Michigan State is among the 10 finalists for 2026 linebacker Nick Abrams II of the McDonogh School in Maryland.
The prospect announced his finalists on social media on Thursday.
Competing teams include Michigan, Oregon, Penn State, Texas A&M, Georgia, Alabama, Vanderbilt, USC and Duke.
The 6-foot-2, 210-pound linebacker is the No. 247 overall in the 2026 class and the No. 18 linebacker. In the state of Maryland, he is the No. 6 talent in a stacked class.
Michigan State is pressing hard for Abrams, who is one of their highest priorities as a dominant athlete and polished defender. With a high ceiling, he could contribute early.
Abrams has the perfect frame for defensive coordinator Joe Rossi, whose prototype is fluid.
“Long, athletic, and smart,” Rossi said. “That’s what we look for and that’s a sliding scale, OK. And what I mean by that — if a guy’s 6-foot and runs 4.4, that’s cool. But if you’re going to be a low 4.8, you better be 6-foot-3 and a half. So my point is — it slides, but the ideal thing, if I’m just giving you three, it’s length, it’s athleticism, and it’s intelligence. Not necessarily in that order.”
Abrams is a high IQ player and his ability in coverage specifically is why he is so highly coveted. Michigan State uses a multiple defense formation, and the Mike is the quintessential piece to the Spartans’ defense.
“You know, I think the Mike linebackers — I think a portion of it’s leadership, but from a physical standpoint, you gotta have guys that are comfortable in space,” Rossi said. “You wouldn’t even think that I would say that to start with the Mike, but you know, the Mike ends up out of the box all of the time in three-by-one formations, and so the guy has got to be physical and he’s got to be able to stop the run, all those things, I got it.
“You know, if you’re getting recruited as a Mike, you gotta have that skillset but you gotta be comfortable in coverage. Doesn’t mean you’re playing man-to-man on people all the time, but it just means you got to be able to go out there play in space and function. So I think that that’s something that’s going to be big for us in terms of that position.”
Michael France is Sports Illustrated’s Michigan State recruiting beat writer, covering all things Big Ten recruiting for Spartan Nation. Be sure to follow him on Twitter/X@michaelfrancesi for exclusive Spartans recruiting coverage.
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