2 position battles to monitor during the 2025 Michigan State football opener

Michigan State football is getting set to open the 2025 season against Western Michigan, and these are the position battles to watch.

Wednesday makes it two short days until kickoff. If you’re anything like me, your sleep schedule is already starting to hurt as each minute ticking by brings us closer to game day. The theme for two days until kick is a headline to monitor: here are some Michigan State football position battles that are not quite settled heading towards kickoff.

The race for the slot receiver spot

If you had told me that the Spartans had not settled on three starting receivers before fall camp, I would ask how many players were out with injury. Instead, the emergence of senior wide receiver Rod Bullard Jr. has pushed this into a position battle that will be monitored during the Spartans’ battle against Western Michigan.

Chrishon McCray enters the year on the Biletnikoff Award watchlist, but has missed time during fall camp with an undisclosed injury. He was cleared a week or two ago, but Bullard capitalized on his chances with the Kent State transfer sitting out. A few other names such as Evan Boyd and Braylon Collier have popped up as well, but they likely look to be the substitutions for Omari Kelly (Collier) and Nick Marsh (Boyd) based on similar body typing.

Both Bullard and McCray have the premier slot archetype, bringing track speed and good hands with them. Jonathan Smith loved to carry fast, slightly undersized receivers to bring a new level to his offense at Oregon State, and that trend continues with Michigan State football.

The defensive tackle logjam

While multiple positions on the Michigan State football roster stacked with both bodies and talent, it is hard to isolate just one position for this article. The linebacker room, defensive back room, and tight end room (especially if the Jayden Savoury hype is to be believed) all were positions I had considered. The offensive line also deserves a shoutout, but most pundits, myself included, have a quiet belief in who the starting five will be on Friday.

In the defensive tackle slots, returners Alex VanSumeren and Ben Roberts presented a very formidable duo, with Ru’Quan Buckley and Jalen Satchell being great pieces to round out their traditional four-man rotation. Buckley has gotten some nice shout outs for his ability to wreak havoc in the middle, after showing flashes in 2024, such as a blocked field goal. Satchell was a third-down package player last season, and enters the year stronger and more developed, alongside being hungry for one last great campaign in college.

VanSumeren is a virtual lock for the starting gig, after having a productive first full season of college ball last year. He earned the gig in camp last year over long-time senior Maverick Hansen, and never looked back. If there is a defensive tackle slot I feel confident in putting a starter in sharpie, VanSumeren is the guy.

Roberts is a player that I have listed as a breakout candidate dating back to spring ball. With one year of major snaps under his belt, alongside his most productive outing being his most recent against Rutgers on Senior Day, things seemed to be falling into place for the Oregon transfer.

However, Florida State transfer Grady Kelly is the player that has been shining in every practice and scrimmage. He appears to be a player that will burst into the lineup and potentially start opposite of VanSumeren. While Roberts will still eat a lot of snaps, Kelly looks to slide into D’Quan Douse’s vacated role from 2024.

That is not where the surprises end, though. True freshman Derrick Simmons has made a ton of noise during camp, to the point where it is a virtual lock that, barring injury, the Frankenmuth product will not be redshirting this year. From VanSumeren, to Jonathan Smith himself, to Joe Rossi, every player and coach is singing Simmons’ praises.

Fellow freshman Cal Thrush and second-year player Mikeshun Beeler have also earned some praise in the defensive line room. Thrush is more a tweener based on his size, but Beeler is a player that looks to continue the tradition of Chicago-area defensive lineman making a mark for Michigan State football.

It was hard pairing down my list to just two topics to write on today, and a sole storyline tomorrow fills me with dread. It is a good type of dread, as I am just that excited to talk about Spartan football.