MSU Extends Offer to 4-Star 2028 Lineman
As the new era of Michigan State football begins under head coach Pat Fitzgerald, the Spartans have been highly active on the high school recruiting trail over the past few weeks, as they continue to target some of the nation's top prospects.
While Michigan State’s primary focus is on the 2027 recruiting cycle, Fitzgerald and his staff have also started pursuing several 2028 prospects, including extending an offer to a four-star defensive lineman and a top-40 player in the country.
Spartans Offer Top 2028 Defensive Lineman
On Jan. 21, Michigan State extended an offer to Caleb Tucker, a four-star defensive lineman from Mount Carmel High School in Chicago, Illinois. Tucker shared on X that the Spartans had offered him, writing, “Blessed to receive an offer from Michigan State University.”
Michigan State was the 23rd Division I program to offer Tucker, who is one of the top prospects in the 2027 class and has interest from several Power Four schools, including Ohio State, Oregon, and Tennessee.
While he’s only a sophomore at Mount Carmel, Tucker already has the frame to play at the college level, standing at 6’5” and weighing 355 pounds. He’s a force in the run game and has already established himself as one of the top defensive lineman recruits in the country.
Rivals’ industry rankings list Tucker as the No. 36 overall player in the 2027 class, the No. 4 defensive lineman, and the No. 3 prospect from Illinois. Although it’s still early in his process, a few schools have begun to stand out in his recruitment.
Tucker took an unofficial visit to Notre Dame in October, and the Fighting Irish have emerged as an early leader in his recruitment. Rivals’ Recruiting Prediction Machine currently gives Notre Dame a 40.7% chance of landing the young defensive lineman, the highest odds by far for any program.
While Michigan State has a lot of ground to make up in Tucker’s recruitment, the good news for the Spartans is that he likely won’t make a decision any time soon, giving Fitzgerald and company plenty of time to make progress with the Mount Carmel star.
With Tucker being from Illinois, the Spartans should look to bring him to campus in East Lansing for a visit at some point this offseason to begin building a relationship with the four-star defensive lineman and boost their standing in his recruitment.
Although Fitzgerald and his staff have their work cut out for them in trying to become contenders in Tucker’s recruitment, extending him an offer at least gives them a chance to do so.
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Max Dorsey serves as the Western United States College Recruiting Beat Writer On SI. He graduated from the prestigious Syracuse University – S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. Before that, he worked for the Pro Football Network and was part of the recruiting department for Syracuse University's football program.