{"id":24169,"date":"2026-04-18T16:18:39","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T20:18:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/spartanshadows.com\/?p=24169"},"modified":"2026-04-18T16:18:39","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T20:18:39","slug":"takeaways-statistics-from-michigan-state-football-spring-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spartanshadows.com\/?p=24169","title":{"rendered":"Takeaways, Statistics from Michigan State Football Spring Game"},"content":{"rendered":"

Michigan State football took to the Spartan Stadium field for the second time in the spring, and fans were allowed to witness the final practice in the first spring under Pat Fitzgerald. The Spartans had an intersquad scrimmage that spanned nearly 100 plays, with a halftime break. Here are some observations and stars from a game that did not feature true tackling.<\/p>\n

Wide Receiver One Is Evident<\/h3>\n

Based on targets, it appears that Michigan State has decided their top wide receiver for 2026. Chrishon McCray was the Spartan getting the ball on more than his fair share of opportunities.<\/p>\n

McCray had five catches on at least seven targets on Saturday, tying him with Rod Bullard Jr. for the most. However, Bullard dealt some of his damages with the two\u2019s and three\u2019s, while McCray saw most of his targets with the one\u2019s. The Milivojevic-McCray connection combined for a touchdown against Iowa last season, and this spring game saw them connect for 35 yards.<\/p>\n

It is worth noting that KK Smith missed the spring game with injury.<\/p>\n

Plain Offense, No Tackling<\/h3>\n

This was a spring \u201cgame,\u201d but there was not a ton of variety in the playbook as Michigan State continues to both install the playbook along with keeping any wrinkles and varieties under wraps.<\/p>\n

In addition, citing team health, the Spartans did not tackle during their scrimmage, playing at \u201cthud\u201d speeds, a form of two-hand touch and wrap up football. This makes it hard to put a lot of stock in what was observed, but makes sense from the coaching standpoint.<\/p>\n

After the scrimmage, Pat Fitzgerald said that he was the happiest person in the locker room when they emerged fully healthy from the team scrimmage.<\/p>\n

One Corner Making A Name For Himself<\/h3>\n

Despite the lack of tackling, the corners were effectively full speed on Saturday. As a result, those became some of the most intriguing matchups to watch during the showcase. Tyran Chappell was the standout among that group.<\/p>\n

Chappell lurked with sticky, handsy coverage. He was starting in place of Chuck Brantley, who was also out injured. At times, Chappell was a little too handsy, and could be in position to draw flags in a game situation. For Saturday, however, the corner had two pass breakups, along with tight coverage on another throw that forced an incompletion.<\/p>\n

Final Stats from Saturday\u2019s Scrimmage<\/h3>\n

There was no stat keeping at the Spring Showcase, but I took detailed notes during the first 12 periods of the practice for total stats. Here is my rough estimation for stats during the scrimmage.<\/p>\n

Passing<\/h3>\n

Alessio Milivojevic: 15-of-23 for 79 yards, 1 INT<\/p>\n

Cam Fancher: 1-for-5 for 4 yards, 1 INT<\/p>\n

Kayd Coffman: 4-of-7 for 45 yards<\/p>\n

Leo Hannan: 4-of-5 for 50 yards<\/p>\n

Rushing<\/h3>\n

Kenneth Williams: 1 carry for 67 yards, 1 TD<\/p>\n

Jaziun Patterson: 5 carries for 19 yards<\/p>\n

Kayd Coffman: 3 carries for 16 yards<\/p>\n

Cam Edwards: 3 carries for 14 yards<\/p>\n

Leo Hannan: 1 carry for 8 yards<\/p>\n

Marvis Parrish: 3 carries for 5 yards<\/p>\n

Alessio Milivojevic: 1 carry for 5 yards<\/p>\n

Zion Gist: 3 carries for 3 yards<\/p>\n

Darrin Jones Jr.: 2 carries for 2 yards<\/p>\n

Cam Fancher: 1 carry for 0 yards<\/p>\n

Jace Clarizio: 3 carries for -4 yards<\/p>\n

Receiving<\/h3>\n

Bryson Williams: 3 catches for 51 yards<\/p>\n

Chrishon McCray: 5 catches for 35 yards, 1 drop<\/p>\n

Rod Bullard Jr.: 5 catches for 25 yards<\/p>\n

Jayden Savoury: 1 catch for 8 yards<\/p>\n

Rai\u2019Shawn Elmore: 1 catch for 7 yards<\/p>\n

Kai Rios: 2 catches for 6 yards<\/p>\n

Jaziun Patterson: 1 catch for 6 yards<\/p>\n

Zach Washington: 1 catch for 4 yards<\/p>\n

Darrin Jones Jr.: 1 catch for 4 yards<\/p>\n

Brennan Parachek: 1 catch for 1 yard<\/p>\n

Charlie Baker: 1 catch for 1 yard<\/p>\n

Jace Clarizio: 1 catch for -1 yard<\/p>\n

Defensive<\/h3>\n

Adam Shaw: 2 TFL<\/p>\n

Carlos Hazelwood: 1 sack<\/p>\n

Cal Thrush: 0.5 sacks, 2 QB Pressures<\/p>\n

Kenny Soares Jr.: 0.5 TFL, 2 QB Pressures<\/p>\n

Dion Crawford: 0.5 TFL<\/p>\n

Tyran Chappell: 2 PBU<\/p>\n

DeJae White: 1 PBU<\/p>\n

Chris Piwowarczyk: 1 PBU<\/p>\n

Michael Richard: 1 TFL<\/p>\n

Devin Vaught: 1 TFL<\/p>\n

Jaxson Wilson: 1 TFL<\/p>\n

Aveon Grose: 1 INT<\/p>\n

NiJhay Burt: 1 INT<\/p>\n

Trey Lisle: 1 Pressure<\/p>\n

Luke DeJager: Pass Deflection* (Ball tipped it to RaiShawn Elmore, so technically not counted)<\/p>\n

Kicking:<\/h3>\n

Liam Boyd: 2-of-4, long of 44. (Makes: 35, 44, Misses: 45, 46)<\/p>\n

Tarik Ahmetbasic: 0-of-2<\/p>\n

Injury Report<\/h3>\n

Two Spartans (Soares, Parachek) left the contest shaken up, but remained on the sidelines with teammates in good spirits and participated in the end of practice festivities.<\/p>\n

Also out today for the Spartans were:<\/p>\n