It was a successful seven days for Coach Jonathan Smith
It was a very busy week in the football administration building. New head coach Jonathan Smith had a high school recruit or a portal target announcing Michigan State as their next school nearly every day.
It started on Monday with an announcement from Lejond Cavazos. Cavazos is a graduate transfer defensive back who played at Ohio State for two years and then at North Carolina for two. Due to injuries, he only played one game last season, so he technically has two years of eligibilty left.
Also on Monday, the 2025 recruiting class got a bump when Emmett Bork, a tight end from Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, gave his commitment to the Spartans. Bork was given a three-star ranking from 247 Sports.
On Tuesday, news came in from up the road when East Lansing H.S. running back Jace Clarizio announced he would be attending MSU. Clarizio is a three-star recruit and is the 79th-ranked RB in the nation according to 247.
Wednesday brought perhaps the biggest score of the week. Ben Roberts, a defensive tackle from the University of Oregon, is also coming to East Lansing. Roberts was a four-star recruit in the 2022 class and was ranked as the 380th ranked player in that cycle. He redshirted one year, so he still has three years of eligibility remaining. Oh, and his nickname is “Big Worm”.
Thursday was a quiet one, but that was the “quiet before the storm” as Friday saw a few names commit to MSU.
Nikai Martinez is going to be a Spartan after playing at Central Florida the last two years. The defensive back has two years remaining after being the 38th-ranked cornerback and a four-star prospect in 2022.
Also in the secondary, Jeremiah Hughes from LSU will be joining Coach Smith’s first team. Hughes was a three-star recruit and was a true freshman last year. He played mostly on special teams and appeared in all of the Tigers’ games.
Lastly, MSU has someone coming to the team from our rival. Semaj Bridgeman is leaving um to play in the Green & White. Bridgeman, a linebacker, was a four-star recruit in the 2023 cycle, but he never made an appearance in his freshman year.
This must have been a trade as Jaden Mangham has disgraced himself by transferring to um. Let’s never mention the Mangham family again.
This brings MSU’s portal take to 23 players this offseason.