Michigan State football makes the cut for No. 1 player from Oklahoma

Jonathan Smith and his staff are hard at work as they look to complete their 2025 recruiting class. As it stands, Michigan State football has 14 commits in its class and is No. 47 in the country.

While the 2025 class will remain the top priority for now, that doesn’t mean the staff will ignore the 2026 class. This class of 2026 recruits have a long way to go as they will be high school juniors this year, but laying the groundwork for their top targets is extremely important.

And MSU looks to have done an excellent job at that so far as they just made the top 11 for an elite running back in the 2026 class.

Kaydin Jones is a four-star running back from Jenks, Okla. According to On3, he is the No. 1 player from Oklahoma and the No. 14 running back in the country. He also is the No. 102 overall player in the country as well.

As you probably guessed, Jones’ top 11 is loaded with elite programs. This includes Alabama, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Oregon, Louisville, Ole Miss, Miami, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt, and Missouri, along with Michigan State.

As it stands today, in-state powerhouse Oklahoma appears to be the team to beat for Jones. On3 gives them a massive advantage in this recruitment and gives them a 96.5% chance to win this battle.

Thankfully Michigan State has a lot of time to make some ground up. This recruitment still has a year and a half left in it, so Smith and his staff have plenty of time to work their magic.

The next step is to bring Jones to East Lansing for a visit. That in itself will be no easy task, but if Smith can pull that off then maybe Michigan State has a chance to win this recruitment.