Michigan State football offers elite 4-star safety
![Jul 24, 2024; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Jonathan Smith speaks to the media during the Big 10 football media day at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports Jul 24, 2024; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Jonathan Smith speaks to the media during the Big 10 football media day at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_6192,h_3483,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/137/01j3v7gnvpbtdww3827n.jpg)
Michigan State football hosted their annual Spartan Dawg Con on Saturday and with that came many new scholarship offers. The focus of this event was on juniors in the class of 2026, so Jonathan Smith and his staff were able to use this time to lay the groundwork for future success next year.
As I said, many scholarship offers were made by Smith and his staff on Saturday, but none were bigger than Kaden Gebhardt.
After a great visit and conversation with @Coach_Smith I’m blessed to receive an offer from Michigan State University! @DBcoachadams @JoeS_Rossi @Coach_Gordon20 @AustinDArmond @CoachBart11 @AllenTrieu @MohrRecruiting @Kstaff07 pic.twitter.com/xOe0eEpvGi
— Kaden Gebhardt 4⭐️ S/ATH (@kaden_gebhardt) July 27, 2024
Gebhardt is one of the top Midwest safeties in the 2026 class. He is a four-star prospect from Lewis Center, Ohio, who is the No. 215 player in the country according to the 247Sports composite rankings. Gebhardt also is the No. 17 safety in the country and No. 8 player from the state of Ohio.
Gebhardt was in East Lansing for Spartan Dawg Con on Saturday, so he was able to get his first glimpse of campus and meet with the entire staff in person.
Oklahoma, Penn State, Wisconsin, Purdue, Louisville, and Illinois are a few of the other schools to offer Gebhardt as well.
No official predictions have been made in this recruitment yet, but that comes as no surprise considering he’s in the 2026 class. But Smith and his staff are getting in on the action early and appear to be in great position as of today.
I’ll be curious to see if Gebhardt returns to campus this fall for a game. If so that would be a huge indicator to us that Michigan State likely is at the top of his list.
But until then Smith and his staff have to continue recruiting him constantly in hopes it will pay off in the long run. With all the success MSU’s had recruiting the secondary since Smith took over, my hopes in this recruitment are very high.