Michigan State football: Team needs and transfer portal wishlist

The transfer portal is officially open and this week has seen well over 1,000 players put their names in with the hopes of finding new homes and fresh starts. That includes a number of Michigan State football players.

But the portal taketh and the portal giveth. The Spartans may have lost a good number of players, but they’ll undoubtedly dip into the portal to replace them.

Here are some team needs and a few portal wishlist for the Spartans.

Wide receiver

Michigan State lost a trio of receivers to the portal this offseason as Jaron Glover, Christian Fitzpatrick, and Tyrell Henry all pledged to transfer after the regular season ended. Along with them, Tre Mosley is gone and there’s a good chance that Montorie Foster and Alante Brown also move on.

The wide receiver room has been depleted but there are legitimate options for the Spartans in the transfer portal and they’ve been pretty active so far.

Here are some options.

• Ja’Mori Maclin, North Texas

This was one of the first transfers that Jonathan Smith offered as Michigan State’s new head coach. He was one of the first coaches to reach out to Ja’Mori Maclin when he hit the portal after a breakout season with North Texas.

As a sophomore in 2023, Maclin had 57 catches for 1,004 yards and 11 touchdowns. He was a Biletnikoff Award watchlist member and he was a stud for the Mean Green. He would look great in a new shade of green as a 5-foot-11 speedster in the slot.

• TJ Sheffield, Purdue

TJ Sheffield was always just solid but never truly broke out for Purdue. He did have over 1,200 receiving yards in his career and was one of the most consistent pass-catchers for the Boilermakers and he’ll be visiting Michigan State soon. He’s also not the biggest target at 5-foor-11, but he’s proven to be a solid second or third option.