The No. 1 recruit in the state of Michigan is obviously already on first-year head coach Pat Fitzgerald’s radar.
The new Michigan State football coach has been living on the recruiting trail since he’s been hired, and while his current focus is the transfer portal, he hasn’t forgotten about the 2027 recruiting class — or 2026, for that matter.
Fitzgerald has been building relationships with high school coaches around the state, and that should yield great results when it comes to in-state recruiting for future classes.
It’s already yielding early visits with some top 2027 prospects.
According to Jason Killop, Michigan State will be hosting one of the top in-state prospects in the 2027 class later this month.
Michigan State to host the state's No. 1 recruit EDGE Myles Smith later this month…
— Jason Killop (@JasonKillop) January 13, 2026
(On3+): https://t.co/KnSX5cFLIa @MylesS98
According to On3, Smith is ranked the No. 1 prospect in the state, but the industry composite has him listed at No. 3 in Michigan in the 2027 class. Plus, he plays a position of extreme need for the Spartans as they haven’t had much in the way of edge rushers since Mark Dantonio retired.
Smith would fill an immediate need, and probably contend for early snaps if he plans to enroll early. The Spartans will have some intense competition to land him, however.
Michigan, Purdue, Indiana, and Iowa State are all in the mix, per On3.
Pat Fitzgerald could use a hot start to his 2027 class
While it‘s fairly likely that Smith will wait until his official visits are in the books to make a decision, this unofficial visit will be huge for relationship building.
Smith is ranked as the No. 186 overall recruit and No. 20 edge rusher in the 2027 class, so it’s imperative that Fitzgerald makes an early impression. Selling a defensive-minded staff, and a defensive line coach who coached in the NFL as well as a co-defensive coordinator who was an All-Big Ten performer and also played in the NFL a decade ago can’t hurt.
The four-star EDGE has to be close to — if not at — the top of Fitzgerald’s big board for the 2027 class. Landing him over Michigan would be an early statement for the new head coach.
There’s a long way to go, though. Getting him on campus is a good start.