Michigan State football's Montorie Foster looks to step out in deep WR competition

EAST LANSING — Montorie Foster emerged as a reliable reserve receiver in his first two years at Michigan State football, even starting four games.

A freak foot injury last spring lingered into the fall, however. Add to that the emergence of Keon Coleman alongside returning starters Jayden Reed and Tre Mosley, and Foster appeared to be a forgotten option.

But with Reed off to the NFL draft, it opens another chance for Foster to seize an open starting job. This time, the 6-foot, 185-pound fourth-year senior from Cleveland is healthy and turning heads again after having two screws that limited him last year removed from his surgically repaired foot.

“I'm feeling 100% back like myself,” Foster said Thursday, two days before Saturday’s final spring practice at Spartan Stadium. “That opportunity is there. It's mine to take it right now.”

It will be a battle into fall camp for Foster to claim the job, with a deep group of young wide receivers hungry to make the type of impact he did early in his career.

WHAT'S UP ON SATURDAY? How Mel Tucker plans to organize MSU's 2023 spring game

“I'm really excited about our room right now,” wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins said Thursday. "It'll be interesting to see who who comes out as our starters when we get to the fall. But right now, guys are competing, competing hard, and it's been a fun group to coach.”

Hawkins pointed to both returning starters Coleman and Mosley as having “a really good spring” and carrying over their work from the past two years. And Hawkins and offensive coordinator Jay Johnson want more of leadership both starters are providing it during the offseason.

“I try to dive in and also bring the younger guys with me, those are the guys we're gonna really need,” Coleman said earlier this spring. “I mean, we might need me to get things started. But when all hell breaks loose and they put all the coverages on me, I gotta be able to trust my young guys to be able to make those plays and the older guys as well.”

Mosley is the elder statesman, having started 21 of his 36 games as a Spartan and becoming the 48th receiver in school history to eclipse 1,000 yards for his career. The 6-2, 198-pound fifth-year senior has 98 catches for 1,176 yards and eight touchdowns after a 2022 in which he produced a career-best four TDs among his 35 catches for 359 yards.

“A lot of them call me the OG now, so I laugh,” Mosley said earlier this spring. “It's crazy, I'm the old man and I'm only 21. But I like it. I take it out of respect, just showing the guys how to go about their business and be mature, because we do have a lot of youth in the room still.”

RAINER SABIN: Future of MSU hinges on Scottie Hazelton solving defensive puzzle

Coleman produced a breakout sophomore season in 2022, leading the Spartans with 58 catches, 798 receiving yards and seven touchdowns while starting all 12 games. The 6-4, 215-pound Louisiana native bypassed playing basketball for MSU for a second straight year and instead focused on adding weight and strength while honing his craft and leadership on the football field this winter.

“That's probably the No. 1 deal, is that he's been around full-time. So he's been able to focus more on the details,” Hawkins said of Coleman. “He's been able to focus on the art of running routes. And he's really been a student of the game. He loves football. And I think this year, with him putting down the basketball, I think he really realized himself how much he really loves the game. And it's shown. I mean, the kid practices everyday hard and has a smile on his face.

“There's definitely been a jump in his route running. He's understanding coverages better. He's understanding the why now — why you take an inside stem, why should I take an outside stem, what should I do with these linebackers are dropping. So I think the game has slowed down tremendously for him, which is going to help him excel.”

More: Why Michigan State football WR Keon Coleman feels one-sport focus this winter will pay off

Foster — a former high school basketball star who had Division I offers — also is experienced in offensive coordinator Jay Johnson’s system, with 30 games in three seasons that include a start against Northwestern as a true freshman in 2020 and three starts in 2021 against Purdue, Maryland and Penn State.

His sophomore season, Foster caught 12 passes for 164 yards and a 52-yard touchdown from quarterback Payton Thorne on a flea-flicker against the Terrapins. He appeared ready to battle Coleman for Nailor's open spot last spring until he suffered a Lisfranc fracture that set him back, taking him from 302 snaps in 2021 to just 120 in 2022.

Foster had the screws removed after the season to be ready for spring practice. He said he understands the nature of injuries in football and didn’t get frustrated, but Foster felt like he could have contributed more to MSU’s offense last season if he had been healthy.

“Right after my surgery, I felt way better just from having those screws out,” said Foster, who had five catches for 76 yards and a TD in eight games last season. “I felt more mobility in the joints in my foot. … Mentally and physically, I'm definitely on another level right now. Just feeling healthy; mentally, just knowing the playbook a lot more and just being more comfortable and more confident in myself, really.”

Hawkins said he wants Foster to be able to play all three receiver spots this season and thinks he can with his development this spring.

“He knew them, but he didn't know them up to the standard that it would take to be productive at every single one,” Hawkins said. “I think this spring, we've moved him around, he's done a great job of digesting the offense. And he's moved around and hasn't made a lot of errors. So that will help us out. We'll be able to move him inside and outside. He's had a really solid spring thus far, caught the ball well, shown some flashes of getting deep. He's running well. He's one of our most physical blockers, so you'll see him on all of our special teams.

“And he's easy to coach. He's a guy that pulls me to the side, he'll ask a question, and then he goes out and he executes it. He's a guy you tell him something one time, and he's got it.”

Sophomore Tyrell Henry emerged on special teams and took over kickoff return duty when Reed was hurt and maintained the job even after the veteran came back. The 6-foot, 175-pound Roseville product will assume punt return duties this season as well, along with pushing the veterans for snaps on offense.

“The younger guys, we all want to get better,” Henry said Thursday. “I think just us wanting to get better and listening and learning new things, I think that helps with the room out as a whole. And if everybody's good, iron sharpens iron.”

Two others who arrived with Henry in 2022 — Antonio Gates Jr. and Jaron Glover — both preserved their redshirts last season, with the 6-1, 205-pound Glover catching two passes for 21 yards in his only game against Akron. Gates, a four-star recruit and the son of his namesake future Pro Football Hall of Fame tight end father, dressed but did not play late in the season.

And two other veterans could crack the playing group as well, including Thorne's former high school teammate in fifth-year senior Cade McDonald and big-bodied junior Christian Fitzpatrick, who is in his third season at MSU after transferring from Louisville. The 6-4, 218-pound Fitzpatrick suffered a season-ending injury after playing in five games, and he combined with the 5-11, 195-pound McDonald for five catches and 48 yards.

While Thorne is battling Noah Kim and Katin Houser at quarterback for who will deliver the balls, Hawkins was quick to say the competition is just as intense in his position group to catch them.

“There's no depth chart in our room, either,” Hawkins said. “Right now, may the best man win.”

Gates open at 12:30 p.m. Saturday for the “Spartan Football Kickoff.” Admission and parking are free. It will be the final of MSU’s 15 spring practices, with the season opener against Central Michigan scheduled for Sept. 2 at Spartan Stadium.

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.

Next up: Spring game

What: MSU spring game.

Kickoff: 2 p.m. Saturday; Spartan Stadium, East Lansing.

TV: Big Ten Network (tape delayed telecast at 4 p.m.).

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State football's Montorie Foster looks to win WR starting job