Michigan State football should have back one of its key secondary starters for this weekend’s marquee matchup against Boston College.
Earlier in the week, Michigan State head coach Jonathan Smith provided a positive injury update on a number of key players, including starting safety Nikai Martinez — who missed the opener last week against Western Michigan. And on Wednesday, secondary coach Blue Adams provided an even better update on Martinez’s status for Saturday’s game against the Eagles.
Adams said the Spartans’ secondary will be “as healthy as we need to be successful” and particularly called out Martinez, stating he “is as close to healthy” as possible. Additionally, Adams noted Martinez is back to practicing in preparation for Saturday’s game against Boston College.
Martinez was a nice transfer portal addition to the Spartans last season, appearing in all 12 games after transferring from UCF. During his first season with the Spartans, Martinez recorded 51 tackles (three for loss) and two interceptions.
The return of Martinez will be big for the Spartans’ secondary this week against a solid passing attack from the Eagles. If anything, it will not hurt the Spartans to have back one of their planned preseason starters and only help their chances at winning this pivotal game.
Kickoff from Spartan Stadium is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday. The game will be televised on NBC.
Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on X @RobertBondy5.
This article originally appeared on Spartans Wire: Key Spartans starter in secondary expected back this week vs. Boston College
Reporting by Robert Bondy, Spartans Wire / Spartans Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
