Michigan State football's young wide receivers answer doubts with big-play production

EAST LANSING – Michigan State’s offense needed something, anything. In a hurry.

Enter Jaron Glover and his other second-year roommates to jumpstart the stagnant Spartans.

Glover streaked down the sideline for a pair of long receptions from new quarterback Noah Kim to set up MSU’s first touchdown just before halftime. Then in the second half, Antonio Gates Jr. contributed without making a catch. And Tyrell Henry made a 'how’d-he-do-that' one-handed grab for his first collegiate touchdown to help seal MSU’s 31-7 season-opening win over Central Michigan.

“The bond is everything,” said Glover, whose three catches for a game-high 75 yards all came on the Spartans’ penultimate drive of the first half. “Me, Gates and 'rell, we all live with each other, so we stay around each other every day and we talk about everything. Me and Tyrell have been talking about this for countless nights, and we executed tonight.”

While there were some questions about how MSU would replace the production lost from a year ago at wide receiver – Jayden Reed is now in the NFL, Keon Coleman transferred to Florida State and Germie Bernard left for Washington – there never was a shortage of talent behind those who departed.

The answers, though, proved to already be in place on the roster.

“I think that pushed us to work harder,” Henry said. “Because when you know that it's there, you want to go get that.”

Glover flashed the ability to get free downfield and make the type of explosive plays Mel Tucker and Jay Johnson need after losing their top targets from a year ago. The 6-foot-1, 205-pound redshirt freshman hauled in a critical third-and-3 deep shot from Kim with an over-the-shoulder catch to the left sideline for 32 yards after MSU’s first five drives sputtered and produced just a field goal.

MSU FOOTBALL: Clock works against Spartans vs. CMU

“He’s a player that we recruited because he’s got a really good skill set,” Tucker said. “He’s fast, he has really good hands. He had a good spring and a good fall camp, so we’re expecting him to be able to make some plays.

“That was one of the questions going into the season, what receivers did we have that could make some plays and make some big plays? Obviously, he did that.”

Two plays later, the duo connected again, with Glover running past CMU’s La'Vario Wiley on an up-and-out route down the right side. Kim hit him in stride for 33 more yards, setting up the Spartans for Nathan Carter’s 2-yard touchdown run with 48 seconds left before halftime that put them ahead for good.

“I had to make the corner bite,” Glover said. “So as soon as I came out of my up-cut, I saw that he came and I gave him a burst of speed. And Noah put it in the right spot.”

Henry, who took over last season on kickoff returns as a true freshman following an injury to Reed, continued to produce on special teams and on Friday also took over punt return duty for the departed Green Bay Packers second-round pick. He had 55 yards on six punt returns and took the opening kickoff 26 yards from the end zone.

But his biggest plays came in the fourth quarter on offense, one Glover said should be a top-10 highlight play for the night.

Henry's first career catch was on a fade from the slot. Kim lofted the ball up, and the 6-foot, 175-pound sophomore elevated through contact and cradled the ball against his pads as he crashed to the ground for a 10-yard score with 13:26 to play. Henry added a 15-yard catch later in the fourth quarter.

“After it all happened and I knew what happened, I put the hands up. I was kind of excited, so I didn't know what to do,” Henry said of his TD. “Just gave the ball to the ref, and that's all she wrote.”

Glover and Henry were less-heralded recruits than Gates, the former four-star recruit and son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Antonio Gates Sr. The 6-2, 195-pound redshirt freshman was only targeted twice, but he drew a critical pass interference penalty and delivered a key block on Jalen Berger’s touchdown run on the same drive to give some third-quarter separation.

They weren’t alone with their production behind senior starters Tre Mosley (three catches, 39 yards) and Montorie Foster (one catch, 7 yards). Junior Christian Fitzpatrick, who transferred to MSU from Louisville in 2021, showed elusiveness with a 72-yard catch-and-run on a deep ball from Kim, who finished 18 of 31 for 279 yards passing.

“I definitely noticed that those guys are capable of being big time playmakers. They wouldn't have been recruited to come play here,” Mosley said of the other receivers. “They're just patiently waiting for their opportunity, and they got it tonight. They showcased why they're good enough players to be here at Michigan State football, and they're going to continue to grow as well.”

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State football: Young WRs answer doubts with big production