Michigan State Hosting 7 Four-Star Prospects, As Official Visit Season Begins
Michigan State Football has opened official visit season with a big recruiting weekend in East Lansing.
Mel Tucker and the Spartan are currently hosting 10 high school prospects, seven of which are rated as four-star recruits. It's a big weekend in particular for wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins, as three of the top four rated prospects visiting MSU are wide receivers.
That group is headlined by four-star Brauntae Johnson out of North Side High School in Fort Wayne, Ind. The 6-foot-3, 170-pounder is listed as an 'athlete' prospect on 247Sports, but Michigan State is recruiting him to play receiver. He's considered the No. 161 overall player and No. 12 athlete in the Class of 2024, according to 247Sports' Composite rankings.
Johnson listed the Spartans in his 'Top 10' back on April 25, alongside Notre Dame, Tennessee, Purdue, Cincinnati, Penn State, Miami, Missouri, Colorado and Louisville. Johnson has official visits scheduled to Notre Dame (June 4) and Purdue (June 23) later this month.
In addition to Johnson, Michigan State is also hosting four-stars Jordan Ross and Kwazi Gilmer this weekend.
Ross, a 6-foot and 175-pound prospect out of Warren High School in Downey, Calif., is actually on an 'unofficial visit' this weekend, meaning he paid his own way to make the trek from California to East Lansing. Ross may take an official visit later this summer, or perhaps this fall, as he appears to be high on the Spartans. He is ranked No. 234 overall and the No. 34 wide receiver in his class. Ross has offers from UCLA, Washington, Notre Dame, Colorado, Auburn and Utah, among others.
Gilmer, meanwhile, has Michigan State listed in his 'Top 6' alongside Oklahoma, UCLA, Washington, California and Stanford. The 6-foot-2, 180-pounder out of Sierra Canyon High inn Chatsworth, Calif. is considered the No. 271 overall prospect and No. 39 wide receiver in the 2024 class.
Moving to the defensive side of the ball, one of the biggest targets on Michigan State's board is four-star Long Beach (Calif.) Poly linebacker Dylan Williams. Ranked No. 171 overall and the No. 16 linebacker in the class, Williams will be tough to pull away from the West Coast. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder originally had a 'Top 7' that included Alabama, Penn State, Oregon, UCLA, Miami, Michigan and Texas. However, the Spartans re-entered the conversation when they got Williams in on an unofficial visit back on April 17.
It's encouraging that Michigan State impressed Williams enough that they were able to get him back out on an official visit this weekend. Oregon, UCLA and Texas appear to be the Spartans' biggest competition in this battle, and expectations should be tempered, but this is a recruitment that we'll follow closely in the weeks and months ahead.
Michigan State is also hosting a pair of four-star cornerbacks this weekend, though one of them is already in the fold. MSU commit Jaylen Thompson is on hand in East Lansing, helping the Spartans' coaching staff in its pursuit of fellow Tennessee native Marcellus Barnes Jr. A 6-foot-2, 170-pound prospect out of McCallie School in Chattanooga, Barnes Jr. is ranked No. 306 overall and the No. 24 cornerback in the country. In addition to MSU, Barnes has offers from Georgia, Baylor, Florida State, Minnesota, Ole Miss and several others.
Moving back to offense, the final four-star visitor for Michigan State is West Point (Miss.) running back Kahnen Daniels, who is currently committed to Florida. While it'll be difficult to flip the 5-foot-11, 190-pounder from the Gators, MSU running backs coach Effrem Reed will take his shot this weekend. Daniels, one of four four-star tailbacks scheduled to visit East Lansing this month, is ranked No. 346 overall and the No. 29 running back in the class. He'll officially visit Florida on June 16.
Speaking of the Gators, Florida is one of the Spartans' top competitors for fast-rising three-star Elmhurst (Ill.) Immaculate Conception tight end Eric Karner. The 6-foot-5, 220-pounder is ranked No. 562 overall and the No. 28 tight end in the class, but his offer sheet suggests Karner is one of the most underrated prospects in the country. Michigan State was included alongside Alabama, Florida, Iowa and Texas A&M in Karner's 'Top 5', which he announced on May 11.
With only three committed prospects from the Class of 2024, Michigan State is just getting started in this recruiting cycle. With that said, the Spartans have already pursued several options at quarterback, to no avail. Perhaps MSU will have better luck with three-star signal-caller Henry Hasselbeck, son of longtime NFL quarterback Matt Hasselbeck.
A 6-foot-3, 170-pound prospect out of Xaverian Brothers High School in Westwood, Massachusetts, Hasselbeck was offered by Michigan State less than a week ago, but made time in a busy lacrosse schedule to make his way to East Lansing this weekend. There is no national consensus on Hasselbeck's recruiting ranking, but 247Sports considers him the No. 51 quarterback in the 2024 class.
Wrapping up the list of visitors this weekend is three-star interior offensive lineman and MSU commit Logan Bennett.
There's a lot of value in having Bennett and Thompson on campus for official visits this weekend, despite the fact they are already committed to Michigan State. First off, verbal pledges are non-binding, and coaching staffs must continue to recruit their commitments and stave off other programs from poaching them. Additionally, committed prospects get to share their reasons for choosing their school with other visiting prospects, and do a little recruiting of their own. As important as it is for position coaches to connect with recruits, there's something to be said for high schoolers getting a recruiting pitch from their peers.
This opening weekend is just the start of a big recruiting month for the Spartans. Currently, over 30 high school prospects are scheduled to visit East Lansing this June, and that number is expected to grow. Michigan State has recruited well so far under head coach Mel Tucker, and June will determine if that trend continues in the 2024 cycle.
For more coverage of Michigan State Athletics:
- Subscribe to our YouTube channel: @SpartanNationPodcast
- Follow us on Twitter: @mlounsberry_SI | @a3danm
