Michigan State WR coach Courtney Hawkins: 'We're Looking For Ballers'

MSU wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins described what he's looking for on the recruiting trail as a new era of Spartan football begins...

Michigan State wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins was the only of former head coach Mel Tucker's assistants coaches to be retained by new head coach Jonathan Smith.

With that, Hawkins has seen the shift to the types of players the Spartans' recruited under Tucker and what they recruit now under Smith. At wide receiver, MSU recruited mostly tall, lengthy prospects under the previous regime, but Smith had a lot of success with small, shifty receivers while at Oregon State, noted by offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren during spring practice last week.

A shorter receiver himself who played nine seasons in the NFL after a strong career at Michigan State, Hawkins is certainly not biased against smaller guys in his receiver room.

"I'm just like Coach Lindgren. I mean, who am I? I'm 5-foot-10 on a good day, and I played nine years [in the NFL]," Hawkins said. "So, if you a baller, you a baller."

Michigan State didn't recruit many undersized guys under Tucker.

"We weren't," Hawkins said. "I mean, they had to be like a different kind of animal at that point in time. I think it's kind of the same now. It does open up more doors now for different guys that we consider ballers.

"They had a lot of success with guys that were smaller at Oregon State, so there's no reason that we can't do that here. Like I said man, we're looking for ballers, and we'll talk about all that size stuff and all that later, if that even matters. But, speed kills. Guys that can get in and get out [of their breaks], tough kids, those are the guys that we're looking for. Good students."

In terms of size and strength, you'd be hard pressed to find a better physical target thatn MSU true freshman Nick Marsh, whom Hawkins gave an exciting update about earlier in the week. Marsh could make his way on to the field early this fall, but Hawkins likes the other options in his room as well.

"There's other guys in the room that've got length, guys who are athletic, guys who are explosive," Hawkins said. "I'm not worried about guys making plays, whether it's high balls, putting bodies on guys, being able to make plays, that's all part of the position."

Michigan State's most experienced returning receiver is Montorie Foster Jr., who had a breakout year in 2023. The Spartans also bring back Alante Brown, who dealt with injuries for much of last season, and Jaron Glover, who looked good in his first consistent action a year ago. All three of these players are smaller than Marsh or former MSU wide-out Keon Coleman, but under a new system could have a lot of success in 2024.

The Michigan State Spartan Football Spring Green and White Game (Spring Showcase) will be held at the High Cathedral of the Spartan Nation, Spartan Stadium, on April 20, 2024, at 2 p.m.

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