REPORT: Why Top Signee Stayed Loyal to MSU Football Coaches

Cornerback Aydan West of Quince Orchard in Maryland had an interesting fall and winter leading up to his early enrollment at Michigan State.

He committed in the summer after the Spartans made a big move to swing his commitment with little less than three weeks to work with. Then the season came, and West's stock exploded; he went from outside the Top 100 cornerbacks in the class to the No. 50 cornerback in the class, per 247Sports.

The 6-foot, 184-pounder, who the Spartans believe can make an impact Day 1 as a freshman, was pursued heavily when he was bumped to an 89 grade and fringe four-star status. West took visits to Virginia Tech and Ohio State, and the Hokies had the crystal ball favoring a flip.

On top of that, Michigan State lost Cornerbacks Coach Demetrice Martin, West's primary recruiter, just two days before early signing day. The Green and White seemed out of luck. Even this reporter doubted their chances of retaining West's signature.

But West stayed put, marking a massive victory for Michigan State.

Safeties Coach Blue Adams has now moved to cornerbacks coach, with new hire James Adams (no relation) taking Blue's old spot.

Blue's relationship with West is solid, and it might have been a factor in West's loyalty to the Spartans on signing day.

"Coach Blue and I, we’ve always had a good relationship since I started being recruited,” West told SpartanMag. “Obviously it was coach Meat at first, but every time I was with coach Meat, I was with coach Blue, too. We’ve been talking the same amount, so that’s my guy. That’s my dad’s guy, too. They got pretty close during this recruiting process.

“Coach Blue and I are locked in. He already knows I’m going to come to work and I know he’ll throw me in the fire. He will put me through whatever I need to go through to play this season.”

The hiring of James was a big win for the Spartans in the eyes of West, who has a strong connection with the former Wake Forest coach.

“I was very excited to hear they hired him (James Adams),” West said. “That was probably my favorite coach through the entire recruiting process. When I had to leave him – when I told him I wasn’t coming to Wake Forest – I was kind of sad to leave him behind. I had to do what I had to do."

" ... Ever since I committed to Michigan State, I didn’t think too much about it. We kept in touch and had a good relationship. I had a good feeling we would connect back to each other. Once I woke up and saw the news, I was like, ‘Oh yeah, it’s time.’ God really answered those prayers.”

Michael France is Sports Illustrated's Michigan State recruiting beat writer, covering all things Big Ten recruiting for Spartan Nation. Be sure to follow him on Twitter/X@michaelfrancesi for exclusive Spartans recruiting coverage.

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