Michigan State Football: Jayden Reed is prize worth the extended wait

Jayden Reed announced on Instagram Monday that he won’t be getting a waiver for Michigan State football, but he’s plenty worth the wait.

Jayden Reed only needed one year at Western Michigan to prove himself as one of the best young receivers in college football.

The Illinois-native and high school teammate of incoming freshman quarterback Payton Thorne finished the season with 56 catches for 797 yards and eight touchdowns. He was a Freshman All-American but decided he had a better chance to make a name for himself elsewhere, so he picked Michigan State.

Despite the Spartans’ offense being nothing short of mediocre in 2018, Reed was attracted to the green and white after building a relationship with Mark Dantonio and the staff. He saw himself reviving the Michigan State offense, and fans had the same vision when he committed.

But all hope for Reed suiting up in 2019 and helping the Spartans immediately with a waiver was lost on Monday as he posted on Instagram that he’d be sitting out a year.

This was expected because he didn’t truly have a public reason for his waiver, so fans had already assumed he wouldn’t be playing until 2020, and he’ll be plenty worth the wait.

When he does finally hit the field for Michigan State, he’ll have Brad Salem’s offense memorized like the back of his hand and he’ll be there to help replace a guy like Darrell Stewart Jr. immediately. He could be inserted into the starting lineup immediately as a slot guy and he’ll do some serious damage for the Spartans.

Don’t fret about the year in between playing because Reed is about to be a scout team star for the Spartans and that’s also only going to make the defense even better. This kid is worth the extended wait.