Michigan State football can’t afford to lose this recruit in 2021

Keon Coleman would be a terrific get for the Michigan State football recruiting class.

Mel Tucker can set the tone in his first year leading Michigan State football.

The longtime defensive coordinator spent one year leading the Colorado Buffaloes over in the Pac-12 before getting the opportunity to lead the Michigan State Spartans football program in 2020. Michigan State has sentimental value for Tucker, as his early coaching career came in East Lansing as part of Nick Saban’s staffs in the late 1990s. Tucker still has a tough hill to climb, though.

His predecessor Mark Dantonio didn’t exactly leave the Michigan State football program in the best of spots. He waited for his retention bonus check to clear and bounced so late into the 2020 recruiting cycle it wrecked Michigan State and Colorado’s classes. Tucker and his successor in Boulder Karl Dorrel were left to pick up the pieces.

So who does Tucker need to land in the 2021 Michigan State football recruiting class?

While we should expect Tucker to clean up on three-stars, he needs to pursue four-star wide receiver Keon Coleman out of Opelousas, Louisiana. The Opelousas Catholic School standout is 6-foot-4 and 185 pounds. The 247Sports Composite has him as the No. 9 player in Louisiana, the No. 46 wide receiver and the No. 258 overall prospect in the 2021 recruiting cycle.

Coleman has 39 offers but is strongly considering three schools: The Kansas Jayhawks, the Oklahoma Sooners and the South Carolina Gamecocks. Michigan State seems to be on the outside looking in at landing him, but he remains the program’s top target in this cycle. What are the chances Tucker ends up getting Coleman’s commitment this year?

Mel Tucker can win big at Michigan State with Keon Coleman’s commitment.

Though Michigan State is very much on the outside looking in at gaining Coleman’s commitment, there are a few reasons we can’t rule the Spartans out entirely just yet. Look if Oklahoma wants Coleman, there is really nothing Tucker and his staff can do about it. Coleman could get 1,000 receiving yards regularly in that offense. All things equal, Michigan State can’t compete with OU.

But as for Kansas and South Carolina, it’s not like the Jayhawks have won anything note since Mark Mangino was manning the sidelines over a decade ago. Kansas head coach Les Miles may have deep recruiting roots in Louisiana from his decade-plus at LSU. However, how soon until a flock of Jayhawks turn on The Mad Hatter and his grass-chewing ways?

And then South Carolina…how sure are we Will Muschamp will be the head coach of the Gamecocks beyond 2020? Had it not been for the shocking road win over his alma mater Georgia Bulldogs, Muschamp would have probably been whacked for not even achieving bowl eligibility. South Carolina has to go bowling in 2020 or they’ll be looking for their next head ball coach.

This is where Tucker can slide in and steal Coleman’s recruitment. He is very familiar with the region from his days on Saban’s staff with the Alabama Crimson Tide and on Kirby Smart’s staff at Georgia. Unless LSU really wants him, it’s looking increasingly likely that Coleman will go out of state for his college ball. That’s what Tucker and his Michigan State program are hoping for.

The Spartans gaining Coleman’s commitment isn’t likely, but what a pickup that would be.

For more NCAA football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.