Michigan State’s fall camp has put a spotlight on the younger end of the roster, and a handful of underclassmen look ready to factor into the Spartans’ plans right away.
The biggest buzz so far has surrounded tight end Jayden Savoury, who seems poised to turn a strong camp into real playing time. Savoury was in position to maybe earn occasional snaps as a true freshman last season, but he never appeared in the final seven games, preserving his redshirt.
That path looks different now. He appears ready to challenge for a starting role, with Brennan Parachek likely his main competition.
Carson Gulker remains part of the mix, though more as a gadget piece than a conventional tight end.
Another young tight end worth watching is true freshman Eddie Whiting, who has made a strong impression since spring. Whiting may have been one of the most under-ranked players in Michigan State’s 2026 recruiting class.
He finished No. 1,067 overall in the 247Sports Composite, but his offer sheet tells a much louder story. Alabama, Iowa, Michigan, Florida, Wisconsin, Colorado, Auburn, Iowa State and Illinois all came calling.
A starting job this season may be a stretch, but he looks like a major part of the Spartans’ future at the position.
In the backfield, sophomore Marvis Parrish should have a real role. The new NCAA eligibility setup gives him four years of eligibility again, and that matters for a player who already showed plenty at Western Kentucky.
As a true freshman last season, Parrish posted 779 scrimmage yards, including 576 rushing yards that led the Hilltoppers, along with 36 catches for 203 yards. Michigan State’s lead back is expected to be UConn transfer Cam Edwards, but Parrish has a clear case to be the RB2.
Iowa transfer Jaziun Patterson and Brandon Tullis will also be in the hunt for carries. Parrish’s value is easy to see: he averaged more than six yards per carry on runs through either A-gap and adds real receiving ability.
On defense, second-year tackle Derrick Simmons is set to be a key rotational piece. He redshirted last season, in part because the jump from Division 5 MHSAA football to the Big Ten was such a massive leap.
This year, Simmons should be the No. 3 defensive tackle behind expected starters Ben Roberts and Eli Coenen. The position demands constant rotation, and Simmons, who played just 44 snaps last season, is expected to be much more than a depth option.
Michigan State’s youth movement also includes incoming 4-star recruit Samson Gash. He may not walk in and seize a starting job immediately, but there’s a path for him to earn snaps as the season goes on, especially as he gets more comfortable with the offense and continues working back from a hamstring injury suffered this summer during a track and field meet. He was practicing Monday without a non-contact jersey, which is a good sign for his progress.
At receiver, second-year wideout Charles Taplin is another name to keep on the radar. Right now, he looks like one of the team’s starting receivers, though he still has to hold that level once the pads come on.
Taplin caught just one pass as a freshman, and he entered school as one of the lowest-rated recruits in Michigan State’s 2025 class. Even so, he has clearly outplayed that low-3-star label.
Linebacker Adam Shaw has also been making noise. The true freshman might have a harder climb than some of the others because of the veterans ahead of him, but he turned heads in the spring game in April and appears to be in position for at least some action this fall. Pat Fitzgerald said Shaw gained roughly 15 pounds over the offseason.
"He's a really good athlete, he's a physical kid, and he's got a high aptitude," defensive coordinator Joe Rossi said of Shaw. "So you get guys that are athletic, who are smart, and can run, those are the great foundation to be a really, really good linebacker, and he has it."
In Other News...
Jeremy Fears Just Added Fuel To Michigan States Breakout Hype
Michigan States rising optimism around its young core got a little louder this week when Jeremy Fears Jr. took issue with a recent ranking of the top 30 sophomore players in college basketball. The list left out Cam Ward and Jordan Scott, two Spartans who are expected to play major roles this season and who have already built a case as potential All-Big Ten-caliber talents heading into their second year.
Ward and Scott each showed enough as freshmen to keep the Spartans breakout buzz from sounding like empty offseason talk, and their next step could shape how high this team climbs. Fears public criticism only added another layer to the conversation around Michigan States depth and upside, especially with so much attention now turning to what those two sophomores can become in East Lansing. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State May Be Getting A Huge Brady Pretzlaff Boost
Brady Pretzlaff has spent much of fall camp trying to remind Michigan State what made him such a highly regarded recruit in the first place. The former four-star linebacker was held back by injury last season and never got much of a chance to settle in, but defensive coordinator Joe Rossi has liked what he has seen since camp opened, describing Pretzlaff as well ahead of where he was after the setback.
That matters for a linebacker room still sorting out its pecking order. Jordan Hall remains a central piece, but the Spartans also have several transfers and younger players competing for roles, which makes any meaningful rise from Pretzlaff particularly important. If he can turn this progress into a reliable presence on the field, Michigan States defense could get a much-needed boost from a player who still has plenty of runway left. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State Needs More From Derrick Simmons Than Hype This Year
Michigan State is counting on Derrick Simmons to be more than a former recruiting win this season, because the defensive tackle room has some real turnover and the Spartans need younger bodies to settle in fast. Simmons arrived with plenty of pedigree as a four-star prospect, but his first year was mostly about learning the jump from high school to Big Ten football and adjusting to the speed, strength and physical demands that come with it.
Now a sophomore, Simmons has already made the kind of body transformation the staff wanted to see, and the expectation is that hell finally be part of the weekly conversation up front. He is projected to fit into the tackle mix with Ben Roberts and Eli Coenen, and for Michigan State the question is no longer whether he belongs in the rotation, but how quickly he can turn promise into production. [Read more 🡒]