Michigan State football reshaped its roster in year one under new coach Pat Fitzgerald. Free Press sports writer Chris Solari breaks down the nine newcomers to East Lansing who will affect the 2026 season the most (listed alphabetically).
CB Tre Bell
The Spartans’ defensive backfield is virtually completely overhauled due to graduation attrition, with only safety Nikai Martinez returning. Enter Bell, a former Division II product (Lindenwood) who transferred to Iowa State last year and then followed new cornerbacks coach Hank Poteat to MSU. Bell has been one of the more buzzed-about players in camp, with Fitzgerald bringing him out for interviews twice in the past few weeks due to his strong performance. Bell had 36 tackles and two interceptions for the Cyclones last year and appears primed to shine in his second season under Poteat, a former All-American CB for Pitt.
CB Charles Brantley
It sounds strange to call Brantley a newcomer, but that’s technically what the Spartan is again after leaving East Lansing for a frustrating stop at Miami (Florida) last season. Brantley played just 31 snaps in three games for the Hurricanes before returning in the offseason for a final year at MSU. The native of Sarasota, Florida, started 24 of his 31 career games with the Spartans from 2021-24 and has five interceptions (two of which were returned for touchdowns, and one which famously sealed MSU’s last win over Michigan in 2021). Brantley, Bell and safety Devin Vaught – another transfer addition who is fitting seamlessly with Martinez – will give the Spartans a new-look secondary with experience and give younger players time to watch and learn.
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RB Cam Edwards
The Connecticut transfer arrives with a strong pedigree after rushing for 1,240 yards and 15 TDs on 210 carries last season. Edwards also boasts supreme confidence in his abilities, saying he wants “to be the best running back in the country.” It’s a goal that Fitzgerald echoed last week for his new starter and his new program, which he wants to model after the bruising Big Ten and MSU backfields of yore with a consistent sledgehammer run game. That’s an attack the Spartans have sorely missed over most of the past decade (outside of the 2021 season, when Kenneth Walker III bulldozed his way to the school’s first Doak Walker Award).
TE Carson Gulker
“All-around athlete” is how the Ferris State transfer’s new MSU bio reads. And going from “quarterback who could run” to “tight end catching passes” and taking handoffs while becoming a three-time Division II national champion is equally impressive. Last season, Gulker caught 34 passes for 548 yards and seven touchdowns while adding 81 carries for 541 yards and five more scores. He also remained a passing threat despite his position change. Gulker gives new offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan the potential for a unique weapon and something to keep under wraps to leave opposing defenses flat-footed.
OLs Ben Murawski, Nick Sharpe, Trent Fraley
For Edwards to reach his goal, it will require the blocking in front of him to make a massive leap from the past few years. And massive is a good way to define the three biggest additions to the offensive line. Murawski blocked for Edwards last season at UConn and will provide a hulking presence protecting quarterback Alessio Milivojevic’s blind side. Sharpe arrives from South Carolina as a physically imposing 351-pound frame at guard, with Fraley – the Rimington Trophy winner (as the nation’s top center) in the Football Championship Subdivision last year – making the jump from North Dakota State to show NFL teams he can play at the next level. All three linemen are vital in developing cohesion and push to make Sheridan’s offense click quickly.
DE Kenny Soares Jr.
With Joe Rossi returning as defensive coordinator, one of the biggest missing elements of his late-season resurgence a year ago – along with in his first year at MSU in 2023 – was a consistent pass rush. Enter Soares, who began his career as a Fitzgerald recruit at Northwestern and played for the Wildcats for three seasons following his former coach’s firing. Last year, Soares took flight at North Carolina State, posting 80 tackles over 656 snaps in 13 games. That was mostly done as a linebacker due to injuries, but Rossi is again putting Soares’ hand on the ground at edge rusher to maximize his quick-twitch talent to try and be a quarterback disruptor.
WR KK Smith
Like Gulker, not a whole lot is being said about Smith, a Notre Dame transfer who has been working with the No. 2 receivers behind returning starter Chrishon McCray and roster carryovers Rodney Bullard Jr. and Charles Taplin. Smith caught eight passes for 123 yards with two touchdowns last season while playing in 10 games for the Irish as they won 10 games ahead of a College Football Playoff snub. In a room searching for playmakers after the departure of Nick Marsh (to Indiana), Smith should get a chance to show his talents when the Spartans head to South Bend on Sept. 19 – especially if Bullard’s lawsuit against the NCAA for another year of college eligibility fails and opens a starting job.
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
For openers: Rockets
Matchup: Michigan State (4-8 in 2025) vs. Toledo (8-5 in 2025); season opener.
Kickoff: 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 4; Spartan Stadium, East Lansing.
TV/radio: FS1; WJR-AM (760).
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 9 newcomers who will make biggest impact for Michigan State football
Reporting by Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press | USA TODAY Network
