Michigan State football gets in early on 4-star WR Antonio Gates Jr.

Michigan State football offered the son of a legendary NFL tight end, getting in early on four-star wide out Antonio Gates Jr. from Dearborn.

If there’s one thing that always holds true, getting in early with local recruits is always a positive. That holds true especially when a new coaching staff takes over and Mel Tucker entered his name into the ring for one of the top in-state 2022 prospects and son of an NFL legend, Antonio Gates Jr.

Gates Jr. is the son of former NFL tight end, and future Hall of Famer, Antonio Gates who was once enrolled at Michigan State before Nick Saban ran him off. He was committed to Michigan State to play both football and basketball, but Saban told him to swear off the latter and stick to the gridiron. He didn’t want that and transferred to Eastern Michigan before going to Kent State.

One interesting fact about Gates is that he was at Michigan State during the same time Tucker was a graduate assistant in 1998. Could he have developed a relationship with the Hall of Fame tight end in his short stint in East Lansing?

Either way, Tucker is high on Gates Jr. who is one of the best receivers in the 2022 class, ranked No. 177 overall and as the 21st-best wide out, per 247Sports. He’s also the No. 4 recruit from the state in the class.

Gates Jr. has tremendous size at 6-foot-3 and 185 pounds and the four-star recruit has incredible bloodlines with one of the best tight ends in NFL history as his father.

The four-star receiver from Dearborn has the speed to blow by defenders and has a knack for high-pointing the football and getting in a good position to make difficult catches in traffic. His body control is top-notch for such a young player.

Gates Jr. currently has eight scholarship offers and Michigan State could be in a good spot here, getting in early with the elite local talent.