Michigan State Football loses highest-ranked commit in 2024 recruiting class

The Spartans aren't out of the race, but this is an unfortunate development...

Michigan State suffered a blow to its 2024 recruiting class on Tuesday when four-star wide receiver Nick Marsh, the Spartans' first and highest-ranked prospect in the class, backed off his commitment to the program.

Marsh attends River Rouge high school in the Detroit area. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound prospect is ranked No. 72 overall, the No. 12 wide receiver and No. 3 player from the state of Michigan in the 2024 class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.

Marsh originally committed to Mel Tucker and the Spartans on July 31, 2022 and was the second-highest ranked commit that MSU had landed under Tucker behind 2023 edge rusher Bai Jobe (No. 54 nationally).

"I want to take this time to thank head coach Mel Tucker, wide receiver coach Courtney Hawkins and the entire Michigan State coaching staff for their consideration," Marsh wrote in a social media post. "I would also like to thank the Spartan Nation for all their love and support. Without further ado, I have decided to decommit from Michigan State and re-open my recruitment. Michigan State will still be one of my top schools of choice."

While Michigan State remains in contention for Marsh, other schools are making a big push in the four-star's recruitment. 247Sports' recruiting analyst Allen Trieu is reporting that Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Clemson and UCLA are all in the mix for Marsh. He holds over 30 scholarship offers with Michigan, Wisconsin, Penn State and Notre Dame and others included with the schools named above.

With Marsh's departure, Michigan State is back down to two verbal commitments in the 2024 class — four-star Florida cornerback Jamari Howard and four-star Tennessee cornerback Jaylen Thompson. The Spartans' 2024 class is currently ranked No. 35 in the country and ninth in the Big Ten.

Michigan State Verbal Commitments, Class of 2024

• Four-star CB Jamari Howard; Westland Hialeah High School, Hialeah, Fla.; No. 159 nationally, No. 17 Cornerback, No. 21 in state of Florida
• Four-star CB Jaylen Thompson; Riverdale High School; Murfreesboro, Tenn.; No. 340 nationally, No. 30 Cornerback, No. 6 in state of Tennessee