By Bobby Narang
Matthew Weerts is heading out west to find his mojo.
Technically, the Batavia High School soon-to-be-senior linebacker found his football mojo a long time ago.
Weerts, whose nickname is “Mojo,” committed to the University of Arizona in late June. The 6-4 and 224-pounder had many offers, including from Boise State, Navy, Army, Northern Illinois, Toledo, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Miami, Missouri State, Illinois State, Wyoming, Ohio, Southern Illinois, among others.
But Arizona was his biggest offer, from a PAC-12 school that he selected over Boise State and North Dakota State. Weerts said Arizona stood out among the best of all his offers, mainly due to Arizona head coach Kevin Sumlin and the high level of competition.
Weerts’ older brother, Luke, plays football for the FCS 2019 national champion North Dakota State.
“Arizona just seems like one big family to me and I love coach Sumlin and all of the assistant coaches as well,” Weerts said. “They are just great guys and I know that they will look out for me when I’m playing for them. I also have family that lives in Arizona so I might be far from home, but I will have family also nearby. The football program has struggled the last few years, but with this coaching staff in place the football program at Arizona is going to take off. I’m just excited and really happy about being a part of it.”
Weerts, a three-star recruit, had a strong junior season. He compiled 86 tackles, including 61 solo stops and two and a half sacks to earn all-conference honors. Weerts is the fourth potential linebacker to commit to the Wildcats from the Class of 2021.
Weerts said he’s relieved to end his recruiting early, so he can concentrate on leading the Bulldogs for his final season.
“I just love the program at Arizona, along with getting a chance to play in the Pac-12 and really everything that they have to offer,” he said. “It was just too hard for me to pass up the offer and opportunity to play at Arizona.”