MSU football: Talent level gets another big boost

EAST LANSING - A year after securing one of the best Michigan State recruiting classes in a decade, coach Mark Dantonio and his staff turned in a pretty good encore.

Dantonio unveiled his 2010 batch of prospects Wednesday and, while the group doesn't come quite as a highly praised as last year's consensus top-20 class, it isn't far behind.

"This is another highly acclaimed, highly ranked class and it shows great versatility," Dantonio said. "We addressed our needs, first of all, and when you look at it, (it's a) pretty balanced football class."

The class of 21 players is ranked No. 29 in the nation by Rivals.com and No. 31 by Scout.com.

Rivals.com national recruiting editor Jeremy Crabtree lists MSU No. 4 in the Big Ten behind Penn State, Michigan and Ohio State.

"I think it's very important when you go into recruiting that you try to stack classes on top of each other," Dantonio said. "I think that's what we've been able to do with this class. We've got an excellent class last year and we've seen six or seven freshman play every year (since) we've come in. This will probably be no different this year."

While the 2009 group provided immediate help on offense, it was the defense which appears to have gotten the biggest boost this time.

"I think it's the strongest part of their class," said Allen Wallace, national recruiting editor for Scout.com. "William Gholston, Max Bullough, Isaiah Lewis, Mylan Hicks - those are all defensive additions to this class that we like a lot."

Gholston is the unquestioned cornerstone of the class and is the only Big Ten recruit to earn a five-star ranking from Rivals.com. He is ranked as the No. 21 player in the country.

At 6-foot-7, 237 pounds, Gholston, who is from Detroit Southeastern, will play primarily outside linebacker at MSU but will slide down to the defensive line in pass-rushing situations.

Bullough, out of St. Francis High in Traverse City, is ranked as a four-star prospect and the No. 5 inside linebacker in the country by Scout.com

Gholston and Bullough both committed to MSU early - Gholston in June of 2009 and Bullough back in October 2008. With those two on board, it became an easier sell to land other top defensive players, such as four-star safety Isaiah Lewis from Indianapolis.

"I think it's huge to get those guys early so everybody else can look," MSU defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi said. "Everybody I was recruiting down in Ohio and the rest of the coaches knew who Will Gholston was, who Max Bullough was."

MSU's class includes 11 players from Michigan, six from Ohio, two from Georgia, one from Indiana and one from Florida.

MSU's coaches said there was no extra emphasis placed on defense despite the unit's struggles this past season. But a good year for defensive talent came at a good time for the Spartans.

On the offensive side, the headliner is quarterback Joe Boisture of Saline, who has a four-star ranking from Rivals.com and was selected to play in the 2010 U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

Wide receiver Keith Mumphery from Dooly County High in Vienna, Ga., chose MSU over offers from Arkansas, Florida State and Nebraska, among others.

"I think they have some pretty good marquee players," Scout.com analyst Tom Lemming said. "I think with the talent being young talent, the arrow is pointing north for Michigan State and you can expect a couple of real good years coming up."

After three straight bowl appearances, Dantonio is hoping a second straight highly ranked class leads to even bigger rewards.

"I think you have to aspire to be the best, you have to look toward the future and say that we can get there," Dantonio said. "I think if you recruit players that are expecting to play on that level, and play for championship teams, then you will ultimately give them that and that's our goal."