Katin Houser, QB
QB room:
Losing: Anthony Russo
Returning: Payton Thorne, Noah Kim, Hamp Fay
Katin Houser (No. 226 nationally, No. 15 QB) is the highest-rated Spartan offensive commit from this class. Unfortunately for him, Payton Thorne emerged as QB1 for the Spartans last season, with a record-setting performance.
As an early enrollee, Houser should make some noise this offseason. While it is highly unlikely that he takes the job from Thorne, he can make a push against Noah Kim and Hamp Fay to take over a spot on the depth chart. Kim and Fay were both buried on the depth chart last season, with neither throwing a pass — QB2 is a wide-open battle amongst these three, and all of them will have a full offseason to stake their claim.
Prediction
Houser slots in at QB3 for the Spartans. I expect him to impress the coaching staff, but with a junior starter, a redshirt might be the best case for Houser. I firmly expect him to receive a fair chance running the offense at the spring game, as well as some looks late in the season-opening games against Akron and Western Michigan.
If Thorne goes down (knock on wood), this can be revisited. Until then, expect the Spartans to keep this weapon under wraps.