The 2026 college football season has officially kicked off and with Week 1 in the books and Week 2 looming, now feels like a better time than ever to check in on some former Michigan State football players.
In case you’re unaware (there’s no way you could be), Michigan State has seen dozens upon dozens of players transfer out of the program over the past few years thanks to coaching changes and just a poor overall situation in East Lansing from the end of the Mel Tucker era through the Jonathan Smith chapter.
Not all of the transfers out have seen success, but dozens of them saw action with their new teams to begin the 2026 season.
Let’s dive into what Week 1 looked like for all the former Spartans around college football.
A few former Michigan State stars stood out in Week 1
Week 1 wasn’t great for every former Spartan, but there were a few who really stood out as stars for their new teams like Nick Marsh, Katin Houser, and Sam Leavitt. Aidan Chiles looked decent with Northwestern but he even admitted that he has a lot to clean up.
Here’s how the 41 former Spartans (that I could track down) fared in Week 1:
- Makhi Frazier, RB, Ole Miss — 7 rushes for 27 yards
- Nick Marsh, WR, Indiana — 2 catches for 17 yards, 1 TD
- Aidan Chiles, QB, Northwestern — 14/24, 273 yards, 1 TD; 8 rushes, 18 yards, 1 TD
- Katin Houser, QB, Illinois — 13/17 for 182 yards and 3 TDs; 3 rushes, 29 yards, 1 TD
- Sam Leavitt, QB, LSU — 16/28 for 230 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT; 12 rushes, 113 yards, 2 TDs
- Noah Kim, QB, Eastern Michigan — 24/43 for 174 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT; 3 rushes, 10 yards
- Dillon Tatum, DB, Miami(OH) — 5 tackles
- Aydan West, CB, Minnesota — 1 tackle, 1 pass breakup
- Marcellius Pulliam, LB, Coastal Carolina — 10 tackles
- Alex VanSumeren, DL, USC — 2 tackles
- Jalen Thompson, DL, Arizona State — 3 tackles, 1 sack
- Armorion Smith, S, Toledo — 7 tackles vs. MSU
- Tyler Gillison, EDGE, Ohio — 3 tackles
- Caleb Conley, CB, Eastern Michigan — 2 tackles
- Stanton Ramil, OT, Auburn — started at RT vs. Baylor
- Cole Dellinger, OG, Eastern Michigan — started at RG vs. San Jose State
- Kristian Phillips, OT, Boston College — started at RT vs. Cincinnati
- Ashton Lepo, OT, Oklahoma State — started at RT vs. Tulsa
- Jeremiah Hughes, CB, Hawaii — 4 tackles, 1 pass breakup
- Kaden Schickel, LS, Vanderbilt — started at LS vs. Austin Peay
- David Santiago, EDGE, Kansas — 4 tackles, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery
- Martin Connington, K, Kansas — 1-for-1 on FGs (32 yards) and 6-for-6 on PATs
- Jack Wills, LS, Nebraska — started at LS vs. Ohio
- Aisea Moa, LB, Michigan — 1 pass breakup
- Justin Denson, S, Purdue — 2 tackles
- Darius Snow, LB, Texas — 1 tackle
- Malcolm Jones, DB, Iowa State — 5 tackles
- Andrew Depaepe, DL, UMass — 4 tackles in upset win over Rutgers
- Tyrell Henry, WR, Wisconsin — 4 catches for 42 yards
- Ken Talley, EDGE, UCF — 3 tackles
- Wyatt Hook, TE, Akron — 1 catch for 7 yards
- Anthony Jones, DL, Nebraska — 3 tackles
- George Mullins, CB, Delaware — 2 tackles and 1 INT
- Eddie Pleasant, CB, Marshall — 3 tackles
- Jaelen Smith, WR, McNeese — 1 catch for 12 yards
- Caleb Conley, CB, Eastern Michigan — 2 tackles
- Davion Primm, RB, Lake Erie College — 7 carries for 22 yards
- Braden Miller, OT, Duke — started at RT vs. Tulane
- Brandon Lewis, CB, Saginaw Valley State — 5 tackles
- Philipp Davis, CB, Marshall — 3 tackles
- Semaj Bridgeman, LB, Kent State — 1 tackle
Not a bad week for a handful of guys, but there were also some former Spartans who didn’t see action with their new teams or didn’t record any stats (Michael Masunas had no catches with Texas, Alante Brown had no stats with Memphis).
The top three performers had to be: Sam Leavitt (gold), Katin Houser (silver), and Nick Marsh (bronze) for his one-handed touchdown catch.
Check back in next week to see how these former Spartans fared in Week 2.
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