Michigan State football earns commitment from coveted in-state LB

Michigan State football completed the flip of coveted in-state linebacker Brady Pretzlaff on Wednesday afternoon.

It’s official. Michigan State football has completed the flip of three-star linebacker Brady Pretzlaff. This was a late developing recruitment that never really began until Jonathan Smith was hired, but Smith was able to come on strong with the help of one key staff member to win this recruitment.

Staying home 🏠 pic.twitter.com/X8B6uO6qNP

— Brady Pretzlaff (@brady_pretzlaff) December 20, 2023

Three-star linebacker Brady Pretzlaff

Brady is a three-star linebacker from Gaylord, Mich. He is the 670th-ranked player in the 2024 class according to the 247Sports Composite rankings and the 60th-ranked linebacker. Brady is a strong and physical player who already has the size needed to play at the college level. He also has the intangibles and leadership qualities that make him a great teammate as well.

He will strictly play defense in college, but he did play on both sides of the ball in high school. He played tight end on the offensive side of the ball and was very physical in the blocking game. He also caught some passes as well, showing he has the skills needed to track and make plays on the ball. Brady is someone I see competing for snaps as a freshman before leaping to significant playing time in years two and beyond.

Flipped commitment from Minnesota

Brady was originally committed to Minnesota before decommitting from the Gophers on Dec. 13. This decommitment came just days after Brady finished up his official visit to East Lansing. So it was pretty clear that we were the frontrunners after he left the Gophers.

New defensive coordinator Joe Rossi is a big reason why we won this recruitment. Rossi was the defensive coordinator at Minnesota before joining Jonathan Smith’s staff in East Lansing. So Rossi obviously played a big role in Pretzlaff choosing Minnesota from the beginning and doing so again now. This shows the two have a great connection if Brady is willing to follow him to a different school.

Jonathan Smith has done an excellent job at filling this class out on such short notice. The 2024 recruiting class was nearly empty before Smith took the job, but that has changed dramatically. Brady is one of the better players in our 2024 class in my opinion, and I think he is going to excel and have an excellent career in the green and white.