Days after securing a prized transfer over football juggernaut Alabama, Michigan State coach Jonathan Smith and the Spartans have a chance to secure another prized commit, this time over multiple notable football programs.

One of the top recruits in the country recently listed the Top 10 schools he’s interested in playing for, and Michigan State was one of them. Four-star defensive lineman Cortez Harris, a native of Upper Marlboro, Maryland, listed the Spartans among notable schools like Michigan, Penn State, Tennessee, Florida, Texas A&M, Syracuse and Virginia Tech. Harris announced the decision on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Harris would immediately improve a potentially desperate roster situation brewing in East Lansing. According to 247Sports, Harris is the 14th-best edge rusher and the 118th-best overall prospect in the 2025 recruiting class. The site also ranked him as the third-best overall player from Maryland.

Michigan State already needed an infusion of talent on its roster upon Coach Smith’s arrival to East Lansing. Considering the number of players who have entered the transfer portal, the Spartans need even more talent now. 

Coach Smith and his coaching staff were already hinging a large portion of their recruiting success on their ability to secure commitments from as many three- and four-star athletes as realistically possible and supplementing the roster with low to mid-ranked players after that. Then, the Spartans lost many players to the portal, forcing Michigan State to convert at a higher rate on the recruiting trail.

The Spartans recently competed head-to-head with Alabama for talented Arizona State defensive back Ed Woods and beat out the Tide for his commitment. That should give Coach Smith and the Spartans hope in recruiting battles moving forward. 

The four-star defensive end has visits with Maryland and Penn State next week. The Spartans will likely receive the most competition from the Terrapins, as Maryland would allow him to play close to home. Michigan State, however, could offer him a more quality experience on the football field and give him the best chance of making it to the next level. 

It will be critical for Coach Smith to find a way to secure as many interested and talented players as possible. College football is an arms race, and Michigan State is currently falling behind.

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Two new Democratic members of the Michigan House of Representatives were sworn in Tuesday, meaning their party now has a slim, two-seat majority in the chamber and could move to advance legislation that had stalled while the House was tied.

Representatives Peter Herzberg (D-Westland) and Mai Xiong (D-Warren) won special elections earlier this month to fill vacancies in the state House that had existed since last November.

Xiong said one of her first priorities is working on the state budget.

“For me personally, as a mom with children in the public school system, I care a lot about making sure that we invest in our public schools, making sure that we maintain the free breakfast and lunch. That’s really important for families in order to help save them money,” Xiong told reporters after her first day of session.

Both Xiong and Herzberg are coming in with about seven months to go until Election Day, when they’ll have to run again to defend their new seats.

The House had been tied 54-54 between Democrats and Republicans. 

Having their two-seat majority back could provide a chance for Democrats to get some of their previously-stalled priorities moving again, even without Republican votes. That could include bills to expand access to birth control or change how the state’s trial courts receive funding.