Michigan State has already had a few early recruiting wins in the Pat Fitzgerald era, but Cam Edwards feels like the kind that can change the mood around a program all by himself.
The former UConn running back arrives with real production, not just promise. Edwards ran for 1,240 yards and 15 touchdowns last season for a Huskies team that shocked people by going 9-4.
Before that, he stacked up 830 yards and eight touchdowns as a sophomore, then 680 yards and four scores as a redshirt freshman. He also proved he can be part of the passing game, catching 47 passes for 467 yards and four touchdowns over those three seasons.
That kind of steady climb is exactly why landing him mattered. Fitzgerald beat out some big-time programs for a transfer who already looked like a difference-maker at UConn, and that makes the move feel even bigger for Michigan State fans trying to picture what this offense can become.
Pro Football Focus added another reason for the optimism, ranking Edwards as the eighth-best returning running back in the Big Ten.
Highest Graded Returning Big Ten Running Backs🔥 pic.twitter.com/4l4fj9JZ3F
- PFF College (@PFF_College) July 22, 2026
That may not even be high enough. Of course, PFF has its own grading system, and those numbers are only as useful as the people willing to believe in them when they line up with what they want to hear.
Still, Edwards being in that neighborhood says plenty. He’s also ranked ahead of what Pick Six Previews sees, and that only adds to the sense that Michigan State may have something special here.
I believe he’ll be a top five running back in the Big Ten, at least, this season.
The comparison that keeps coming up is Kenneth Walker III, and for good reason. There haven’t been many lasting bright spots from the Mel Tucker era beyond Walker’s rise.
He came in after the rushed COVID-19 season, immediately changed the offense, and needed little more than a staff willing to trust him. Walker ended up a top-five Heisman candidate, and many would argue he should have been even higher.
He wasn’t invited to New York, but he still helped push Michigan State from a middle-of-the-pack projection to a New Year’s Six bowl.
That’s the kind of impact Michigan State would love to see from Edwards. He doesn’t have to duplicate Walker’s award case or pile up 1,500 yards to matter. If he can bring back a ground-and-pound identity and give the offense a jolt it hasn’t had in years, he could be the kind of player who helps turn things quickly in East Lansing.
In Other News...
Michigan State Faces A Tough QB Verdict On Milivojevic And Chiles
Alessio Milivojevic enters the season with the kind of spotlight that comes with being Michigan States quarterback, even if it is a skeptical one. He stepped in late last year after Aidan Chiles transferred to Northwestern, and now the Spartans are asking Milivojevic to show he can hold the job on his own. The early read around the Big Ten is not especially flattering, with preseason evaluations treating both quarterbacks as unproven enough to sit well below the conferences established names.
Milivojevic and Chiles are still linked by more than their shared history in East Lansing, because the conversation around each has settled into the same uneasy place. Michigan State needs stability at the position, and Milivojevic has to provide it while Chiles tries to reset his career under Chip Kelly at Northwestern. For the Spartans, the real question is whether this is the start of a long look at Milivojevic or just another stop in a search that is still very much unfinished. [Read more 🡒]
Tre Holloman Is Back Near Michigan State And Fans Have Questions
Tre Hollomans path has taken him away from East Lansing, but his name still carries weight around Michigan State after the junior season in which he played a key role for the Spartans before transferring to NC State ahead of his senior year. He has stayed on the radar this summer, too, with a brief Summer League appearance and a recent stop at the Moneyball Pro-Am near Michigan State that naturally got fans looking twice.
For a player who left with eligibility still on the table, the next step has become the real question. Holloman had sought a fifth year under the NCAAs five-in-five rule, and the possibility of one more college season would have obvious appeal for anyone still tracking his career from afar, especially with him back in the neighborhood and keeping his name in circulation. [Read more 🡒]
Jaxon Kohler May Not Be Done Breaking Michigan State Hearts
Jaxon Kohlers offseason has already been busy enough, with the former Michigan State big man getting a taste of NBA Summer League and even crossing paths with former teammate Carson Cooper along the way. He has also been around the BYU program this summer, showing up in pickup runs and keeping his name in the conversation as he weighs what comes next.
The bigger question now sits beyond the summer circuit and into the eligibility process, where Kohler is part of an effort that could change the length of his college career. If that route opens, his next stop may not be in East Lansing, and for Spartans fans still trying to sort through the roster churn, that possibility makes his story one worth watching a little longer. [Read more 🡒]