Mel Tucker: MSU has plenty 'playermakers' despite losses of Jayden Reed, Keon Coleman

Michigan State lost its top two pass-catchers from a year ago, but head coach Mel Tucker is confident in the Spartans' offensive options heading into the 2023 season.

Following MSU's first scrimmage of fall camp, Tucker expressed optimism in the Spartans' talent at the skill positions, despite the loss of leading receivers Jayden Reed (NFL Draft) and Keon Coleman (transfer portal) this offseason.

“I don’t think we have a shortage of playmakers," he said. "It’s going to be about execution and staying healthy. We’ve got to get the horses to the race and we’ve got to keep them out there.

“Tre Mosley is making plays every day. Montorie Foster is coming up big every day. Christian Pitzpatrick is looking good. He’s a big, tall receiver who has developed. He’s doing a great job on special teams, also. [Antonio] Gates is making plays, [Jaron] Glover is making plays, Tyrell Henry is making plays. Our tight ends – Maliq Carr is a big target. He’s making plays when he’s out there.”

Michigan State's increased depth has been a theme coming out of the Spartans' camp, ever since Big Ten Media Days in late July. Midway through fall practices, Tucker said he sees more guys playing with speed than at any other time during his tenure in East Lansing.

“We’re playing fast," Tucker said. "We have more guys playing faster in practice than we’ve had in the last three years. More guys hitting high-speed reps more often throughout the practices. That’s very important.”

Michigan State has implemented new ways to keep guys healthy, going all the way back to spring football and summer conditioning. Players and coaches alike have raved about the new techniques, and the Spartans seem poised to benefit from more healthy bodies this season.

There's a balance to making sure the work gets put in, and keeping guys on the field. At media days, both Tucker and Michigan State's player representatives stated their belief that last year's team was better than their final record indicated, but injury sapped the Spartans of the little depth they had. Tucker feels MSU has struck the right balance this year leading up to the new season.

“I feel like we’re in pretty good shape right now, Tucker said. "We have to stay healthy, and continue to get better and practice hard and be physical. But we’ve got to keep guys on the field so we can get better.

“We have enough good players to be good. We just don’t have enough good players to have a lot of guys hurt and still think we’re going to be good.”

Tucker liked what he saw out of the Spartans' during the team's first scrimmage this past Saturday, saying the players played hard, coaches coached hard and progress was made.

“Saw a lot of good things on offense, defense and special teams. We had some guys step up and make some plays in all three phases," Tucker said. “We went through a lot of situations – third down, red zone, two-minute, a lot of special teams. We got a lot of work done."

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