We knew attrition was going to happen. It was just a matter of when and where. Here's a list of departures, ranked in order of what I expected their impact to be in the 2024 season.
Immediate Loss and Negative Impact on the 2024 Season
Simeon Barrow - This also stings. The r-Sr has been a fixture on the D-line. With 34 career games at MSU, including 30 starts. He's recorded 110 career tackles, 18.5 TFLs, and 10.5 sacks. And he earned award recognition, being a two-time All-Big Ten honorable mention selection and cracking the top 25 list for MSU’s career sacks.
Derrek Harmon - This hurts. The r-Jr was expected to pair with Simeon Barrow to form one of the better DT duos in the conference, if not the country. The 6-5 / 320 mauler has played in 28 career games (15 starts) at MSU. He's tallied 70+ tackles, 6.5 TFLs and 3.5 sacks.
Long Term Loss
Bai Jobe and Andrew Depaepe: These two came in among the highest-ranked recruits in recent years. They both redshirted in 2023 and figured to play a role in the years to come. They both offer a high ceiling we will sadly never see at MSU. Jobe was heavily recruited to Oklahoma in HS and will likely have plenty of suitors with his pedigree. Depaepe is linked to Indiana, where his younger brother will be playing. While I'm not sure either would have played significantly this year, they were the types of recruits you want to see hit their potential at your school.
Antonio Gates Jr.: More name than substance. Gates redshirted in 2022 but came onto the scene in 2023, playing in all 12 games and finishing the year with five receptions, 82 yards and 1 TD. He played 175 snaps on offense, which now go to the next man up (Nick Marsh incoming). The WR room is a work in progress, read more about it here.
Ehh
Jalen Berger: The writing was on the wall with this one as the staff looked to add more talent to the RB room. The staff wasn't willing to rely on Carter, plus a combo of Berger/Mangham and decided to pursue options in the portal. When healthy, Berger was solid. He has 1,000+ career yards and 10 TDs on 257 carries. A pretty good 4.5 ypc. While in a vacuum he was ok. The staff clearly wanted to upgrade, and did so with Kayron Lynch-Adams from UMass. Read more about the revamped RB room here.
Jack Nickel: The r-So saw too many bodies in front of him. Jack Velling transferred in, Parachek is coming off a promising Freshman year, and Mike Masunas had a strong Spring. Add in Hopper and Faleye with specialized roles and the TE room became quite crowded. Jack will seek greener pastures elsewhere. And MSU will be just fine this year and the following at the position. Read more about the TE depth here.
More updates as they come!
Maybe we can get Mel back in an advisory capacity to help keep some recruits