MSU Big Ten Media Days: Tre Mosley talks quarterbacks, receivers & coaches

Michigan State fifth-year senior wide receiver Tre Mosley represented the Spartans at the 2023 Big Ten Media Days event in Indianapolis on Wednesday, along with head coach Mel Tucker, redshirt linebacker Cal Haladay and fifth-year senior offensive lineman J.D. Duplain.

Mosley covered a variety of topics, including his thoughts on Michigan State's quarterback competition, the 2023 wide receivers room, the new-look offense and his relationship with the coaches.

When two-year starting quarterback and team captain Payton Thorne decided to transfer to Auburn after the conclusion of spring ball, that opened up an opportunity for a new quarterback to take over the job at Michigan State.

Tucker called the quarterback battle a "three-guy race" between redshirt junior Noah Kim, redshirt freshman Katin Houser and true freshman Sam Leavitt.

Mosley was close with Thorne, and wished him well, but is now focused on his current teammates.

"With the quarterback competition now, all those guys are going out there competing their tails off every day because they want the job badly," Mosley said about the signal-callers. "I like to see that because competition is good, and that's exactly what we need after coming off of a 5-7 season — may the best man win in every position. Coach Tucker told us after that season that no job was solidified, no matter how many games you started, what you accomplish individually, it's a blank slate, go out there and get it. So the best man's gonna win every position."

The quarterbacks will compete and likely get equal opportunities to prove themselves during fall camp. Mosley noted that being able to practice and get in a rhythm with multiple quarterbacks instead of just one will actually be a benefit for the team.

"I think it's better when we're getting reps with different guys because it's a long season and sometimes injuries occur," Mosley said. "God forbid they don't, but we play a violent sport and you need to be prepared for whatever happens. So just being able to have chemistry with everybody on the roster is key, especially in the ultimate team sport of football where 11 guys gotta be on the same page at all times for your team to be successful."

During the offseason, Mosley had an opportunity to join Kim in his home state of Virginia. Kim, Mosley, Montorie Foster Jr. (senior) and Christian Fitzpatrick (redshirt junior) spent time together away from East Lansing to bond, train and help each other get better.

Mosley was asked about the experience in Virginia on Wednesday.

"It was cool," Mosley said about the trip to Virginia with his teammates. "I haven't been down to Virginia since I was a little kid on a family road trip, so it was cool to just get down there and get away from East Lansing and get some work in. We worked out with some of his trainers back home. We got some good food, his dad's a pretty good chef, so it was cool to just get some home-cooked meals while we're out there. Then, just having some fun outside of East Lansing is always good to do because it's more than just football all the time.

"You've gotta be able to have that chemistry and that relationship so that we trust each other on the field, so that when we're in those tight games, fourth down, or third and short, we gotta make a play, we can really trust each other and we know that the guy's gonna be exactly where he needs to be to make a play easy."