Pat Fitzgerald landed his second 2027 class commitment on Sunday afternoon, but the new Michigan State football coach has cast a wide net.
He’s also aiming high.
Fitzgerald is in pursuit of one of the top quarterbacks in the 2027 class. Fans love hearing that he’s targeting elite recruits as well as under-the-radar, chip-on-shoulder prospects.
According to Steve Wiltfong of On3, Michigan State is one of seven teams “in hot pursuit” of four-star quarterback Israel Abrams who was just visited by Fitzgerald and his staff last week.
This is a good sign for the future of the position because Fitzgerald is aiming high. Finding under-the-radar gems on the offensive line and at running back is fine and everything, but it’s also good to see the staff target elite prospects at important positions like quarterback. Abrams is one of the best quarterbacks in the 2027 class, ranked No. 2 at the position and No. 22 overall, per 247Sports.
Setting up the quarterback room for the foreseeable future is important for long-term success of a new coaching staff, and Fitzgerald is making sure he identifies his top 2027 targets.
Going from Alessio Milivojevic to Kayd Coffman to Abrams would be quite the transition.
Michigan State’s QB history should help
How do you attract elite quarterbacks? You have a history of producing elite quarterbacks like Michigan State possesses.
Going down the line since 2000, Michigan State has sent guys like Jeff Smoker, Drew Stanton, Brian Hoyer, Kirk Cousins, and Brian Hoyer to the NFL. It’s been a minute since the Spartans have had a pro quarterback, but Brian Lewerke could’ve been in the league if he didn’t suffer an injury that he never really recovered effectively from.
Milivojevic looks like he could grow into a professional quarterback and that should help with the Abrams recruitment. If Milivojevic can play like an All-Big Ten quarterback this season, Abrams could see his future in East Lansing as the next in line after Coffman. Heck, he could even battle Coffman for the starting job when Alessio leaves.
Fitzgerald has produced some NFL talent at quarterback, too, so the resume is there.