I feel like I’ve used the expression “when it rains, it pours” about a million times this Michigan State football season, but the sky jusy continues to open up on the program.
With plenty of uncertainty surrounding the future of Michigan State under Jonathan Smith (or whoever gets hired), recruiting has been difficult. The second-year head coach is still working on the recruiting trail, but having to tell recruits “I don’t know if I’ll be here” is a tough sell.
So when Smith was able to secure an official visit from Grand Valley State defensive line transfer this weekend, it was rather shocking because he was one of the top defenders on the market.
Jibriel Conde is from Michigan and probably grew up watching Michigan State, so it made sense that there was some interest from both sides. However, his visit to East Lansing was canceled and he made an interesting decision to commit to another lifeless Big Ten program with an uncertain future on Saturday morning, picking Wisconsin.
BREAKING: Grand Valley State transfer DL Jibriel Conde has Committed to Wisconsin, @On3sports has learned
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) November 29, 2025
The 6’5 280 DL totaled 30 Tackles, 2.5 Sacks, & 6.5 TFL this season
He’s ranked as the No. 1 DL in the Portal (per On3)https://t.co/RlUbB6EMhS pic.twitter.com/wh2PWJnbQ2
This was obviously a shocking decision because Wisconsin, too, has a coach on the hot seat, but Luke Fickell was given one more season by the Badgers’ AD. That assurance proved to be the difference because there’s a chance that Conde will only be in college for one more season. He at least knows who his coach is going to be at Wisconsin.
Michigan State couldn’t guarantee the same, so he canceled his visit and chose the Badgers. It’s a tough loss for Smith because that was a winnable recruitment, especially with Conde being from the state of Michigan and playing a couple of hours away at Grand Valley.
This recruiting loss can’t be fully blamed on Smith because if J Batt had just said one way or another if he was returning in 2026, he would’ve been able to relay that message to Conde.
Unfortunately, recruiting has been next to impossible for Smith since that UCLA loss that really put him on the hot seat. OK, so maybe it is still his fault because he put himself in this position, but Batt not giving assurance or making a move has stalled the Spartans’ recruiting efforts.