2024 RB Brandon Tullis Commits: MSU could be a 'powerhouse' under new staff

Michigan State has flipped yet another former Oregon State commit. This time, it's three-star running back Brandon Tullis, who announced his commitment to the Spartans on Thursday.

Tullis, out of Memorial High School in Frisco, Texas, took an official visit to Michigan State this past weekend (Dec. 8 through Dec. 10). Following the trip, he told Spartans Illustrated that the visit was "great."

Obviously things went very well for Tullis during his time at Michigan State. He decommitted from the Beavers on Wednesday, just a few days following the visit, before publicly pledging to MSU on Thursday night.

Tullis had originally committed to Oregon State in July under head coach Jonathan Smith, assistant head coach/running backs coach Keith Bhonapha and the rest of the staff. Now, with Smith and the majority of that staff at Michigan State, Tullis decided to follow them to East Lansing.

The familiarity and trust with the coaches, the vision the staff has for the program and the university itself all were factors in Tullis' decision to make the move to MSU.

"Great school, and I really want to join Coach Smith and the staff to make Michigan State a powerhouse again," Tullis told Spartans Illustrated when asked about his decision to commit to MSU.

Tullis is very close to Smith, Bhonapha and several other of the new Michigan State coaches who were previously at Oregon State. The majority of the coaching staff has a lot of continuity and is tight-knit after coaching together in Corvallis. While mid-Michigan is nowhere near North Texas, the staff creates a family-like environment that feels like home for Tullis.

"I'm really close with Coach KB (Bhonapha), Coach Smith and really the whole former Oregon state staff," Tullis noted. "I love the family sense I get from them."

Tullis wholeheartedly believes that it is only a matter of time until Smith turns around Michigan State's program and bring the Spartans back to competing at a high level, similarly to what he did at Oregon State.

"The potential of the program in the future with Coach Smith and his staff leading us forward," Tullis said when asked what stood out most to him about Michigan State's program.

Tullis is the fourth former Oregon State commit/player to pledge to Michigan State this week. He joins fellow three-star running back Makhi Frazier, three-star tight end Wyatt Hook and OSU transfer quarterback Aidan Chiles. We here at Spartans Illustrated expect more former Beaver pledges to flip to the Spartans as well.

Obviously, Tullis is already quite familiar with Frazier and Hook as they were all previously committed together at Oregon State. However, his relationship with Frazier goes all the way back to their youth football days.

"Me and Makhi go way back to playing little league together," Tullis noted about Frazier. "And I did have previous conversations with Wyatt (Hook). He is a very cool guy."

The 6-foot-2, 210-pound Tullis describes himself as a "faith-based guy" off of the field. On the field, he runs through contact, looks to punish defenders who get in his way and can be a reliable pass-catcher out of the backfield as well.

"I would describe myself as one-cut power back with a nose for the end zone that can receive the ball really well," Tullis said.

In addition to Michigan State and Oregon State, Tullis has scholarship offers from Boston College, California, Kansas, Tulane and several others. His offers list is well into the double-digits.

Tullis dealt with injuries during his senior year in 2023, but tells that Spartans Illustrated that he is "very healthy" now.

He will sign in December and plans to enroll at Michigan State in January.

With Tullis, Frazier and Hook now committed, Michigan State's 2024 high school recruiting class grows to 10 total pledges as of right now. They join wide receiver Nick Marsh, defensive back Jaylen Thompson, athlete/defensive back Justin Denson Jr., defensive back Keshawn Williams, offensive lineman Mercer Luniewski, offensive lineman Charlton Luniewski and linebacker Jadyn Walker.

MSU's 2024 recruiting class currently ranks 80th in the nation, but will likely be seeing a significant bump by the time the early signing period open on Dec. 20.

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