Michigan State football: 2 top targets decommit from current schools

Fresh off the official visit weekend, two Michigan State football targets decommitted from their programs.

Brady Pretzlaff (Minnesota) and Brandon Tullis (Oregon State) both decommitted from their respective schools today. Both have been heavily rumored to be Michigan State football leans in recent days. This serves to build the hype around Jonathan Smith’s recruiting class.

Despite being late to the party, here come the Spartans. 

Brady Pretzlaff could be following Joe Rossi to Michigan State

Pretzlaff has been a rumored flip since Smith became head coach of the Spartans. He ranks as the No. 668 prospect in the nation per 247Sports Composite. Additionally, he is viewed as a top-15 player in the state of Michigan, ranking No. 14 on the aforementioned composite. On some recruiting websites, Pretzlaff is rated as a four-star linebacker. He is from Gaylord, Mich., and has recorded over 100 tackles in each of his last two seasons. He had been committed to the Minnesota Golden Gophers since January, but Smith was working hard on a potential flip before the biggest domino fell. 

On Dec. 10, news broke that Joe Rossi would be the defensive coordinator for Michigan State after serving the same position with Minnesota. Rossi, who also coached linebackers with the Big Ten West foe, was the primary recruiter for Pretzlaff. In the minds of many, myself included, this sealed the belief that the Spartans would flip Pretzlaff to Michigan State.

After his visit last weekend, Pretzlaff announced his decommitment Wednesday morning.

pic.twitter.com/8qWREcoFal

— Brady Pretzlaff (@brady_pretzlaff) December 13, 2023

Brandon Tullis could be next star in Keith Bhonapha’s impressive resume

Brandon Tullis has been another prospect that has been heavily rumored to be a Spartan lean after Smith took the head coaching position. Tullis checks in at the No. 1,484 prospect in the nation on 247Sports Composite. He hails from Frisco, Texas. The Spartans also landed fellow Texan running back Makhi Frazier (No. 1,574 on 247Sports Composite) on Tuesday.

While Tullis’ numbers do not jump off the stat sheet, his vision is a key “plus” category when looking at his tape. During his junior season, Tullis put up 680 yards for Memorial High School. On Dec. 12, Justin Thind put in a crystal ball for the Spartans to land Tullis following Frazier’s commitment. The next day, Tullis decommited from Smith’s prior coaching spot at Oregon State. 

#AGTG pic.twitter.com/iPUCxBqmXL

— Brandon Tullis (@BrandonT_26) December 13, 2023

After Smith brought over running backs coach Keith Bhonapha, it was obvious that the key priority for Bhonapha would be bringing “his guys” with him. Bhonapha has developed multiple overlooked running back prospects during his time at Oregon State, including current Detroit Lion Jermar Jefferson (No. 777 in his class) and Beavers star running back Damien Martinez (No. 600). It is safe to say I trust Bhonapha’s track record here. If he sees talent he can develop into NFL draft picks and all-conference selections, who are we to judge? 

With around a week until Early Signing Day, all eyes are on how the Spartan coaching staff can seal the deal to finish off the class. Brady Pretzlaff and Brandon Tullis would be an amazing start.