East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State coach Mel Tucker used his National Signing Day press conference on Wednesday to emphasize his two-pronged approach to rebuilding the Spartan football program.
He began his remarks, touting the addition prized wide receiver recruit Keon Coleman, a two-sport star from Louisiana, who will play both football and basketball at Michigan State. Tucker then touched upon upon the steps his staff continues to take to build their program though the NCAA Transfer portal.
Tucker anticipates adding as many as nine more transfers before the start of the 2021. The majority of those players would likely be on campus by June.
“We still have more initials available to us,” Tucker said. “We are going to look to add some players to start here in June out of the portal. Ideally, we will get them in June. But, we will be adding players all the way up until we start fall camp. We are not done, not even close to done. We’ve got a lot of work to do still with this class.”
Building program depth through the portal could be problematic for programs that rely too heavily on talent from other programs without thorough vetting of would-be transfers.
Michigan State, however, appears to have structured its recruiting operation to gather intel available portal options.
“We’ve structured our personnel department to be able to handle that,” Tucker said. “To focus on the players in the portal, and junior college, and also focus on high school players. It is something that is here to stay, and I’m comfortable with it. There are opportunities for us to improve our team. And that is what recruiting is all about, so we embrace it.”
Tucker does, however, believe that Michigan State needs to recruit transfers players responsibly, focusing on individuals that can help out immediately, without damaging program culture.
“We cast a broad net all over the country to make sure that we can get the best fit,” Tucker said. “It’s one thing to collect players, and its another thing to build a football team. We’re not just in the business of collecting guys. We are looking for players that are a good fit for us. Every good player is not a fit for us. First and foremost, they need to love football and they need to want to be here.”
Tucker is confident that has found transfers that fit those parameters thus far, and believes the program is on better footing as a result.
Below is Tucker’s assessment of each of Michigan State’s currently enrolled transfers.
On quarterback Anthony Russo (transfer from Temple):
“He has one year of eligibility remaining. He’s got a big arm. He’s tall. He can make every throw. Good ball placement, accuracy, clutch production. He is very good in the pocket. Has pocket awareness and instincts and all of the traits to be an NFL quarterback. He started 26 games at Temple, and set the record for most completions.”
On running back Kenneth Walker (transfer from Wake Forest):
“He has three years remaining. Good sized running back. Has very good build. He has already been very impressive in the weight room and is on his way to setting some records there. Good bulk. Has good contact strength. He has bulk. Plays with a low center of gravity. Extremely patient runner with good vision and instincts. He attacks the line of scrimmage and shows good burst through the hole. He shows acceleration when he gets to the second level and really fights for extra yards. He has value in the pass game and is a reliable receiving threat.”
On offensive tackle Jarrett Horst (transfer from Arkansas State):
“He has at least two years of eligibility remaining. Tall, long, athletic. Plays with a little nasty to him, a lot of nasty. Shows toughness and physicality in both the run and the pass game. Good lateral quickness and range. Good balance and body control in space and shows production on the second level as a blocker. Has the strength to anchor and the footwork to slide and adjust. Will compete immediately for a starting position.”
On defensive end Drew Jordan (transfer from Duke):
“One year of eligibility remaining,” Tucker said. “Good size, solid frame. Good build, bulk and strength. Good initial burst and quickness off the edge. He plays with a very good motor, balance, and body control. He’s a smart player. Shows good instincts and awareness as a rusher. Knows when to counter back at the quarterback depth. Can chase down ballcarriers from the backside. Will give us another pass-rush option and really will upgrade us at that position.”
On defensive back Kendall Brooks (transfer from Division II North Greenville):
“A defensive back with at least two years remaining. North Greenville University. Very good sized DB, aligning primarily at safety. He is smart, tough, and shows burst to close when coming downhill. He is a good open-field wrap tackler. Shows versatility as a pass defender and a run-stopper. He does not back down from contact. He does have contact toughness and you can see his range and pursuit. He has high end special teams value as a four-core special teams player.”
On walk-on defensive back Spencer Roland (transfer from Division III Wheaton):
“A walk-on with one year remaining. He comes from Wheaton college. His coach played for me in Jacksonville. He aligns as a corner. Has good ball skills and instincts. Shows toughness. Does not back down from contact. Shows production in both man and zone coverage. Highly competitive kid who will fight and high point the ball at the catch point. Shows aggressiveness in press coverage and has the speed to recover. Good awareness and instincts and knows spacing as a zone defender which is important. Shows burst out of his breaks, can physically wrap up and make space tackles. Coached by Pete Ittersagen. P-Ice who I coached in Jacksonville. Spencer is actually going to be in med school here.”