BYU has landed a major late-summer addition in Jaxon Kohler, the American Fork, Utah native who spent the past four seasons at Michigan State.
Kohler committed to the Cougars after appearing in 127 games for Tom Izzo’s program and helping the Spartans reach the Elite 8 during the 2024-25 season. For a while, it looked like his college run was finished. Two months ago, the expectation was that he had already used up his eligibility.
That changed when the NCAA introduced its new “five-in-five” rule, which gives players five years to complete five seasons. The rule was supposed to begin with the 2027-28 season, which would have excluded Kohler’s 2022 recruiting class and forced those athletes to run out the clock under the old system.
Players from that class pushed back, challenging the NCAA’s decision in litigation across the country. Kohler was included in a preliminary injunction in California, which currently makes him eligible for a fifth season in 2026-27.
The NCAA can still appeal, but with several state cases reaching the same result and more being filed, the expectation is that the governing body will eventually stop fighting the issue in court and allow those athletes to play this season under the “five-in-five” ruling.
If that holds, Kohler projects as BYU’s starting center. He’s coming off the strongest season of his career, putting up 12.5 points and 8.9 rebounds per game while shooting 50% from the field and 39% from three. He also picked up All-Big 10 honorable mention.
For BYU, this is the kind of move that changes the feel of a roster in a hurry. Kohler gives the Cougars a rare mid-August boost and adds a big man who can score inside, work the glass, and step out to the arc. He also arrives with real mileage, having spent four years in the Big 10 under a hall of fame coach in Izzo.
It’s a homecoming, too. Kohler gets to finish his college career close to where he grew up, while moving into the Big 12 and joining a program that shares his faith as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
With the roster now nearly finished, BYU fans have every reason to be looking ahead with real excitement.
In Other News...
BYUs Jaxon Kohler Move Comes With One Massive Question
Jaxon Kohlers path to BYU became one of the most notable roster developments of the offseason, giving the Cougars an experienced frontcourt piece with real production behind him. The Michigan State big man has committed to BYU and, thanks to a temporary injunction tied to a California lawsuit involving fifth-year graduated players, is eligible to suit up this coming season. For a program looking to strengthen its interior presence, the move brings immediate credibility and a player who has already logged heavy minutes on a major stage.
Kohler spent four seasons at Michigan State, starting 69 games over his last two years and finishing his senior season at 12.5 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. Those numbers are part of why his arrival is expected to have a significant impact on BYUs roster, but the larger question still hangs over everything: how long that eligibility window remains open and what it means for the Cougars if the legal landscape changes again. [Read more 🡒]
BYU May Have Finally Solved Its Biggest Roster Problem
BYUs search for a proven center has taken a significant step forward with the commitment of Jaxon Kohler, the former Michigan State big man who will suit up for a fifth college basketball season after receiving an additional year of NCAA eligibility. Kohler spent four seasons in East Lansing and capped that run by earning All-Big Ten Honorable Mention honors last season, giving the Cougars a veteran interior presence at a spot that had loomed as one of the rosters biggest needs.
His arrival gives BYU a much clearer answer in the middle and should help balance a frontcourt that needs both size and spacing. Kohlers game also fits the Cougars desire to improve perimeter shooting from the inside out, but the bigger question now is how quickly he can settle in and how much he changes the ceiling of a roster that was still searching for its starting center. [Read more 🡒]
BYUs Offseason Just Got Interesting With One Key Return In Limbo
A recent court ruling has already started to reshape the college basketball offseason, and it could have a direct impact on BYUs roster planning. The decision opens the door for some athletes from the 2022 recruiting class to receive a fifth year of eligibility after completing four seasons in the NCAA, a development that has sent programs across the country rechecking depth charts, scholarship spots, and long-term plans.
For BYU, the wrinkle is that the situation is still unsettled, and players from that class are temporarily ineligible while the legal process plays out. Meanwhile, several notable names, including Jaden Henley, Jaxon Kohler and Elijah Mahi, who all took part in the 2026 NBA Summer League, are already planning to return to college basketball for the 2026-27 season, underscoring just how quickly the next wave of roster decisions could take shape once the final answer arrives. [Read more 🡒]