Michigan State Football Must Battle Big Ten Rival for Class of 2026 Running Back Target

Michigan State extended an offer to Jamal Rule on June 9 and scheduled an official visit with the rising senior for June 20. The week before, Rule took his official visit to Nebraska.

According to 247Sports Composite rankings, Rule is the No. 779 class of 2026 overall recruit, No. 48 running back overall, and No. 33 pick out of North Carolina. While he currently has five schools listed in the running for his commitment — North Carolina State, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, Nebraska, and MSU — signs are pointing to a two-way Big Ten race for the running back.

On June 22, Rule announced on X that his commitment will be decided a day later.

While June has been quite a month for the Spartans, their class of 2026 lacks in the running back department. Tight ends Joey Caudill and Eddie Whiting, and wide receiver Zachary Washington and Tyren Wortham are the only ball handlers committed outside of quarterbacks. 

Head coach Jonathan Smith successfully recruited Wortham and flipped his decision from UCF to secure two wide receivers, but he now needs to redirect his attention to the vacant position. 

It speaks volumes that MSU is such a close competitor to land the running back considering how late the offer came, but Nebraska has been applying pressure since extending an offer on Jan. 4. One Big Ten school will more likely than not reel Rule in, but it's uncertain if that will be the Spartans or Cornhuskers.