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Michigan State Football: 7 underclassmen to watch for vs. Akron

By Emmett Matasovsky

Michigan State safety Jaden Mangham (1) and defensive back Dillon Tatum (21) warm up before the game against Western Michigan at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing on Friday, Sept. 2, 2022.
Michigan State safety Jaden Mangham (1) and defensive back Dillon Tatum (21) warm up before the game against Western Michigan at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing on Friday, Sept. 2, 2022. /
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EAST LANSING, MI – SEPTEMBER 02: Tyrell Henry #11, Christian Fitzpatrick #16 and Hank Pepper #31 react following a play against Western Michigan in the first half at Spartan Stadium on September 2, 2022 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Jaime Crawford/Getty Images)
EAST LANSING, MI – SEPTEMBER 02: Tyrell Henry #11, Christian Fitzpatrick #16 and Hank Pepper #31 react following a play against Western Michigan in the first half at Spartan Stadium on September 2, 2022 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Jaime Crawford/Getty Images) /

The case for WR Tyrell Henry

Tyrell Henry has already seen some game action this year on special teams. Most notably, he downed a Bryce Baringer punt inside the Western Michigan 10 on the first Spartan punt of the season. The fact that the true freshman is already earning playing time on Mel Tucker’s squad is a great sign. Nearly everyone who has played football knows that standing out and doing your job on special teams is a surefire way to get rewarded with playing time on your side of the ball.

Seeing how Jayden Reed, Keon Coleman, and Tre Mosley have all proven themselves to be critical for the Spartans, the three will likely see limited reps and be pulled from the Akron game the second it is out of hand. This opens the door for Henry and the aforementioned Gates to see snaps.

On top of that, Gates, Terry Lockett Jr., and Montorie Foster each did not dress for the Spartans’ last contest.

There is a void of talented but unproven wide receivers past the top five of Reed, Mosley, Coleman, Foster, and Bernard, and I believe Henry could very well be the next man up.

The case against Henry

Unlike my case against Gates, I do not have much for Henry not seeing the field. The only way I see Tyrell Henry not taking an offensive snap this game is either an injury in practice or on special teams this week, or the game is too close for comfort.

If you’ll excuse me, I am going to go knock on wood now.

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