Michigan State Football: Ricky White appears to be back with team

It’s been an interesting offseason for Michigan State football. First, the Spartans lost what seemed like half the roster to the transfer portal. Next, Mel Tucker reeled in about 15 transfers from the portal. And lastly, they signed the No. 45 recruiting class in the nation before Tucker’s first real spring as head coach.

Not lost in the shuffle, however, was the absence of one player in particular who has been speculated upon for months: Ricky White.

The breakout freshman who helped Michigan State topple Michigan in Ann Arbor as four-touchdown underdogs was missing this spring and Tucker said that he had been indefinitely suspended for violating team rules.

There was no word about whether he’d be back with the team this fall as mum was the word from the coaching staff and no one inside the program had any answers.

Some even speculated that he may be off the team and forced to enter the transfer portal.

The latter speculation died down a bit, but still no one was able to say one way or another if White was finally back with the team ahead of fall camp, but Jayden Reed’s Instagram story over the weekend hinted at the talented second-year receiver being back with his teammates.

Reed posted a picture of White at Michigan State’s practice facility running through some catching drills, essentially giving away his return to the team before the start of the season.

This is great news for the Michigan State offense.

The Michigan State football receiving corps is looking dangerous

White didn’t have a huge season with Michigan State in 2020 because of injuries, but he still finished with 10 receptions for 223 yards and a touchdown with a record-breaking performance versus Michigan. He did all this in just three games.

So now that we can likely add White back to the depth chart, he is a potential starter alongside Jayden Reed and Jalen Nailor, that gives Michigan State a legitimate two-deep that can contend with just about anyone in the conference not named Ohio State. They also bring back Tre Mosley, Keon Coleman, CJ Hayes, Terry Lockett, Christian Fitzpatrick, and Ian Stewart.

Jay Johnson has a ton of pieces to work with this season and whoever gets the nod at quarterback is going to have a handful of potential go-to pass-catchers.

Let’s hope White is truly back.