Budding Michigan State football star Jalen Thompson to host youth camp

Culture was something that needed to be addressed for Michigan State football when Mel Tucker departed and the keys were handed over to Jonathan Smith.

There were some high-quality players that came through the program, but near the end, it felt like everyone was looking out for themselves -- and you can't blame them because their head coach was the same way. But now that Smith is in charge, he's changing the culture.

The players that Smith is bringing in and the guys who returned from the Tucker era seem to be high-character players and we're seeing that almost on a daily basis.

We've already seen multiple players announce that they're hosting youth camps this summer like Jordan Turner, Aidan Chiles, and Jordan Hall (I'm sure there are others, too). Now, sophomore defensive end Jalen Thompson announced he's going to be hosting his first annual youth football camp in Lansing, sponsored by Cleats for Kids.

And the camp is a pretty great deal. It's for third through eighth-graders and it's only $35 for a three-hour camp on July 13 and all campers receive a shirt, cleats, and food and drinks. All of that while learning from a potential FBS starting defensive end.

It's great to see these young players using their platform to host camps for young athletes who look up to them as heroes and want to be like them. This is exactly how players should be earning NIL money.

Smith seems to have a team full of high-character guys and Thompson is the latest to join that group.