2024-10-21 07:30:03
Michigan State true freshman wide receiver Nick Marsh is already one of, if not the biggest weapon this Spartans team has.
Marsh combines just about everything you would want in a wide receiver — size, speed, route running, hands, and the moves to make plays once he has the ball in his hands. Against a very good Iowa Hawkeyes defense, Marsh tore it up. Eight catches for 113 yards. A knee away from a touchdown.
He was a big reason why the passing game was clicking against the Hawkeyes and Marsh’s ability to get open was critical for extending drives and getting first downs. And then some.
Marsh was the gem of the 2024 class for head coach Jonathan Smith and their staff. Yes, he has the tools and traits to succeed. But Marsh’s ability to adjust early on to the high-impact world of major Division I college football as an 18-year-old is nothing short of incredible.
He had a message for future recruits after the Iowa win. It was similar to something I’ve heard from recruits as to what the coaches have been preaching. It’s about education, high output and a whole lot of work. Even for a blue-chip player like Marsh, it isn’t easy.
“I would say there is going to be a lot of sacrifices,” Marsh said. “If this is what you want to do, it’s to be a lot of things you have to cut off, and like school is really important. That’s the No. 1 thing, make sure you’re getting it done in school. Once you do that, everything on the field becomes easy. So that’d be my No. 1 thing, just you know, it’s very mental. It’s a mental game, it can be stressful. Practice, everything else, so if you got somebody in your corner, you got to talk to somebody, you know? Use it. Use the extra help that you get.”
Wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins recruits at a high level and expects that kind of output from his stars.
“I’m recruiting guys to knock me out of the Top 10 (for school receiving records),” Hawkins told reporters in September. “There’s no way, after 30 years or however many years it’s been, that I should be in the Top 10. Especially with the kind of offenses of today’s offense versus the offenses then. So everybody I’m trying to get here at Michigan State should be able to knock me out, hopefully.”
Michael France is Sports Illustrated’s Michigan State recruiting beat writer, covering all things Big Ten recruiting for Spartan Nation. Be sure to follow him on Twitter/X@michaelfrancesi for exclusive Spartans recruiting coverage.
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