Michigan State Recruiting: 5 bold predictions for February
Dec 18, 2016; East Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo reacts to a play during the first half of a game against the Northeastern Huskies at Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
Michigan State recruiting had a big month of January on the trails, but here are our five bold predictions for February.
The month of February has just begun and it may just be a big one for Michigan State recruiting. The Spartans had a solid January, landing guys like Antjuan Simmons, C.J. Hayes, DeAri Todd and countless other 2017 football prospects. The 2018 class is now on the clock for Mark Dantonio.
As for Tom Izzo, he had a big-time visitor on Jan. 29 for the Michigan game. Five-star small forward Brian Bowen was in town for his final official visit and the Saginaw-native has admitted he will be making his decision soon — when he gets a “gut feeling” of where he wants to be.
February could be an important month for Spartan basketball recruiting and don’t be surprised if we finally hear news on Bowen and even some 2018 basketball and football targets.
Here are our five bold predictions regarding Michigan State recruiting for February.
5. Tyger Campbell commits, reclassifies to 2018
Tyger Campbell found himself visiting Michigan State with teammates Jaren Jackson Jr. and Brian Bowen yet again over the weekend and the La Lumiere trio could soon be a Spartan trio. The four-star point guard from the 2019 class has been high on the Spartans for some time, but there’s reason to believe he’s trying to reclassify to 2018.
While that might seem like an issue since Michigan State already has Foster Loyer in 2018, Cassius Winston will be a junior and Tum Tum Nairn will have just graduated, leaving room for those two to join the class.
Campbell is almost considered a Michigan State lock and 247Sports’ analyst Chip Miller stated that he’s heard the four-star point guard is close to announcing his decision and he’s taking the classes necessary to move up to the 2018 cycle.
If he’s close to making a choice, I’d expect that to be Michigan State this month and shortly after, he will reclassify to 2018. Campbell is ranked the No. 24 overall prospect and third-best point guard in the 2019 class currently.
Oct 17, 2015; Ann Arbor, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Mark Dantonio stands on sidelines during the 1st quarter of a game against the Michigan Wolverines at Michigan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
4. Spartans add 2018 football target
Now that the 2017 class is all sewn up, Mark Dantonio has time to focus on future classes, especially 2018. He already has three commitments in the cycle, all from four-star Ohio prospects. That’s a great start to the class and an impressive way to bounce back from a “disappointing” cycle, according to some fans.
The 2018 class still has a number of important targets left on the board such as DeAndre Square, Dallas Gant, L’Christian Smith, Marquan McCall, Ryan Hayes, Houston Griffith, Malik Vann and many others, but we will hear about the commitment of a surprise player from the class.
It may be a guy from the list above as Square, Vann and Hayes might be the closest to the program out of the group while I could also see Smith pledging to the Spartans over Ohio State because of his relationship with quarterback Messiah deWeaver.
The Ohio takeover has started and Smith could join that movement in 2018 with the Spartans, although the Buckeyes will make it exceedingly tough for Michigan State to reel out any more top-250 prospects from the state.
It could be an in-state kid like Hayes or Square or even a legacy like Jacob Isaia who just received an offer last week. Either way, 2018 will grow by at least one in February.
Jan 24, 2017; East Lansing, MI, USA; A general view during the game between the Michigan State Spartans and the Purdue Boilermakers at the Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
3. Greg Elliott commits to Michigan State
Believe me when I say this, Greg Elliott is one of the most underrated recruits in the country for the 2017 class. The three-star guard from Detroit East English Village has been tearing up the competition during his senior season and Tom Izzo took notice last week. The head coach attended his game last Friday in which he posted over 40 points and 10 rebounds.
Elliott took an unofficial visit to East Lansing on Sunday for the Michigan game and received his offer from Izzo. Some fans were worried that it meant the Spartans were likely out of the race for five-star small forward Brian Bowen, but the two play different positions and scholarships will be available.
The 2017 class currently holds Jaren Jackson Jr., a five-star forward, and Xavier Tillman, a four-star forward. The latter and Elliott are both in the race for Mr. Basketball in the state of Michigan and both could be playing on the same team in college. I’d expect that to happen.
Even if Elliott does commit this month, which I think he will, there’s still room for guys like Brandon McCoy and Brian Bowen — assuming Miles Bridges goes to the NBA. He’s ranked the No. 59 shooting guard in the country, according to 247Sports. Expect a major rankings boost soon, though.
Dec 5, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; A helmet is raised in celebration after the Michigan State Spartans defeated the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Big Ten Conference football championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
2. Cassius Peat returns to the program
When Cassius Peat transferred from Michigan State to Pima Community College this past season, the Spartans’ thin defensive line got even thinner. He then committed to UCLA, but his name has since disappeared from the Bruins’ list of 2017 pledges. However, the momentum seems to be headed in Michigan State’s direction again, if you can believe that.
After a return trip to Michigan State for an official visit back in December, Peat said he felt the gesture by Dantonio of welcoming him home with open arms was eye-opening, according to Richard Obert of AZCentral.com.
“Dantonio told me he wants me back in the summer,” Peat said. “I’m not saying I’m going back there, but the gesture he made this weekend to have me back was truly overwhelming. He makes four million dollars a year and he has better things to worry about. They had a rough year (3-9) and for him to think of me a week after the Penn State game speaks volumes of his character.”
Moreover, Peat was happy to hear from Dantonio, especially since he thought he would never get the opportunity to play for MSU again.
Peat, 6-foot-3, 265 pounds, said he had never heard of coach reaching out to a player to see if he would return after he had left his program.
“I was anxious to go back at first,” he said. “But there was no connection lost. I was a lot happier now. I wasn’t happy before. I had a lot of stuff going on in my life back home. That stuff is kind of fixed now. When I went back, I was able to be myself, laughing, smiling, cracking jokes. They didn’t see that side of me before.”
It seems like all is setting up for a return to East Lansing for 2017 and Dantonio did hint at a potential addition in the offseason after signing day. Peat has changed his Twitter bio — albeit, not exactly solid evidence of a return — to say “MSU DE.”
Could he return? I think so.
Jan 29, 2017; East Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo talks reacts during the first half of a game against the Michigan Wolverines at the Jack Breslin Student Events Center. Mandatory Credit: Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports
1. Brian Bowen commits… to Arizona
This has been one of the more interesting recruitments to follow and something tells me Brian Bowen will be a Spartan, but from what 247Sports expert Jerry Meyer said in a Facebook Live session on Thursday, he doesn’t believe the five-star small forward will end up in East Lansing.
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In fact, he stated that his intel was making him feel confident Bowen to Arizona is nearly a done deal, but that was before his visit to East Lansing last weekend. However, he did say something else that caught my attention. Meyer stated that he was led to believe Creighton was his second choice heading into the final official visit to Michigan State.
If the Spartans were third on his list of potential college choices, that’s not a good sign for the Spartans and maybe Izzo is close to conceding defeat.
However, Bowen is related to former Spartan great Jason Richardson and grew up close to the program. He has been talking to Izzo since he was a kid and the two have a close relationship that dates back a ways.
After hearing Meyer talk on Thursday, it seemed like he felt Bowen to Michigan State would be a surprise, although it doesn’t seem that way. He will finally make his decision in February after a long wait, and it will be to the Wildcats.
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