Joliet Catholic’s Anthony Birsa finds right fit with Northwestern

Anthony Birsa didn’t expect his recruitment to wrap up as swiftly as it did.

But the 6-foot-5 260-pound Joliet Catholic junior offensive lineman gave a verbal commitment to Northwestern that could be classified as a quick courtship.

Birsa’s recruitment intensified after a junior season where he was a huge part of the offensive line that piled up massive offensive numbers and rolled to a Class 4A state title.

Some of that intensity came from Northwestern, which after a January in-school visit acted quickly in getting Birsa on campus. Birsa visited the Evanston campus Wednesday. By Friday, Birsa was ready to make his intentions known.

“During the first dead period, I think in January, (Northwestern) coach (Pat Fitzgerald) stopped by with (linebacker coach Tim McGarigle) and I talked with them,” Birsa said. “Then I talked with (offensive line coach Kurt Anderson) on the phone probably about five times before I visited, and we sort of planned out that visit as to what would work best. We ended up planning it for March 3, and they offered on the visit, which was absolutely amazing.”

Birsa wasn’t expecting an offer on the visit, but once it came some introspection brought him to a relatively easy conclusion.

“I wasn’t expecting to commit so soon at first,” Birsa said. “I’ve always wanted to play in the Big Ten, and I’ve always wanted to be closer to home. I knew about Northwestern, but I think visiting there in person, it was so much more than I thought.

“I remember coming home on Thursday and was going through everything in my head. ‘Is it too early? Is it not?’ Then I just decided that it wasn’t. I thought about it all day. Made a list of the pros and cons, talked with my parents, and I came to the conclusion that it was what was best for my family and I.

“It happened pretty quick, but I gave myself some time to think about it, to really think about what I was getting myself into and how I could become the best player than I can at a university like Northwestern.”

Northwestern indicated to Birsa that it likes his athleticism and flexibility and feels he could potentially fill a number of roles for the Wildcats.

“They said they absolutely love how I can bend, and how I’m flexible, and that’s what we talked about a bunch,” Birsa said. “They see me kind of as a guard in the interior as I put on some weight, or maybe be a swing guy, who could play guard or tackle, which I thought would be awesome.”

As such, Birsa’s already doing a lot in diversifying his skill set to prepare as much as possible for his eventual arrival in Evanston.

“During this offseason I’ve focused a lot on my pass blocking to improve my overall game, instead of just being a downhill run blocker, and its been nice to work some of that in, too,” Birsa said.

His coach, Jake Jaworski, wasn’t the least bit surprised in the rapid ascension of Birsa’s recruiting interest.

“Honestly, I think myself and our staff saw that in him pretty early on. He’s got great length, he’s built a little bit differently and just the way he moves, he’s a very fluid athlete for a guy his size,” Jaworski said. “It’s not all that common for a guy his size to move the way he does. He’s the nicest kid off the field, but he’s got some nasty in him once we get in between the whistles.”

Big Ten schools are beginning to form a bit of a pipeline with Joliet Catholic as Birsa’s graduating teammates Jordan Anderson and Malachi Hood committed to the University of Illinois in the fall. Birsa is looking forward to seeing his current teammates on a rival roster in the near future.

“That’s going to be awesome, they were like we should have got you here (Illinois), but it’s definitely going to be awesome playing against them every year,” Birsa said of potentially lining up against his current teammates in a Big Ten game. “That’s going to be a lot of fun.”

Now, with his recruitment concluded, Birsa plans to commit himself fully to completing a lofty goal for himself and his teammates to cap his high school career: repeating as state champions. To do that, Birsa will have to step into a major leadership role, as only seven underclassmen were slotted into starting roles on the 2021 title team. Birsa is the only returning starting offensive lineman for the Hilltoppers.

“We want to repeat and want to do it again,” Birsa said. “The first one was great, but the second one would put it over the top, finish on a high note.”