MSU Football Targeting Highly Productive Transfer LB
For the 2025 transfer cycle, Michigan State will need to address several position groups. Wide receiver and offensive line will be a must -- several key Aidan Chiles targets are in the portal and finding more weapons for your future at quarterback is typically a good route to take.
Finding him protection -- even more so.
Defensively, when you try to weigh the biggest weaknesses, defensive line and secondary are the big red flags. The Spartans were banged up in 2024 in the secondary, and even then, they only got truly inspiring football out of cornerback Charles Brantley. He is now in the portal.
On the line, Maverick Hansen is out for the NFL Draft, and Ken Talley is in the portal. Even with them, the unit struggled to pressure the quarterback throughout the season.
When you think about weaknesses, or needs, the position of linebacker doesn't really sound an alarm.
Cal Haladay is done and Jordan Turner, probably the best player the Spartans had defensively in 2024, will now have a chance at going to the next level in April. Even then -- things look good. The Spartans have young, high-ceiling 2024 transfer talent in Marcellius Pulliam (Miami) and Semaj Bridgeman (Michigan), Wayne Matthews III (who played plenty in 2024), and a very intriguing prospect in soon-to-be sophomore Brady Pretzlaff.
Even then, it wouldn't hurt to build the depth the Spartans thought they had in 2024. Marshall linebacker Jaden Yates is one of the most coveted players in the portal. Yates had 115 tackles this past season and two fumble recoveries.
He is athletic and smart and just took a visit to Ole Miss. He is planning just two more visits, per 247Sports' Allen Trieu -- one to TCU and one to East Lansing. The 6-foot-1, 215-pound linebacker would be a good get for the Spartans and their defensive coordinator/linebackers coach, Joe Rossi.
Losing Turner meant losing a physical presence and a dynamic off-ball backer. And your green dot.
Yates looks the part to play Rossi's Mike position.
"From a physical standpoint, you gotta have guys that are comfortable in space," Rossi said about the role in August. "You wouldn't even think that I would say that to start with the Mike, but you know, the Mike ends up out of the box all of the time in three-by-one formations, and so the guy has got to be physical and he's got to be able to stop the run, all those things, I got it. You know, if you're getting recruited as a Mike, you gotta have that skillset but you gotta be comfortable in coverage. Doesn't mean you're playing man-to-man on people all the time, but it just means you got to be able to go out there, play in space and function. So I think that that's something that's going to be big for us in terms of that position."
Michael France is Sports Illustrated's Michigan State recruiting beat writer, covering all things Big Ten recruiting for Spartan Nation. Be sure to follow him on Twitter/X@michaelfrancesi for exclusive Spartans recruiting coverage.
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