Michigan State Spartans Football Continue Plan of Building Their Defensive Line Under Jonathan Smith

Michigan State Coach Jonathan Smith has pinpointed his program’s most important prospects in the 2025 and 2026 recruiting classes and has aggressively pursued them. The Spartans have now offered a scholarship to another three-star lineman, this time defensive tackle Isaiah White from Indianapolis, Ind. 

White was re-offered a scholarship as Mel Tucker’s staff initially offered him one. The Spartans have reconfirmed their offer to the defensive lineman, who is only a junior at Ben Davis High and already 6’4, and nearly 300 pounds. Coach Smith’s plan of signing largely overlooked players and getting the most out of them is especially true with the three-star athletes the Spartans hope to sign, such as White.

According to 247Sports, White is the No. 92 defensive lineman in its 2025 class rankings. Overall, the site has him ranked as the 16th-best player from Indiana. Some of the best players MSU has extended an offer to over the following two recruiting classes were defensive linemen or defensive players. White signing with MSU would considerably add to the Green and White. 

Michigan State joins a list of nearly ten schools that have offered White a scholarship. According to 247Sports, Big Ten foe Minnesota. Washington, West Virginia, and Boston College have also offered White a scholarship. The fact that the Spartans have stuck with their initial scholarship to White should bode well for the Spartans, as Coach White’s commitment to honor White’s scholarship offer from a previous coaching staff shows how much the current coach staff values him. 

The Spartans have also committed to finding diamonds from the Midwest in the rough. Coach Smith, who is from the West Coast and has spent most of his coaching career there, understands how vital Big Ten football is to those from the Midwest. Smith’s recruiting plans have the potential to work out in the long term if he’s able to secure players like White. 

His scholarship offers talented players from nearby states the chance to take the next step in their careers, which is a well-thought-out move. Smith is banking on players such as White to help turn the program around. Coach Smith’s willingness to reoffer White could go a long way toward signing the recruit.

The Michigan State Spartan Football Spring Green and White Game (Spartan Showcase) will be held at the High Cathedral of the Spartan Nation, Spartan Stadium, on April 20, 2024, at 2 p.m.


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