Northwestern beat out half the B1G for a commitment from a heavily-recruited defensive lineman out of St. Louis.

Sunday, Pat Fitzgerald and the Wildcats earned a verbal pledge from 6-foot-3, 280-pound defensive lineman Tyler Gant. He had received 19 other offers, including 7 from B1G programs. The St. Louis native made his announcement with a post on Twitter.

Northwestern edged out Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska and Wisconsin for Gant’s commitment. The Wildcats are now up to 7 recruits in the 2023 cycle.

Other Power 5 programs to extend an offer to Gant include Arkansas, Boston College, Colorado, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Kentucky, Vanderbilt and West Virginia.

Per 247Sports’ composite rankings, Gant is a Top 500 overall prospect for the cycle. He’s listed as the No. 59 defensive lineman in the class and the No. 14 talent out of Missouri.

Gant joins a Northwestern class that sits in the Top 25 in the national recruiting rankings currently. He’s the second-highest-rated prospect to commit to the Wildcats and is the first defensive lineman to pledge to Fitzgerald’s squad.