Michigan State's wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins looks on during the first day of football camp on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in East Lansing. Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

What WR Room Gives MSU That it Lacked Last Year

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Aidan Champion | Last updated Aug 20, 2025 6:25 PM ET

There's no question Michigan State was inconsistent on offense all across the board last season.

The Spartans' run game was one of the worst in the Big Ten, while their pass game was below-average.

Some of that can be blamed on the growing pains of then-sophomore quarterback Aidan Chiles. But some of it can also be attribute d to the fact that the wide receiver room lacked a variety of skill sets.

Michigan State wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins, a former Spartan receiver himself, of course, used a basketball analogy to describe his current room.

How Michigan State's WR room differs from last year's

"I just think overall, just speaking on this group -- I think I've said it before -- I feel like I got a nice starting five hoops squad," Hawkins said. "I think that we've filled in a point guard, a two guard that can shoot 3s, a power forward. I really feel like we got that in this room now.

"Maybe in the past, I felt like we had it (but) maybe it just didn't materialize like I would have hoped and thought it would have. But I've been really happy about where we're at right now. But I've been really happy about where we're at right now just from a room from a development standpoint."

Sophomore wide receiver Nick Marsh is the only key returner from last year's group, but the staff replenished the room with plenty of talent with veteran receivers Omari Kelly, Chrishon McCray and Rodney Bullard Jr., who were all all-conference stars at their former programs.

"I feel like we have a really good room," Hawkins said. "I want these guys to introduce themselves to the world on the field. I'm not going to kind of let the cat out of the bag, but from a wideout standpoint, from a receiver coach standpoint. I think we have one of the most dynamic rooms we've had in a lot of years."

Don't get it twisted, though. That doesn't mean it's his best.

"I can't say that," Hawkins said. "I had a room with three pros in there (Jayden Reed , Jalen Nailor and Keon Coleman) at one point."

Hey, you never know.

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