Pat Fitzgerald has not stopped working since he was hired as Michigan State’s 27th head coach a week and a half ago, and he’s now officially on contract after the Board of Trustees voted in his favor on Friday afternoon.
However, Fitzgerald didn’t wait until Friday to get started on piecing together his roster.
Besides signing his first recruiting class with Michigan State a week ago, Fitzgerald has been meeting with players to discuss their futures with the program and that’s led to some important transfer decisions from guys like Nick Marsh and Makhi Frazier.
It hasn’t been all bad, though. Michigan State has retained guys like Brady Pretzlaff and Alessio Milivojevic who have both announced that they’ll be returning next year.
Unfortunately, there have been more transfer departures than returning player announcements and incoming transfers combined since Fitzgerald was hired. He’s hoping to change that soon.
On Thursday night, he got started on his first portal class with Michigan State, offering his first target.
Michigan State offered!! pic.twitter.com/8CCTgDSCfM
— Corey Scott (@corey3scott) December 11, 2025
Corey Scott is a Division II transfer from West Florida who put up some impressive numbers this past season, catching 63 passes for 1,018 yards and four touchdowns. That was a nice improvement from a breakout redshirt freshman season in 2024 when he caught 34 passes for 629 yards and five scores.
Michigan State needs a Nick Marsh replacement
While I don’t think a Division II receiver transfer is going to fill the shoes of Nick Marsh, he would at least help the cause. If Michigan State can retain some talented wideouts like Chrishon McCray, Braylon Collier, and Bryson Williams, adding Scott to the mix could be perfect for depth.
Scott has been productive in his two years as a collegiate wideout, catching 97 passes for 1,647 yards and nine touchdowns. If Courtney Hawkins is retained, he would mold him into a legit FBS pass-catching weapon. That transition under Hawkins would be seamless.
Without Marsh, Michigan State needs to focus on bolstering the receiving corps. Fitzgerald knows that and he’s already addressing what will surely be a position of need this offseason.
Now it’s time to address the trenches.