Only three true freshmen played in Michigan State football's season-opening win over Western Michigan, and one of them has been receiving a lot of praise this week following his performance.
The Spartans didn't unleash some of the freshmen that had been receiving praise all offseason like Jayden Savoury or Braylon Collier, but they did play Derrick Simmons and Aydan West.
The former wasn't a huge surprise, but I didn't expect to see a true freshman defensive back get some run in the opener with all the depth there, but West apparently impressed enough during fall camp to get some looks. He played a handful of snaps and was one of the five highest-graded defensive backs for MSU on Friday, according to PFF.
Secondary coach Blue Adams spoke to the media on Wednesday and had nothing but good things to say about his freshman defensive back. The key takeaway? Buy stock now.
Blue Adams: “Aydan West, you talk about a young dude that comes in and gets to play. He practically lives in my office, he gets the info from the older guys and he just works. He just works.”
— Emmett Matasovsky (@E_Matasovsky57) September 3, 2025
West is clearly making some moves on the depth chart, and it all starts with his willingness to learn and grow as a defensive back. Adams says that West "lives" in his office and learns from the older players. He also says that "he just works" when talking about the young freshman's work ethic.
Special players always seem to reveal themselves early on in their careers, and it feels like West is cut from the same cloth as some of the legends that have come through the program.
Not many freshmen come in, beg to be taught, and put what they learn into action, but West is a different type of player. It looks like he's going to have a special career in East Lansing.