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Michigan State football will be just fine without 4-star QB Dwan Mathis

By Connor Muldowney

EAST LANSING, MI - OCTOBER 29: Michigan State Spartans head football coach Mark Dantonio watches the action during the first quarter of the game against the Michigan Wolverines at Spartan Stadium on October 29, 2016 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MI - OCTOBER 29: Michigan State Spartans head football coach Mark Dantonio watches the action during the first quarter of the game against the Michigan Wolverines at Spartan Stadium on October 29, 2016 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images) /
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Michigan State football lost a big-time recruit in four-star quarterback Dwan Mathis on Sunday afternoon as he flipped to Ohio State.

An official visit changed everything. At one point, Dwan Mathis eased everyone’s concern with a ‘100 percent’ committed quote following an offer from Ohio State, but a recent visit to Columbus changed the outlook of Michigan State’s 2019 class.

Must Read: 5 reasons Brian Lewerke’s will be Mark Dantonio’s best QB

Mathis flipped his commitment from Michigan State to Ohio State on Sunday afternoon, saying goodbye to his class of friends in East Lansing. He went from a quarterback factory at Michigan State to the Big Ten’s premier overall program in Columbus.

No, the Spartans’ outlook isn’t any worse now that Mathis has committed to Ohio State. Does the de-commitment hurt? Absolutely. Mathis was one of the best quarterbacks in the 2019 class, impressing at the annual Elite 11 camp. However, he had a long line in front of him at the quarterback position in East Lansing.

In fact, Brian Lewerke has the starting job this year and potentially next year when Mathis is a freshman. After that, Rocky Lombardi, a redshirt freshman this season, is the presumed starter. He could start as a sophomore, junior and senior. Then Theo Day would be available to start for a season or two. That would give Mathis just one season as a starting quarterback — two at most.

For those worrying about this loss, just realize it wouldn’t affect Michigan State until about 2022 or 2023. By then, the Spartans could land a top quarterback in the 2020, 2021 or 2022 classes to replace Day.

Next: MSU Football: Post-spring 2018 game-by-game predictions

Don’t fret over this loss. Mathis is a good kid with plenty of talent, but Michigan State has churned out NFL quarterbacks as good as any program in the country, and that won’t change.

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