New faces, QB critical for Michigan State football’s offense to improve
EAST LANSING — Tre Mosley ran away from the question like it was a flat-footed cornerback. And he caught a long bomb in stride for a touchdown of an answer.
So, Tre, who’s the starting quarterback going to be for Michigan State football?
“I don’t know,” the senior wide receiver said Tuesday. “I might actually line up a quarterback some plays, so we’ll see how that goes.”
Add Mosley to the options for Friday’s season-opener at home against Central Michigan (7 p.m./FS1), though it seems highly unlikely he will be the choice under center to replace departed two-year quarterback Payton Thorne.
Still, the Spartans’ offense enters Mel Tucker’s fourth season with plenty of uncertainty at a number of positions and coming off one of the least productive seasons in program history. And gone from it are its three biggest weapons in Thorne and wide receivers Jayden Reed and Keon Coleman, with plenty of new faces hoping to get MSU back to moving the chains and scoring points.
Here’s what to keep an eye on for the Spartans on offense this season:
Things to watch
How will it play out at quarterback? Mosley’s response mimicked Tucker’s, as well as the rest of the coaches and players, on whether it will be fourth-year junior Noah Kim or redshirt freshman Katin Houser who trots out with the first-team offense. Kim, who teammates have said presents a cool demeanor running the offense, looked good in 38 mostly mop-up snaps last season and in his lone extended look against a putrid Akron defense. Houser is Tucker’s first four-star quarterback, though true freshman Sam Leavitt has impressed since his arrival in June and carries a similar prep pedigree. Regardless of who starts Friday, MSU needs to get both signal callers more experience before the Sept. 16 visit from No. 11 Washington. And there could be some shuffling of roles the first two weeks to figure out who is best equipped for sustained success this season.
Can MSU revive its run game? The transfer carousel of running backs lost its golden ring when Kenneth Walker III left for the NFL after one of the best rushing seasons in school history. Jalen Berger and Jarek Broussard struggled to replicate that last season, with the Spartans finishing ranked 111th in the nation at just 113.0 yards per game on the ground and their 95.2 per game in Big Ten play 12th. MSU’s inability to extend drives, a multifaceted issue with running backs’ vision and blocking struggles both on the line and outside, resulted in the program’s worst time of possession in more than a quarter century. The Spartans’ 26:13 of offensive possession time was 127th out of 130 Football Bowl Subdivision teams, a double-whammy of threeand-out drives and an inability to pick up short-yardage situations. The hope is that the vision and reported explosiveness of UConn transfer Nathan Carter, coupled with fellow transfer Jaren Mangham’s big-body bruising
between the tackles, can correct the problems, along with having Berger back for another year following his slight upturn toward the end of last season.
Who replaces Reed and Coleman?
The passing game will be almost completely revamped, with whoever ends up at quarterback and Mosley as the only returning receiver with extensive experience. MSU needs one of its veterans — Montorie Foster, Christian Fitzpatrick and Nebraska transfer Alante Brown — step up as a leader alongside the sure-handed Mosley to help ease the transition at QB. But replacing the game-breaking ability of Reed and Coleman (and, to a lesser extent, the departure of Germie Bernard) will fall on the cadre of talented young wideouts Antonio Gates Jr., Jaron Glover and Tyrell Henry. Whoever has established chemistry from working in practice with whichever quarterback wins the job could determine that pecking order.
Player to watch: TE Maliq Carr
In two years after transferring from Purdue, Carr found himself as the third tight end due to his inability to be a consistent blocker. No one has ever questioned his ability to catch passes, and the Spartans need that type of threat at the position and over the middle of the field now more than ever with the quarterback change. And the run game needs Carr to display the blocking improvements his coaches have boasted about the past month.
Newcomer to watch: RB Nathan Carter
The competition steps up in level from Connecticut to the Big Ten for Carter, but he flashed plenty of strength in his offseason weight room
clips and showed cutback ability and good recognition of running lanes in April as MSU closed spring practice. Staying healthy will be a key — a big hit in UConn’s loss at Michigan last year separated Carter’s shoulder and ended his season — but having additional veteran options of Berger, Mangham and Jordon Simmons should limit the wear and tear and maximize the chances for Carter to break big runs.
Impact freshman: RB Jaelon Barbarin
The opportunity for carries this season could be limited with the veterans in front of him, but the 5-9, 185-pound former track star possesses the type of sprinter speed MSU needs more of across the board. Barbarin could be used in a role similar to how the previous staff used R.J. Shelton on jet sweeps from the slot or in multi-back packages, but his best potential to make an immediate impact could be in the return game so long as he shows good decision making and ball-possession.
Potential sleeper: WR Montorie Foster
While the 6-foot, 185-pound senior doesn’t have the measurables of Coleman, he possesses a similar athletic pedigree, having bypassed Division I basketball offers to focus on football. That, matched with his toughness and tenacity, allowed Foster to emerge as a starter in 2021 ahead of Coleman when Jalen Nailor was injured. Now healthy after a foot injury limited him a year ago, Foster should emerge at least as a No. 2 receiving option and potentially blossom into a top target for opposing defenses to game plan against.