Michigan State Football: Top 5 spring 2019 breakout candidates

TEMPE, AZ - SEPTEMBER 08: Head coach Mark Dantonio of the Michigan State Spartans reacts during warm ups to the college football game against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Sun Devil Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Tempe, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

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LINCOLN, NE – NOVEMBER 17: Head coach Mark Dantonio of the Michigan State Spartans walks on the field with the team before the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at Memorial Stadium on November 17, 2018 in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images) /

Although he didn’t post any stats in his first year with Michigan State, he was able to hold on to his redshirt. He played in just three games — Northwestern, Rutgers and Oregon — but he never saw enough action to even record a single tackle or pass breakup.

This was particularly surprising given the fact that Josiah Scott was injured for the first part of the season and other guys needed to step up at cornerback in his absence. We expected to see a lot of Gervin, but the staff felt like they’d rather preserve his redshirt than waste it when there was plenty of depth at the position.

The former four-star from Cass Tech in Detroit has the talent to push for a spot in the two-deep this spring and set himself up for a strong redshirt freshman season.

Plus, the fact that Justin Layne is now gone means that some younger guys must step up in order to replace the potential late-first, early-second round talent. Gervin can be that guy, but he needs to prove it throughout the spring.

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