UW lands four-star OL Tyler Beach, top in-state prospect in 2017

After an unofficial visit to Wisconsin on Thursday, Tyler Beach said he wanted to take trips to Michigan State and Northwestern later this month before announcing his final decision.

Those visits have been cancelled.

Sunday, the Badgers has landed a commitment from Beach, the top-rated in-state prospect in the 2017 class.

"As a recruit, it's hard to explain. I just got that feeling of belonging at Wisconsin," Beach told BadgerBlitz.com. "I really can't put it into words; I just felt at home."

A 6-foot-6, 270-pound four-star junior from Port Washington, Beach chose the Badgers over offers from Michigan, Notre Dame and Arkansas, among others. He is the eighth member of UW's 2017 recruiting class.

"Wisconsin, Notre Dame and Michigan, they all have great programs, they all have great coaches, great facilities and great academics," Beach said. "But like I said, it just came down to how I felt about the school. I knew Wisconsin was where I wanted to go and the last visit really sealed it for me."

Offensive coordinator and future position coach Joe Rudolph also played a big part in Beach's commitment.

"Coach Rudolph was big for me," Beach said. "He'll be the guy coaching me and I have a great relationship with him. Him and coach (Chris) Haering and coach (Paul) Chryst, I think they genuinely care about recruits.

"They were pumped when I told them today. They were so excited. They think I can be a perfect fit because coach Rudolph wants a big offensive line leading the way."

Chryst has done an excellent job of nailing down the top in-state juniors. In addition to Beach, Wisconsin holds commitments from Logan Bruss (Kimberly), Kayden Lyles (Middleton), Jake Ferguson (Madison Memorial), Aaron Vopal (De Pere) and Alex Fenton (Menomonie).

"It's relaxing to have my commitment done with," Beach said. "I'm really excited to be a normal 16-year-old kid again and start enjoying those things while getting ready for my senior year."

With four commitments on the offensive line, the Badgers are likely done at the position in this cycle.