The transfer portal has been dominating headlines for the past two months, but Pat Fitzgerald is still keeping a close eye on the 2026 class as he tries to keep Samson Gash committed.
There’s also still room for more 2026 class commits, and the Spartans got a big one on Friday.
LeVar Woods is one of the best special teams coordinators in the country, and Fitzgerald poached him from his alma mater, Iowa, about a month ago. He has a lot of work to do seeing as Michigan State has had mediocre special teams since Mark Dantonio retired, with the exception of a couple of punters and a kicker. Woods knows he has work to do.
Landing one of the best special teamers at the high school level was probably on his checklist this offseason. Now he gets to cross that off.
On Friday, Woods and Fitzgerald landed an All-American long-snapper from Illinois.
Trey Serauskis is now a Spartan.
BREAKING: Michigan State adds a key piece to the 2026 class with the commitment of All-American long snapper Trey Serauskis out of Illinois. Special teams win for the Spartans. (FREE)https://t.co/JAKjBiTv8M pic.twitter.com/4Qna9aMDmA
— Corey Robinson (@C_Robinson247) January 16, 2026
Like Corey Robinson said above, this is a special teams win for the Spartans, and it addresses a key need at long-snapper. The Spartans lost Kaden Schickel to the transfer portal, and Jack Wills just committed to Nebraska after transferring from Michigan State. That left a huge void at long-snapper, but now Serauskis is the future.
LeVar Woods making his presence felt
Woods was hired at kind of a funny time for Michigan State. He had led Iowa to a come-from-behind win over Michigan State fueled by big special teams plays a few weeks earlier, and he decided to coach the Hawkeyes’ bowl game before officially joining Michigan State.
Since his hiring, Michigan State lost Martin Connington to the transfer portal as well as a couple of long-snappers. However, he brought in a veteran kicker in Liam Boyd from Charlotte, a talented punter from Iowa in Rhys Dakin, and now an All-American long-snapper in Serauskis.
Woods has already re-tooled the special teams unit, and it looks like it’ll be a strength in 2026.
The moves that the new staff are making have me feeling vintage Michigan State vibes from the program. This is the most excited fans have been about the program in a while.