Michigan State Football Adds WR Rai'shawn Elmore to 2026 Class

Michigan State is still finding additions to its next recruiting class, with signing day just a week or so away.

The latest commitment now comes from wide receiver Rai'shawn Elmore, a consensus three-star prospect from Indian Trail, N.C., who attended Porter Ridge High School. Elmore verbally pledged to the Spartans on Tuesday afternoon.

🏡@Dabigman41 @CoachMcDonald7 @CoachHawk_5 @UCHOOPS @MSU_Football @PorterRidgeFB @parislytle @ParisLytleJr @Derrick3ohFive @pepman704 @SeanLevyMSU pic.twitter.com/nYXEShu2B2
— Raishawn Elmore (@ElmoreRaishawn) November 25, 2025

Elmore is a former East Carolina commit, but he reneged on his pledge to the Pirates on Nov. 16. He had officially visited MSU back in June, but still ended up committing to ECU a couple of days after he visited there, as well.

The other school Elmore visited was Charlotte. He also held offers from James Madison, Appalachian State, Jacksonville State, Coastal Carolina, and Liberty. Elmore is ranked 1,439th overall in the class of 2026 on the Rivals Industry Rankings.

More on Elmore, MSU's 2026 Class

It certainly appears that wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins had a big hand in getting Elmore to choose MSU. In his commitment post, Elmore tagged Hawkins, but also tagged director of player personnel Sean Levy.

Michigan State now has three wide receivers in its 2026 class, which now has 22 players in it. The other two are Detroit Catholic Central's Samson Gash (292nd overall) and St. Francis' (Ill.) Zachary Washington (779th overall). A spot may have opened up for Elmore at the wide receiver position when Tyren Wortham (141st overall) decommitted back in October.

Three different receivers are listed as seniors on MSU's roster: Alante Brown, Rodney Bullard Jr., and second-leading receiver Omari Kelly. This is only Bullard's third year where he's seen action, though, so his eligibility situation is slightly more complex. There is always the possibility of others leaving through the transfer portal, too.

Even though the future of head coach Jonathan Smith is uncertain, he and his staff have been recruiting at a higher level than they did last year. Rivals ranks MSU's 2026 class 33rd nationally and 10th in the Big Ten; the Spartans finished the 2025 recruiting cycle ranked 47th and 14th in those respective categories.

What will be interesting is how many of those commitments stick around if Michigan State decides to move on from Smith following the season finale against Maryland on Saturday. If the decision comes down on Sunday, that would give all of the Spartans' recruits just two full days before the early signing period begins.

That would put those players in a tough position, which could lead to some potentially early-enrolling at MSU anyway, though nothing would stop them from just entering the transfer portal once it is open from Jan. 2-16, 2026.

Michigan State's head coach Jonathan Smith walks to the tunnel before the football game against Penn State during the first quarter on Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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