Recruits get taste of practices, campus

EAST LANSING - Mark Dantonio and the Michigan State coaching staff are busy these days preparing for the Spartans' game against No. 14 Boston College in the Champs Sports Bowl on December 28.

But that's not all they're doing.

The MSU coaches are busy racking up the frequent-flyer miles on the recruiting trails, too. When the Spartans' regular season ended last month, the coaches immediately hit the road to visit as many recruiting targets and their families as possible.

"We've been all over the country from (New) Jersey to Florida to California. ... A lot of air time, a lot of flying around, home visits," MSU tight ends/tackles coach and recruiting coordinator Mark Staten said. "Getting in and talking about the values and things that make Michigan State what it's becoming."

MSU hosted over a dozen prospects for their official visits this past weekend and they'll do the same over the next two weekends. The visits give prospects and their parents, if they come, a chance to watch an MSU bowl practice, but also meet and interact with the players, the coaches and even the coaches' families.

"It was awesome," said MSU verbal commitment, 6-7 defensive end Tyler Hoover of Novi whose official visit was this past weekend. "(Practice) was awesome. I loved some of the drills that (defensive line) coach (Ted) Gill was doing. I'm just excited to get going."

The recruits also took in the MSU-Jacksonville basketball game on Saturday at which the football team was recognized during halftime for becoming bowl eligible.

"When I first walked in (Breslin Center) part of the Izzone started cheering my name," Hoover said, laughing. "So that was pretty cool."

MSU has 15 oral commitments to date from the class of 2008, but recruits who have made verbal pledges cannot sign their binding official letter of intent until the NCAA's signing day, Feb. 6, 2008. Coaches cannot publically comment on recruits until then.

"We've been getting a lot of good feedback and a lot of positive responses from these young men," Staten said. "It's been very good."

Things may be good but with the Spartans playing in Florida for the Champs Sports Bowl, MSU hopes to receive a boost in one of the nation's most fertile recruiting states.

"It's Florida," Rivals.com recruiting analyst Jeremy Crabtree said of the Spartans' bowl bid. "It potentially opens up more eyeballs on your program especially (in) one of the big three talent-producing states like Florida is."

"MSU's going to be down there practicing for a week. They'll be on local news all over Orlando. They'll be able to tell recruits if they want to come by to come out and watch them practice. ...It's a win-win."

The Spartan coaches know the significance of the bowl bid and they're using it as a major selling point.

"That's what every kid out there (wants)," Staten said. "They want to play in bowl games, they want to fight for championships. With us, yes, we did have five losses - but none of them being by anymore than seven points - shows that, hey, one play here or there could've been an even better season. And all these kids that we're recruiting are very intelligent. They watch the games, they read about the games, they see what's going on."

Some have also thought that the coaching uncertainty at Michigan may have a positive effect on the Spartans. Oftentimes a prospect that has made a verbal commitment will reopen his recruitment if a coaching change takes place.

"With the uncommitted guys it's the biggest," MichiganPreps.com editor Josh Helmholdt said. "The instate guys - especially the guys MSU went after - they're pretty solid no matter who comes in and coaches (at U-M)."

With MSU landing Westland John Glenn's Keshawn Martin last month, who Helmholdt said U-M had a strong interest, it appears the lone prospect both programs have offered a scholarship to is Detroit King four-star linebacker Nick Perry, who led King to the state title. Perry, a 6-foot-4, 240-pounder, shattered the Michigan high school quarterback sacks record by 10 finishing with 36 and has scholarship offers from many of the nation's elite including USC and Miami (Fla.).

"With Perry, not enough people are giving MSU credit," Helmholdt said. ..."If I had to pick one team that I think has the best chance it's probably Michigan State."

All of MSU's oral commitments to date are from the states of Michigan and Ohio, but in their intent to add 10 more players to the current class, the MSU coaches have a plan to focus on their specific needs.

"We need to get some more O-linemen," Staten said. "We're graduating four and have four that are juniors and it takes offensive linemen a little while to develop. We need to really do really well at recruiting the linebacker position because we've got three seniors at that position."