MSU Football Top 30 Players: No. 29, WR Charles Taplin
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Mulling over the pecking order of the wide receiving corps for Michigan State was one of the more difficult parts of putting my top 30 list together.
I ended up having a pair of receivers be the last two players to make the list. True freshman Samson Gash debuted on the list on Tuesday at No. 30. Just in front of him is perhaps one of the more surprising names on the list. Here, at No. 29, I have redshirt freshman wideout Charles Taplin.
Taplin’s Path Towards Role
Deciding to put Taplin on here so soon in his career feels like a surprise to me, too. He redshirted last year and caught one pass for an eight-yard gain against Minnesota. Taplin wasn’t exactly a favorite to be towards the top of the depth chart when spring ball began.
Head coach Pat Fitzgerald asked the media not to look too much into depth charts before MSU’s “Spring Showcase” in April, but, to be frank, that’s sort of boring. While scanning the field during pre-exhibition warm-ups, there was Taplin and his No. 19 working with the first-team offense.
This is with a big grain of salt. Notre Dame transfer KK Smith didn’t participate that day. Gash hadn’t joined the team yet. Rodney Bullard Jr. — who I will admit is not in my top 30 list (partially because his eligibility status isn’t even certain) — was also with the first-teamers.
That still put Taplin unexpectedly ahead of others. His first-team presence implied he was ahead of Michigan transfer Fredrick Moore, fellow redshirt freshmen Braylon Collier and Bryson Williams, and others.
Taplin was actually the second-lowest-rated recruit in the Spartans’ entire 2025 recruiting class. He was down at 1,671st overall in the class, 228th among receivers, and 246th among those from Texas, according to the 247Sports Composite. The only other Power Four program that offered Taplin was Arizona. Collier was up at 821st nationally; Williams was at 1,024th.
Nothing pops out about Taplin’s measurables. He’s not that big at 6’1” and 184 pounds. Taplin produced 37 catches for 502 yards and three touchdowns during his senior year, according to his MaxPreps profile. A relatively uninspiring season for a prospective Power Four recruit. He has good speed and has run the 400-meter dash in under 50 seconds, but not at the level of the freshman Gash.
Jumping Forward
Somehow, Taplin has done enough to climb the depth chart. There is certainly more to football than speed, size, or how much you produced in high school. Taplin has been showing up in the right way with the rest of it.
Plenty is still there to like about Taplin’s game. One of the phrases wideouts coach Courtney Hawkins will use is “no block, no rock.” Digging into some old high school film from when he was at Red Oak High School, Taplin is very willing to do the dirty work that not every receiver is willing to give 100% effort on.
I also like the level of awareness that Taplin shows towards the sidelines and boundaries. He’s not the guy who Alessio Milivojevic is lobbing 50/50 balls up to, but Taplin will be extremely aware of where he is on the field and will consistently be sure to get his foot down.
Taplin is also one of Michigan State's craftier route-runners. He sort of needs to be with a relatively small frame, given that he’ll probably be running a lot of short and intermediate routes. What’s also nice is that Taplin is very willing to run that slant route over the middle into traffic, too.
There is a versatile route tree in Taplin’s game. That can make him a valuable red-zone weapon when the defense tightens up, and the routes get quicker and shorter as well.
Compliments of Hawkins
Hawkins has been openly pleased with Taplin’s progress, too. Again, Taplin will never be the biggest receiver on the team, but Hawkins has been pleased with how Taplin has transformed his body during his first year-plus in East Lansing.
“Tap is probably one of the fastest guys on our team,” Hawkins said during the spring. “He's a smart dude, really great quickness, really good at the top of routes. He’s developed his body over the last year. That was one of the setbacks when he first got here. He was a little undersized, and he couldn’t handle the pounding of the Big Ten."
“But he’s attacked nutrition, and I feel like now he's ready physically and mentally and emotionally to be able to contribute to help us win games versus just’ I got a chance to play’ type of deal.”
Getting the body right is a very common reason why freshmen don’t play right away. Perhaps the skills were there, but you still have to manage yourself over the wear and tear of the 13-, 14-week season. This is especially true for offensive and defensive linemen, but it’s still so for skill groups. Hits from a Big Ten middle linebacker are still going to leave bigger marks than those from high school linebackers, even those from Texas.
Just off the chatter and what I’ve seen from spring, things just seem to indicate that next season will be a breakout year for Taplin. He’s not my WR1 on the roster, but there may just be a starting spot there to be claimed during training camp in August.
It’s not a sure thing. Moore could still push for a spot. Bullard (if eligible) could push for a spot. Position battles don’t end with Week 1, either. Taplin seems to have the early lead over some of the others right now.
Two spots are up for grabs at the end of the day. Chrishon McCray can be written in without stress as a starter, but that only solves who lines up in the slot. Taplin wasn’t supposed to be in a position to grab a spot during his second year in college, but I think he has the capability to do so.
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A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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