‘Life’s a lot easier now’: Highly recruited prep QB Isaac Wilson — Zach’s brother — on why he picked Utah over BYU, other suitors

Sixteen days after four-star quarterback prospect Isaac Wilson announced his commitment to the University of Utah by jumping into a swimming pool at his parents’ home in Draper, life is pretty much a beach for the rising Corner Canyon High senior who also happens to be the younger brother of former BYU great Zach Wilson.

“Life’s a lot easier for me, overall, after I got that (commitment) out of the way. It’s been just kind of a big relief, is the best way I can put it,” Isaac Wilson said Friday during a seven-on-seven passing tournament in Layton conducted by Weber State’s football program.

“Now that all that recruiting is over, I can just breathe and stick to (talking to) my team. I love Utah,” he said.

Why did he choose Utah?

“It was just a great place for me. They are really close to home, close to my family, and I love being with my family,” Isaac said. “Plus, their offense is great. I love seeing that NFL style offense.”

Naturally, Isaac Wilson’s commitment to the U. on May 24 — five days after publishing a top six that also included UCLA, BYU, Oklahoma State, Arizona State and Arizona — was big news locally. But it also garnered national headlines, mostly because his three older brothers went to BYU, most notably current New York Jets backup quarterback Zach Wilson.

Isaac said his oldest of three brothers didn’t tell him what to do or push him in any one direction, but was involved in his recruitment, to some extent.

“We had Zach come down — my brother — and look over the offense that (Andy) Ludwig has, and all that,” Isaac said. “And he said it is probably one of the best and closest offenses he’s seen to the NFL that we visited. And he just loved it.

“So we got the approval from Zach and after that, I just made the decision. Utah is great school, really competitive, and everything you would want.”

Isaac Wilson said that even though he’s spent the last five years watching his brothers play for BYU, he never stopped being a Utah fan. As has been well-documented, his father, Mike Wilson, played defensive line for the Utes in 1993-94 and the family had season tickets to Utah games at Rice-Eccles Stadium next to the family of head coach Kyle Whittingham.

Linebacker Josh Wilson followed Zach to BYU and recently decided to step away from football after three seasons in the program and join the working world, while Micah Wilson is entering his second season in Provo after redshirting in 2022.

Other than giving Utah’s offense his blessing, Zach “just stepped back” when it came to offering more advice. So did Josh and Micah, Isaac said.

“Zach said, ‘Hey dude, you do you. I am not going to push you anywhere. I am going to look over these offenses with you. I am going to help you through it, but I am not going to push you a certain direction,’” Isaac said.

Isaac said that his oldest brother’s endorsement of Utah’s offensive coordinator doesn’t mean that Zach doesn’t love BYU offensive coordinator Aaron Roderick, who is credited far and wide for developing Zach into an NFL quarterback.

“Yeah, Zach loved A Rod when he was at BYU. He still does,” Isaac said. “I still love A Rod. He’s a great dude. That whole (staff) treated me so well.”

What about BYU fans? How have they reacted to the loss of a Wilson?

“Nothing bad. They were always loving. I never got any hate. I am not on social media that much, so maybe (there’s stuff out there). I stopped looking at Instagram and Twitter,” Isaac said. “Every once in a while I will go on there and post something. But I get compliments from BYU fans all the time, saying, ‘Hey, we are still behind the Wilson family, even though we are Cougs, we will love you guys.’ It is mostly stuff like that.”

So whose idea was it to jump into the pool for the announcement?

“Of course, it was (mostly) my dad’s, but partially my mom’s,” Isaac said. “She was like, ‘Do you want to be like everyone else? Pick up a little hat and put it on?’ So we got to thinking and that was the simplest and easiest and funnest way that we could do it.”

Related

• BYU’s Zach Wilson: Inside the making of a future first-round NFL draft pick

• Isaac Wilson has made his college decision

Friday, in a tournament that featured dozens and dozens of teams throughout the Intermountain West, perennial power Corner Canyon lost two of its first four games, but Wilson many times showed off the kind of arm that has drawn college recruiters far and wide.

Two days after his commitment, Isaac was one of 20 prep quarterbacks selected to the Elite 11 Finals, which is a showcase for the top high school QBs in the country.

“Oh, it is big-time, it is a privilege,” Isaac said of the selection. “I am honored to come to it, and am so excited to go compete.”

He said he will also attend the ESPN 300 camp this weekend, and the All About U camp at Utah on June 22.

“I can just concentrate on getting better, because committing has been more of a relief than anything else,” he said. “Right after (committing), I got that gut feeling that it was the right decision. I got it in my head and in my heart, and I am just rolling with it.”