Michigan State football had a big offseason in the transfer portal, especially at receiver.
The Spartans landed their fair share of targets for Aidan Chiles to utilize in the portal, headlined by Chrishon McCray from Kent State and Omari Kelly from Middle Tennessee. They added a couple more guys who didn't have the same starpower, but they showed promise in the spring.
On Monday, Jonathan Smith told the media that Kelly and Nick Marsh were the top two receivers at this point in camp and that there's a serious battle for the WR3 spot.
Who could be the frontrunner for that third starting receiver spot? Smith said that one guy is standing out while a few others are either "getting back" or have had good camps so far.
Jonathan Smith on the competition for WR3: “Rod Bullard is standing out, Braylon Collier has had a good camp, McCray is getting back, Evan Boyd is getting back.”
— Emmett Matasovsky (@E_Matasovsky57) August 11, 2025
That's right, Valdosta State transfer Rodney Bullard Jr. is standing out as a potential third option, which is something that not many people expected to hear. Everyone kind of assumed that McCray would be the runaway selection for one of the three starting receivers. I still think McCray gets some starting snaps, but it sounds like Bullard is the guy to beat for that third spot.
In 28 games over the past two seasons at the Division II level, Bullard caught 85 passes for 1,567 yards and 19 touchdowns, and he was a solid kick returner as well.
While Marsh and Kelly are going to be your starting receivers almost surely (barring some sort of setback), Bullard looks like someone who could step up and surprise people in that third slot with his versatility and explosive athleticism.
I didn't expect this, but I won't complain. Just add Bullard to the growing weapons list for Chiles.
Michigan State now has about 5-6 starting-caliber receivers.