Michigan State football: Transfer portal rears its ugly head on DL room

The transfer portal giveth, the transfer portal taketh. Unfortunately for Michigan State football, it was the latter on Tuesday.

The attention that Jonathan Smith has paid to the transfer portal has been impressive since taking over as head Michigan State football coach. Not only is he working the portal, but he’s done a decent job of retaining key talent.

One of those key players that he retained was Derrick Harmon. He had a breakout season in 2023 and then entered the transfer portal following the season with uncertainty rocking the program. After extensive conversations with the Spartans’ new coach, Harmon decided to take his name out of the portal and return to Michigan State in late-December.

It was a huge win for Smith and it showed that he could change the culture.

Unfortunately, the transfer portal can be a cruel beast with NIL offers left and right to entice otherwise “happy” players. And Harmon was once again lured to the portal on Tuesday, leaving Michigan State for a second time this offseason.

Michigan State defensive tackle Derrick Harmon is in the NCAA transfer portal. He's started 15 games, has 71 career tackles and will be one of the most coveted defensive players. He was in portal in December and visited Auburn, Ohio State and Oregon before returning to MSU.

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) April 23, 2024

Although MSU had a nice NIL deal for him in place when he decided to return the first time, it doesn’t look like a second portal withdrawal is likely. It’s unfortunate because it looked like he was enjoying the new culture.

Harmon wasn’t the only key defensive lineman taken from the Spartans on Tuesday as redshirt freshman Andrew Depaepe also opted for the portal. He played just 11 snaps last season as a true freshman and was buried on the depth chart. Many expected him to be the future of the Spartans’ defensive line.

Posted on DE Andrew Depaepe’s Instagram story: pic.twitter.com/6hImaoeA5d

— Stephen Brooks (@StephenM_Brooks) April 23, 2024

I’m not even going to sugarcoat it, both of these losses hurt. While Depaepe didn’t play much last season, his future was bright. And Harmon had a chance to be the best defensive lineman on the team. Now they join Simeon Barrow as the defensive linemen in the portal.

The defensive line has been rocked by the portal. Fortunately, Smith is addressing that.