Mel Tucker appears to have found another pass-rusher for the future of Michigan State football.
Ken Talley, a four-star prospect in the class of 2022, announced via Twitter on Wednesday his intention to become a Spartan. He originally signed with Penn State, but entered the transfer portal on Aug. 15, less than three weeks before the season began.
A message with a spokesman for the MSU team was not immediately returned. It’s unclear if Talley would be eligible to play this season if he signs up for East Lansing right away, though the Blue White Illustrated recruiting website reported that he can’t play this fall because he left PSU too late during preseason camp. .
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The 6-foot-2, 238-pound Talley, who attended Northeast High in Philadelphia, was listed as a linebacker in his since-deleted biography on the Nittany Lions website. Talley was ranked #24 in leading races nationally and #273 player overall in the 2022 class based on 247 Sports composite rankings. He originally chose PSU over Michigan, Tennessee, and Texas A&M and enrolled in the school at the end of July.
“I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to talk about any of these guys in detail about why they’re leaving,” Penn State coach James Franklin told reporters after Talley entered the portal. “That’s his personal business. We want them to be able to go and continue and be successful. It didn’t work out for a variety of reasons.”
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At Northeast, Talley was a two-time captain and earned first-team All-American honors his senior year. He was a PAfootballnews.com Class 6A state selection in his junior year and the Pennsylvania Football Writers Association in his senior year. Talley had 95 tackles, 20 of them turnovers, with 12 sacks and 11 QB passes last season for Northeast.
“He always has a big smile on his face. He plays with a passion that cannot be taught,” his high school coach Eric Clark told psusports.com before signing day in December. “I have never seen anyone play with such passion and we have had great players in our program and he is special. I remember one play where he chased one of the top stars on the track into the box to save a touchdown. He makes some weird plays on the field. From hard hitting to physical plays, running from side to side, it’s a game changer.”
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