Maybe this is something Michigan State has always done and I just did not pay as close of attention, but it seems to me that they have made a concerted effort to get famous alumni back to campus for sporting events and they have also made a point of publicizing the visit and marketing it to the public. Mark Dantonio announced on his weekly radio show that a slew of famous Spartan alumni will be making the trip back for Friday’s game against Tulsa.
Of the players returning, Khari Willis is confirmed, Le’Veon Bell is a maybe, and Connor Cook, Chris Frey, and Riley Bullough could also all be in attendance.
This is reminiscent, to me, of the Spring Game, where Coach Dantonio, along with Izzo, brought back a number of celebrity alumni like Jaren Jackson Jr. and Miles Bridges to make an appearance at the game.
This makes a ton of sense for Michigan State, especially in recruiting. We can all be stubborn about Michigan and Ohio State, but they do have a leg up on MSU in terms of money and national attention to Michigan State, I can’t deny that. But one thing that Michigan State does have is recent success (much more than Michigan). With that comes a lot of players who are highly respected, and, well, celebrities.
The more Michigan State can keep players like Le’Veon Bell, Draymond Green, Kirk Cousins, etc. coming back to campus, the more Michigan State will become known, rightfully, as a ‘blue blood’ perennial powerhouse.
