Michigan State football: Playing time odds for 2022 class offensive signees

Germie Bernard, WR

WR room:

Losing: Jalen Nailor, Ian Stewart, Ricky White, CJ Hayes
Returning: Jayden Reed, Tre Mosley, Montorie Foster, Keon Coleman, Terry Lockett Jr., Christian Fitzpatrick, Cade McDonald, Sebastian Brown
Bringing in: Antonio Gates Jr., Tyrell Henry, Jaron Glover

Germie Bernard (No. 229 nationally, No. 34 WR) is a former teammate of Houser and a highly publicized recruiting flip for Tucker and the Spartans.

With Jalen Nailor taking his talents to the NFL, there is a receiver role open next to Jayden Reed and Tre Mosley. Bernard, Montorie Foster, and Keon Coleman are expected to compete for this role. Foster and Coleman combined for 19 catches for 214 yards and two touchdowns last year, with neither distinguishing themselves as a clear favorite.

Bernard is also an early enrollee, and I expect him to get quite a few targets throughout offseason camp for the Spartans. With an already documented chemistry with Houser, who else would Houser’s check down target be besides Bernard? He will make noise and throw his hat into the ring for starting wide receiver before this offseason is over.

Prediction

Germie Bernard starts the season sharing snaps at WR3. While I’m sold on Bernard’s talent, Keon Coleman and Montorie Foster are both too well established to keep off the field. Coleman receiving playing time as a freshman under Mel Tucker establishes him as a threat, while Foster was the first man up after Nailor’s hand injury against Michigan.

As stated before, I believe Bernard gets more live-action looks than any of the other (non-starting) receivers due to his chemistry with Houser. Pending a breakout of any one of the talented receivers, I expect Bernard to see the field and at the very least put up numbers similar to Foster and Coleman last season.