Michigan State coach Jonathan Smith talks the media on the first national signing day for college football recruits Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Spartans Continue to Beat SEC for Top Prospects

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Tom Cavanaugh | Last updated Jun 16, 2025 3:06 PM ET

The Michigan State Spartans are quickly building their brand back up to the status it once stood at, winning Rose Bowls and appearing in College Football Playoffs with the incredible success on the recruiting trail as of late. Michigan State is continuing to beat out the top SEC schools for elite prospects.

When looking at where many of the top three and four-star recruits decide to play their college football, more often than not, the SEC is getting a large majority of those players. That has not been the case over the past few weeks as the Spartans have been surprising many with their recent success.

Here are a few examples of recent Michigan State commits in the 2026 recruiting class that chose the Spartans over top competing programs.

Three-Star EDGE - Cory House: Chose Michigan State over Arkansas, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt. House had offered some nearly 30 schools and settled on East Lansing as his destination.

Three-Star Cornerback - TJ Umenyiora: Chose Michigan State over Auburn, Mississippi State, and Kentucky. His father, Osi Umenyiora, a two-time Super Bowl champion and longtime New York Giant, attended Troy, another school that recruited TJ. He decided to side with the Spartans instead.

Four-Star Offensive Tackle - Collin Campbell: Chose Michigan State over Arkansas, Mississippi State and Texas A&M. He is the only four-star commit inside the '26 class, but a major feather in the Spartans' cap for grabbing him.

The Spartans currently possess the No. 26-ranked recruiting class for 2026 on 247Sports. Coach Jonathan Smith and his staff have resurrected this program from the ashes and are continuing to pull in recruits from across the nation.

With the Spartans swooping up recruits that would have gone to those SEC programs if it were not for the impressive recruiting in East Lansing, a trend of success is likely to develop for this program over the next several years.

Not only is Michigan State going to get better with the current commits they have for the 2026 season, but future recruits are going to see what the Spartans are building and will want to be a part of it. That impacts the 2027 and 2028 classes, giving MSU a strong reputation for bringing in high talent.

Ensure that you follow the official Spartan Nation page on Facebook, Spartan Nation, and give us your thoughts on Michigan State's recruiting success WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE, and be a part of our lively community group, Go Green Go White, as well WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.

This article first appeared on Michigan State Spartans on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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