Michigan State's Ryan Eckley, right, celebrates a deep punt with teammate Darius Snow during the fourth quarter in the game against Boston College on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Pair of Spartans Receive Invitations to NFL Combine

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Jacob Cotsonika | Last updated Feb 12, 2026 8:00 AM ET

Two former Michigan State players have taken another step towards reaching the next level.

On Wednesday, the NFL released a list of the 319 players who had received invitations to attend this year's NFL Scouting Combine. The event is held at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind., every year, and receiving an invitation is generally a sign that a player has a decent chance at being one of the 250 or so draft selections.

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Former MSU center Matt Gulbin and punter Ryan Eckley ended up being the ones from the Spartans who received invitations. If they both were to accept their invitations, Eckley would be scheduled to go through drills on Thursday, Feb. 26, while Gulbin would do so on Sunday, March 1.

There is more to it than just drills, though. Players get interviewed by interested teams, who can take a closer look at the mental side of the player, as well as their individual fit as a person within their organization.

More on Both Players' Careers at MSU

Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Ryan Eckley

The MSU lifer of the two is punter Ryan Eckley, who spent his whole career in East Lansing and actually chose to pursue the NFL over one last year of college. Eckley spent four seasons with Michigan State, steadily improving year after year, eventually becoming the Big Ten Eddleman-Fields Punter of the Year and an All-American this past season after averaging 48.5 yards per punt.

Eckley ended up being just one of eight specialists to receive an invitation to the combine, but that number also includes kickers. With them excluded, he's actually just one of four punters to make the cut here. Given his big leg, it seems likely that a team will use a Day 3 pick (fourth-seventh round) selection on him.

Matt Gulbin

Gulbin only played one season at Michigan State, but he left a mark. He was the Spartans' most reliable offensive lineman at the center position, starting the first 11 games of the season and playing nearly every snap before missing the season finale against Maryland, which should've been his final collegiate game.

Before coming to MSU, Gulbin was a pretty good lineman for Wake Forest as well. It was there that he received the teachings of offensive line coach Nick Tabacca, who is now the Spartans' OL coach underneath Pat Fitzgerald. Quality interior offensive linemen are always in demand, so the odds of Gulbin being selected also feel pretty good.