Boise State beats out Michigan for top-rated high school football recruit in Idaho

The No. 1 high school recruit in Idaho is staying home.

Burley wide receiver Gatlin Bair verbally committed to Boise State during a live stream that attracted more than 1,100 viewers on Twitch Saturday afternoon.

If he signs, he’ll be the highest-rated recruit in program history, surpassing safety Dylan Sumner-Gardner, who earned a grade of 94 in 2014, according to 247Sports. Bair — a four-star recruit and the No. 9 wide receiver in the 2024 class — has a 96.

Bair said Saturday that he felt like Boise State was the place where he could make the biggest impact.

“Boise State was one of my earliest offers and one of my oldest relationships,” he said. “It was really just a personal connection to the place. Obviously, I want to make an impact on the field, but I want to make an impact on the community, too.”

The 6-foot-2, 198-pound Idaho native has scholarship offers from many of the top programs in the country, including Alabama, Georgia and Texas. He whittled his list down to a top five of Boise State, Michigan, Oregon, Nebraska and TCU.

The Broncos and Wolverines emerged as leaders of the pack after he visited both programs this summer.

Bair plans to graduate high school early, but he won’t hit the field for the Broncos right away. He plans to serve a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which means he won’t actually suit up at Boise State until 2026.

Players putting their career on hold to serve a mission is nothing new for the Broncos. Former Boise State linebacker Riley Whimpey and quarterback Cade Fennegan took missions before joining the program. Linebacker Ty Tanner, who walked on last summer, left the team earlier this year to serve his mission.

Two years is a long time to be away from football. That’s two years without intense weight room sessions, demanding practices and in-depth film breakdowns. Two years without experiencing the speed of the game or feeling the pain that comes with getting hit by another grown man.

Bair will be limited in how much he can train during his mission, but he isn’t letting concerns over his football career stop him. He’s dedicated to his faith and said he wants to serve.

“There are different kinds of growth,” Bair told the Idaho Statesman. “There’s physical growth, but also growth as a person and an understanding of what’s really important. That comes with serving the Lord and other people.”

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He’s not concerned about getting rusty, in part because he comes from a family of athletes. Both of his parents, Brad and Shae, ran track at Utah State, and Brad is an assistant track and football coach at Burley.

Bair’s brother Peyton — the oldest of five children — served a mission before signing with Arkansas as a decathlete. He finished third in the heptathlon at the SEC indoor championships last year. The Bairs’ second child, Jaxson, has also signed with the Arkansas track team. He’s currently on a mission in Bolivia.

“Gatlin knows who he is and what he wants out of life,” Burley high school football coach Cameron Anderson told the Statesman. “Whichever school he chose, it wasn’t because the other did something wrong. It’s because Gatlin felt like it was a better fit and his mindset matched with one better than the other.”

Bair struck all the right chords for Boise State fans during his live stream. He said he misses the Broncos’ rivalry with BYU and hopes the teams get back to playing every year. He also said he hopes Boise State makes it into a Power Five Conference — a sentiment shared by just about everyone in attendance.

He also said his relationship with Boise State football coach Andy Avalos played a major role in his decision.

“I can really tell that he wants me to be a football player for him and do great things on the field, but he really cares for me off the field,” Bair said. “I just have so much respect for him and I can’t wait to continue to develop a relationship with him and play for him.”

‘Fastest player in America’

Bair earned first-team All-Idaho honors last season after he caught 73 passes for 1,073 yards and 18 touchdowns. He also set state records in the 100 meters (10.15 seconds) and 200 meters (20.56 seconds) at the 4A state track and field meet.

He’s known for his blazing speed. It earned him national notoriety earlier this year after he posted a time of 10.18 seconds in the 100-meter dash at the Texas Relays, beating Olympic hopeful and five-star edge rusher Nyckoles Harbor, who signed with South Carolina. Harbor ran a 10.33.

Bair said setting state records at this year’s 4A track meet was one of the proudest moments of his high school career. He also made it clear where his focus lies.

“I want to be a professional football player, not a professional track athlete,” he said.

Anderson called Bair the fastest high school football player in America, but he said that’s not the only weapon in his arsenal.

“He’s very good in and out of his breaks, and he has a keen ability to go get the ball no matter where he’s at on the field,” Anderson said. “He has great top-end speed, but he knows how to use that speed in a lot of different applications.”

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Anderson has had the pleasure of coaching Bair since the speedy receiver transferred to Burley following his sophomore season. He also coached against him when he was at Gooding and Bair was playing for arch-rival Kimberly.

“When he was a freshman, he was the scariest human I’ve ever coached against,” Anderson said. “He was still raw as a wide receiver, but if he touched the ball and had any space, he was going to score.”

Anderson said his staff had so much respect for Bair when the rivals met that year that they devoted two and sometimes three defenders to stopping him. That left Kimberly’s other college-bound receiver, Idaho State sprinter Brett Bronson, in one-on-one coverage. The gamble worked. Gooding won, 36-35, in overtime.

“We were willing to let other people score before we let him touch the ball,” Anderson said. “He is way more fun to prepare for when you have him on your team than when you don’t.”

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Idaho gems

Anderson knows a thing or two about working with top-tier recruits. At Gooding, he coached tight end Colston Loveland, who was the No. 1 prospect from Idaho in 2022 and signed with Michigan. He made five starts for the Wolverines last season as a true freshman and racked up 16 catches for 235 yards and two touchdowns.

Loveland hosted Bair on his visit to Ann Arbor, Michigan, in June. Anderson said they’re both special athletes, but that’s not where the similarities end.

“These guys have a relentless pursuit of goals,” Anderson said. “They just never stop.”

Anderson said Loveland — who checks in at 6-5 and 245 pounds — would lift weights three times a day at Gooding and would limp around the hallways of the school because his legs were so sore.

Bair is just as determined, Anderson said.

“He works with a focus that you don’t see in many people,” Anderson said. “His knowledge of his body, how far he can push it and what he can do with it is amazing, and he’s dedicated in every facet. The dude never eats the wrong thing. You can’t get him to take a nibble of a candy bar.”

Boise State 2024 recruiting class

DL Hayden Hanks, 6-3, 270, Thompson Falls (Montana) High

OL Eyitayo Omotinugbon, 6-3, 275, Queen Creek (Arizona) High

S Travis Anderson, 6-0, 175, Mission Viejo (California) High

CB Treyvon Tolmaire, 5-11, 165, Mission Viejo (California) High

Edge Roman Caywood, 6-3, 220, Corner Canyon High, Draper, Utah

LB Clay Martineau, 6-4, 215, Oregon City (Oregon) High

S Tice Williams, 6-3, 187, Conroe (Texas) High

DL Connor Warkentin, 6-5, 260, Centennial High, Bakersfield, California

QB Kaleb Annett, 6-3, 190, Corona Del Mar High, Newport Beach, California

DL Trevor McKenna, 6-6, 255, Borah High, Boise

WR Gatlin Bair, 6-2, 198, Burley (Idaho) High

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