There are still some question marks surrounding Michigan State football entering the 2025 season. There are position battles to figure out, improvements to make by the starters, and a depth chart to sort out heading into the opener against Western Michigan.
One of the biggest questions has to be: who is going to start at running back?
Through fall camp, it sounded like it would be a running back by-committee look with three or four guys looking like starting-caliber rushers.
But with Dave Revsine visiting campus on Thursday with the Big Ten Network crew, he hinted at the backfield battle being down to two rushers: Makhi Frazier and Brandon Tullis.
RB is interesting - going with two unproven guys in Brandon Tullis (7) and Makhi Frazier (5). Tullis is a big guy who will run you over, Frazier more of a HR hitter.
— Dave Revsine (@BTNDaveRevsine) August 21, 2025
Just 14 carries between them last year, but staff is confident they’ll be productive pic.twitter.com/Krb45MObvv
Frazier is more of a "home run threat" while Tullis is more of a bruiser. Having a bruiser splitting time with more of a home run threat has worked for Michigan State in the past -- just look at the success Jehuu Caulcrick and Javon Ringer had in the early Mark Dantonio days.
I was expecting to see Elijah Tau-Tolliver take the reins in the backfield after transferring in with the most experience from Sacramento State. But it looks like the younger guys are standing out.
Frazier and Tullis splitting carries and leading the backfield would be the best-case scenario for the future of the backfield, and then you add in Jace Clarizio, and the backfield is set for years to come.
Revsine is just reporting what he saw, so it could be completely different when the Spartans take the field against Western Michigan, but just connecting the dots with what Smith has said about backfield standouts during fall camp, and also Keith Bhonapha's words on the race, it seems like it'll be a duo of Frazier and Tullis leading the way.