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Michigan State football is bringing back the positive vibes thanks to a recent hot streak on the recruiting trail.
The Spartans are in midst of an incredible recruiting run that has resulted in a their 2026 class jumping up the charts into the top 25 range nationally. Based on social media interactions I’ve cam across, this recent surge has brought back excitement to the football program from the fan base and has been something to celebrate recently.
So what are my thoughts on the recent recruiting surge and class as a whole? Check out some of the thoughts I have about the Spartans on the recruiting trail and what is still to come down the road as well below:
Michigan State football is fun again (for now, at least)
Ever since the clock hit zero in the narrow loss to rival Michigan last October, things have been rough for Michigan State football with very low vibes since that defeat. But, a recent surge in recruiting has lifted the faith and confidence for many (including myself) in the future of Michigan State football.
The Spartans have been on a heater on the recruiting trail in the month of June, turning official visits into commitments at an extremely high rate. Michigan State has picked up 14 of their 18 commitments in the class of 2026 in the first two weeks of June alone. That is simply firing on all cylinders.
This recent surge lifted Michigan State’s class ranking into the top 25 earlier this week, but more importantly has given fans the opportunity to be excited about the future of the program again. Getting positive results this upcoming season still remains extremely important as recruiting wins don’t trump on-field victories, but this recent stretch has certainly brought back some positive vibes for Michigan State football as we approach next season.
Spartans have number of impressive recruiting wins
Auburn, Wisconsin, Washington, Utah, Iowa, Virginia, Iowa State, Rutgers and Vanderbilt. Those are just some of the notable teams that Michigan State has beaten out in head-to-head recruiting battles for a number of key additions to the Spartans’ 2026 class over the past few weeks.
Some of the more notable wins on the recruiting trail these past few weeks included four-star offensive tackle Collin Campbell (beat out Utah), high-end three-star edge rusher Fameitau Siale (beat out Washington), high-end three-star linebacker Braylon Hodge (beat out Iowa and Utah), high-end three-star linebacker Adam Shaw (flipped from Rutgers) and three-star cornerback TJ Umenyiora (beat out Auburn). A number of those key wins on the recruiting trail included beating out the local teams — Siale is from Seattle, Shaw lives in New Jersey and Umenyiora grew up down the road from Auburn.
Michigan State isn’t to the point where they are beating out the “big boys” of college football, but these recent recruiting battle victories are all against similar quality programs as themself. That’s important to note, as this recent surge of commitments wouldn’t be as impressive if they were beating out primarily MAC schools for the prospect.
Winning in the trenches
The Spartans’ class is well-rounded with really every position covered except running back (more on that in a minute), but I’ve been especially impressed with the work done in the trenches.
Campbell and Siale are the two big-names for the offensive and defensive lines, but beating out Iowa for three-star edge rusher Cory House and beating out Vanderbilt for three-star offensive lineman Quinn Buckey were also notable recruiting wins. Mix in a pair of underrated prospects in three-star defensive lineman Christopher Knauls (just look at his offers sheet) and three-star offensive lineman Tristan Comer (converted tight end with a lot of potential) and you can see why I’m excited about the lines on both sides of the ball.
There are still a few more prospects in the trenches that Michigan State is heavily pursuing as well. The most notable of those is high-end three-star offensive lineman Khalief Canty out of Detroit. The Spartans are battling with Missouri for Canty’s commitment — which is scheduled for early next week. Landing his commitment over the Tigers would be huge not only for the prospect addition but for retaining one of the top in-state prospects in a key battle with an SEC school.
Still looking for running back
The one downer on the recruiting trail for Michigan State the past few months is running back. The Spartans have essentially struck out on all of their top targets thus far. Four-star prospects Kory Amachree and Damon Ferguson committed to Kansas and Pitt over Michigan State, and three-star prospects Nelsyn Wheeler and Michael Dukes committed to Illinois and Rutgers over offers from the Spartans.
Three-star running back Jamal Rule out of Charlotte is the new focus at the position for Michigan State, with Rule set to take an official visit this upcoming weekend. He has an impressive list of offers and recently visited Nebraska, Syracuse and Virginia Tech. Michigan State came into his recruitment late in the game, but if they could find a way to land his commitment out of his official visit this week, that would answer one of my biggest open questions for this class.
Looking ahead for what’s left in this recruiting cycle
This weekend will be the final set of scheduled official visits for the Spartans, serving as a final opportunity to win over a few more prospects and potentially put a bow on the 2026 class.
With 18 commitments in the class, things will start to slow down for the Spartans from this point on. I anticipate Michigan State adding anywhere from 4 to 7 more commitments to the class, and some of those could come as soon as the next week. Two players to keep a close eye on are Canty and high-end in-state three-star wide receiver Samson Gash.
The Spartans’ class currently ranks just outside of the top 25 on 247Sports, and it will quite frankly start to slide a bit as we move forward knowing its a numbers game with how that ranking is compiled. But in the end, this should shape up as a top 35 class nationally, and one that Michigan State fans should be excited about as we move forward under Jonathan Smith.
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