Michigan State Football: Way-too-early 2-deep depth chart projection for 2021

Quarterback

Starter: Payton Thorne
Backup: Anthony Russo

I’m having a tough time picking a starter here because I’m on the Payton Thorne bandwagon but Anthony Russo has the tools to really take over that role.

Let’s start with Thorne.

As a redshirt freshman, he had a couple of really solid outings against Ohio State and Penn State which aren’t exactly pushover opponents. He had 582 yards and three touchdowns with three picks and a 57 percent completion rate. He looked like the quarterback of the future against Penn State and that’s an exciting development.

But Mel Tucker was wise to hit the transfer portal for a guy to either push Thorne or let him develop for another year.

Russo, a Temple transfer, had 863 yards and nine touchdowns with a 68 percent completion rate in three games for the Owls in 2020 and finished his career there with 6,287 yards and 44 touchdowns, but he does have an interception issue (32 in his three-year career).

Honestly, either kid could start next season and it gives Tucker two solid options with guys like Hamp Fay, Noah Kim and Theo Day waiting in the wings if something disastrous were to happen.