Michigan State Football Top 30 Players Countdown: No. 14
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Of all places, punter has settled in as a spot where Michigan State fans can expect excellence.
The Spartans have seen two of their alumni recently play the position and get drafted in recent memory. Bryce Baringer was picked 192nd overall in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots, and his successor, Ryan Eckley, was picked 211th overall in Round 6 this year by the Baltimore Ravens.
Dakin is Next Up
MSU has a decent chance of seeing three punters in a row eventually be selected. Eckley actually declared for the draft early with one year of eligibility left, and the Spartans’ solution to that was to pick up Rhys Dakin in the transfer portal.
Dakin was previously the starting punter for the last two seasons at Iowa, finding plenty of success there. He has averaged 43.9 yards per punt across his time there, earning second-team All-Big Ten honors back in 2024 and being an honorable mention all-conference selection last season.
His decision to transfer to Michigan State is a big boost for the team’s special teams unit, and Dakin is No. 14 on my ongoing “top 30 players” list for the coming fall.
More on Dakin’s Background
American football was not something Dakin thought much about growing up. He’s from Melbourne, Australia, and grew up more of a fan of Australian rules football, which is sort of part-American football, part-rugby, and part-soccer.
That dream didn’t really work out for Dakin. Thankfully, he was near a place called “ProKick Australia,” which is just an academy for punters. One notable alumnus of ProKick is Tory Taylor, the punter at Iowa whom Dakin succeeded. Taylor was picked in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft, and he’s now the starting punter for the Chicago Bears.
Dakin followed a similar path to Taylor by choosing Iowa. He was recruited to the Hawkeyes by LeVar Woods, and Woods’ long history of success as a special teams coordinator is a major reason why Dakin eventually followed him to Michigan State.
"I just met him in the city of Melbourne at a little cafe," Dakin said during the spring. "That's when I first met LeVar. Then he came to training the next day, and then had dinner with my family at my house. That was the sort of Coach Woods' introduction that I had. He flew out to come and meet my family and meet me, get to know me as a person rather than just recruit me, you know. So that says a lot about Coach Woods as a person."
Long-Term Future for Dakin
What also boosts Dakin’s own stock is his long runway of remaining eligibility. He now actually has three seasons of eligibility remaining with the NCAA’s recent shift towards a “5-in-5” eligibility system. He’s on the older side for a rising junior and will turn 22 in December, but Dakin still enrolled at Iowa in time that he shouldn’t lose that year under the new system.
This means Dakin should be eligible to keep playing college football through the 2028 season. Eckley was a three-year starter for MSU, and now there is a solid shot the Spartans won’t have to worry very much about the future at that position, either.
Woods and Michigan State also added Northern Arizona transfer Alex Weeks from the portal — he has four seasons of eligibility left — but there is definitely a firm understanding that Dakin is the starter.
Outlook for MSU’s Special Teams
Dakin is just one of the new players that Woods has brought in from the transfer portal. Besides just a punter, the Spartans have a new kicker, long snapper, and kick returner. Charlotte transfer Liam Boyd is the favorite to be the starting kicker, though incoming freshman Stephen Gonzales is bringing in a pretty big leg.
Oregon transfer Nick Duzansky should be the starting long snapper, and Woods is also bringing in Trey Serauskis as part of Michigan State’s next recruiting class. MSU also now has Nebraska transfer Kenneth Williams as the team’s newest kick returner.
Bringing in Woods was one of the biggest moves Pat Fitzgerald made during the offseason. Woods had proven himself as one of the best special teams coordinators in the country at Iowa, and Fitzgerald gave him the title of assistant head coach and a hefty contract ($1.2 million average salary over three years).
Even though the Spartans have had some great punters recently, the program’s special teams units have not pulled their own weight as a whole. It actually made the most obvious difference in Michigan State’s loss to Woods and Iowa. MSU gave up several huge punt returns that game, including a touchdown return, in what eventually became a loss on a game-winning field goal.
It also played a role in the Spartans’ losses to Nebraska and Minnesota. Michigan State allowed a punt to get blocked against the Cornhuskers early on in the game to dig itself into a 14-0 deficit. With the game tied late in the third quarter, MSU muffed a Nebraska kickoff.
That totally swung the momentum of the game and eventually resulted in a 38-27 loss. That Minnesota game was also a very frustrating result. Kicker Martin Connington missed two field goals during that game.
One was more understandable and minor; it was a 46-yard attempt during the first quarter. The other was from just 23 yards away with the game tied and just about five minutes left to go in regulation. If either of those kicks had been good, Michigan State would likely have won in regulation. Instead, it fell in overtime.
Fitzgerald is hoping that bringing in Woods can prevent Michigan State from making those types of mistakes. Something as simple as better execution on special teams could’ve made the difference between a miserable 4-8 season and MSU taking a huge step forward by making a bowl game.
A lot of that doesn’t have to do with Dakin, specifically. It just shows special teams are much more than just the specialists. Still, it cannot hurt for Michigan State to know it has somebody already proven to be one of the better punters in the Big Ten.
Other Top 30 Articles
No. 30, WR Samson Gash | No. 29, WR Charles Taplin | No. 28, S Devin Vaught | No. 27, KR Kenneth Williams | No. 26, OL Luka Vincic | No. 25, OL Rakeem Johnson | No. 24, CB Tyran Chappell | No. 23, DL Derrick Simmons | No. 22, TE Carson Gulker | No. 21, WR KK Smith
No. 20, DL Eli Coenen | No. 19, OL Nick Sharpe | No. 18, LB Caleb Wheatland | No. 17, RB Marvis Parrish | No. 16, DB Michael Richard | No. 15, EDGE Anelu Lafaele
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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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