2024-25 Michigan State University Preview

2023-24 Recap

Michigan State had a solid season, earning a 10-6 dual record and finishing top-6 at both the Army Black Knight Invite and the Clarion Open. MSU's most notable wins came over #17 Wisconsin and #26 Illinois. The win over the Badgers was MSU's highest ranked dual win since the 2021-22 season when they knocked off #14 Rutgers. Michigan State would end the dual season with an 18-13 win over in-state rival Central Michigan.

At the Big Ten tournament, MSU put two on the podium, with Chase Saldate and Layne Malczewski finishing 7th at 157lbs and 184lbs, respectively. Joining those two at the NCAA tournament were Tristan Lujan at 125lbs, Jordan Hamdan at 141lbs, and Caleb Fish at 165lbs. Of the 5 NCAA qualifiers for the Spartans, Lujan is the lone returner after Malczewski and Hamdan graduated, and Fish and Saldate hit the transfer portal.

Key Departures

As mentioned, Fish transferred to Oklahoma State, while Saldate moved on to in-state rival Michigan. Malczewski and Hamdan graduated, as did DJ Shannon, the starter at 174lbs. That leaves the lineup with at least 5 new faces this year.

Key Additions

Michigan State cleaned up in-state for the class of 2024. #1 recruit Darius Marines of Detroit Catholic Central HS was a 4x state champ, and #2 recruit Cory Thomas of Pontiac led the way for the Spartans. MSU also scooped up #8 Mason Stewart (Detroit CC HS), #17 Connor Younts (Clinton HS), #18 Drew Hansen (Gladstone), and #31 Sammy Agnello (Utica Eisenhower). The biggest addition to this season will be NCAA qualifier Jay Nivison, formerly of Davison HS and Buffalo. He should get the nod at 165lbs. Cam Adams is another transfer coming in from Central Michigan. Adams was a state champ for Detroit Catholic Central in 2023.

2024-25 Projected Lineup

This is a really young squad for the Spartans, so there are still questions about who will get the nod in the starting lineup at quite a few weights. Lujan was the starter at 125lbs last year, but he will likely move up to 133lbs this year. That would leave Caleb Weiand or Nick Corday at 125lbs for this season. If either of two true freshmen at the top of the recruiting class (Marines and Thomas) can make 157lbs, that spot could be theirs for the taking.

Wt - Name (Previous School)
125 - Nick Corday (Baylor School, Georgia) or Caleb Weiand (Dakota HS)
133 - Tristan Lujan (Selma HS, California)
141 - Evan Herriman (Davison HS)
149 - Braden Stauffenberg (Aurora Christian HS) or Clayton Jones (Detroit CC HS)
157 - Brodie Dominique (Archbold HS)
165 - Jay Nivison (Buffalo)
174 - Ceasar Garza (Oakdale HS, California)
184 - Luke Vanadia (Brecksville HS, Ohio) or Luke Daly (Carbondale HS, Illinois)
197 - Remy Cotton (Davison HS)
285 - Josh Terrill (Holt HS)