC Second Team this past season. 

The Huskies also have highly touted U.P. talents in North Central’s Dawson Bilski and Negaunee’s Trent Bell in this season’s incoming freshman class. 

Given Tech’s talent and style of play, E-TC head basketball coach Brad Besonen believes Tech is a natural fit for Witt. 

“I think he’s exactly what Tech needs with what they have,” Besonen said. “With what (Tech head coach) Kevin Luke and (assistant coach) Josh Buettner have brought in year in and year out, is what Jake needs to play around. He’ll be peppered with shooters every year; they always have great 3-point shooting. The guard play is sound there.

“I think he’ll have a number of one-one-one matchups he can go at, if he can adjust quickly and be able to score against guys his size and athleticism. He’ll be surrounded by space and a lot of options when he does have the ball.”

Besonen, along with Witt’s family and friends, won’t have to drive far to watch him play. The proximity to home was the perfect distance for Witt, who felt like Houghton was far enough to feel like he’s on his own while still being a close drive back if he ever felt like going home.