Mark Dantonio's 1st Signing of the 2015 Class is a Star: Tyriq Thompson Signs Big Ten Tender With Michigan State

Most young people sign their Big Ten tender in February to attend in that year's recruiting class. Well one of the stars of the Spartans 2015 class is LB Tyriq

Most young people sign their Big Ten tender in February to attend in that year's recruiting class. Well one of the stars of the Spartans 2015 class is LB Tyriq Thompson from Detroit and he signed his Big Ten tender yesterday and will be enrolling at MSU early.  I would suggest you CLICK RIGHT HERE to watch his highlight video. It is about one minute long, but you will get the idea quickly about his talent. Here is the press release sent out by MSU football SID John Lewandowski.

EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State head football coach Mark Dantonio announced Monday that Tyriq Thompson (Detroit, Mich./Martin Luther King High School) has signed a valid Big Ten tender to attend Michigan State. Thompson is scheduled to graduate from King High School in January and enroll at MSU, beginning in the 2015 spring semester.

TYRIQ THOMPSON

LB • 6-1 • 220 • Detroit, Mich.

Martin Luther King High School • Coach: Dale Harvel

Primary Recruiters: Terrence Samuel/Mike Tressel

HIGH SCHOOL AND PERSONAL DATA: Two-year team captain for Coach Dale Harvel at Martin Luther King High School in Detroit . . . selected to play in the Semper Fidelis All-American Game on Jan. 4, 2015, in Carson, California, at the StubHub Center . . . ranked the state’s top linebacker in the class of 2015 by 247Sports.com, Detroit Free Press, ESPN.com, Scout.com and Rivals.com . . listed as one of the nation’s top 200 players (No. 196) by Scout.com . . . ranks among the top 75 players in the Midwest (No. 73) by ESPN.com . . . ranks among the nation’s top prospects at outside linebacker by Scout.com (No. 16), 247Sports (No. 33), Rivals.com (No. 43) and ESPN.com (No. 59) . . . ranks among Michigan’s top seniors by 247Sports (No. 5), Detroit Free Press (No. 5), Scout.com (No. 6), ESPN.com (No. 9) and Rivals.com (No. 10) . . . King High School is currently 7-0 this season and ranked No. 5 in the state in Division 2 by the Detroit Free Press . . . the Crusaders will play Renaissance this Friday, Oct. 17 in the Detroit Public School League semifinals at Detroit Northwestern High School . . . currently plays tailback, fullback and linebacker . . . has more than 500 yards rushing with six touchdowns thus far in 2014 . . . also has collected more than 50 tackles with eight sacks and has two interceptions . . . was named the Detroit Public School League Proud Strong Learner of the Week after rushing for 205 yards on 18 carries and two touchdowns (75 yards, 25 yards) in addition to 12 tackles and an interception return for a touchdown against Detroit Northwestern on Sept. 12 . . . helped lead King to a 10-2 record and the Division 2 state semifinals as a junior in 2013 . . . the Crusaders also reached the Detroit PSL Championship Game in 2013 . . . earned 2013 special mention all-state honors for Division 1-2 by The Associated Press . . . also lettered in baseball and led his team a city championship runner-up finish in 2014 while playing right field and first base . . . transferred to King High School after playing at Lee’s Summit (Missouri) as a sophomore . . . owns a 4.4 grade-point average . . . is scheduled to graduate from King High School in January 2015 and enroll at Michigan State for the 2015 spring semester . . . is an intern writer for the Detroit Free Press . . . participates as a summer math teacher/mentor for the Wayne State University Math Corps Summer Camp & High School Bridge Program . . . his father Clarence also played high school football at King High School . . . Clarence was a three-year letterwinner (1993-95) at Michigan and earned first-team All-Big Ten honors as a safety in 1995; he was selected in the seventh round of the 1997 National Football League Draft (No. 217 overall) by the Indianapolis Colts.

DANTONIO ON THOMPSON: “We’re very excited that Tyriq has decided to join the Spartan football family. He’s one of the premier linebackers in the country and comes from an outstanding program at Martin Luther King High School. Tyriq is extremely explosive, has the ability to run, has a great get-off, and is an outstanding blitzer with the ability to tackle in space. He was a primary focus of our recruiting efforts because he’s a complete football player who fits well in our system. He’s an incredibly intelligent player who can probably play any of our three positions at linebacker. Tyriq is not only a gifted athlete and a phenomenal player, but he’s also an excellent student and a great role model. The fact that he’s coming here for our spring semester will pay dividends in his development. Our expectations will be for him to play as a true freshman in 2015.”