Michigan State Football 2025 Positional Preview: Tight ends
While things didn’t quite unfold as some anticipated during the 2024 season, Michigan State’s tight end group could be among the best in the Big Ten heading into 2025. Is that a bold claim? Maybe — but only if you overlook how injuries and an inconsistent offensive identity limited the impact these players might’ve had. The Spartans return several key players in the tight ends room this coming season, while adding some new faces.
With several roster questions still lingering, all indications suggest the offense is shaping up to be more cohesive and dynamic than it was a year ago. Head coach Jonathan Smith and tight ends coach/recruiting coordinator Brian Wozniak have a track record of creatively utilizing the tight end position, and after a full season under their system at Michigan State, the returning veterans have opportunities to play key roles in 2025.
There is a bit of déjà vu for me after writing the tight ends preview last year with many of the same players in MSU’s room, but the path to success has become clearer. Let’s dive in and analyze the tight end position for the Spartans (note, players are listed in no particular order).
Jack Velling, senior
Jack Velling will look to bounce back from a somewhat disappointing 2024 season and regain some of the juice he had coming off his breakout 2023 campaign at Oregon State. Velling followed the Smith, Wozniak and others from Corvallis to East Lansing and entered his first year at MSU with high expectations.
The senior from Seattle finished third on Michigan State in both receptions (36, a career-high) and receiving yards (411) last year in what was a developmental one for quarterback Aidan Chiles. His best performance came in the last game of the season versus Rutgers, where he caught five balls for 77 yards and a touchdown. Oddly, that touchdown was Velling’s only score of the season after recording eight touchdowns with the Beavers in 2023.
Velling consistently faced the challenge of being a focal point for opposing defenses in 2024. Defenders often matched up with him in man coverage, aiming to neutralize his impact — especially since he was one of the few reliable targets Chiles had on offense. Due to the extra attention from defenses, and struggles from Velling and Michigan State’s offensive unit as a whole, perhaps Velling didn’t quite have the season that he or many fans were anticipating.
“Just from game one against FAU, we could tell they’re going to have a guy over the top of me all game and it kind of carried (through the season),” Velling said after a spring practice in April. “I had trouble winning against man (coverage) last year and that was a big focus for me this offseason. (Some) teams kind of picked up on that and they started doing that more, but I’ve been working on that all offseason and throughout spring ball, so I am feeling a lot better this year.”
Velling noted in the spring that he has been working on things like change of direction, route running, releasing off of the line of scrimmage against man coverage and more. With the emergence of wide receiver Nick Marsh as a potential breakout star on the outside, coupled with other transfer talent at the receiver spot, the field should open up for Velling and the entire tight end group in 2025.
In 2023, Velling earned second-team All-Pac 12 honors after setting Oregon State’s single-season record for touchdowns by a tight end with the aforementioned eight (also tied for the most by a tight end in the FBS). As a freshman in 2022, Velling caught 16 passes for 281 yards and three touchdowns in 11 games for the Beavers.
The senior brings by far the most experience and production to the room and will be counted on to be a security blanket for Chiles, who suddenly has some really intriguing weapons all over the field that should make it easier for Velling to do what he does best.
Michael Masunas, redshirt junior
Michael Masunas was poised for a productive season before going down with with a season-ending shoulder injury after playing in four games in 2024. He was elevated to a starting role last year next to Velling and showed his prowess as both a pass-catcher and blocker. He recorded four receptions for 37 yards, highlighted by a two-catch, 29-yard performance in the season opener versus Florida Atlantic.
A former three-star prospect out of Arizona, Masunas joined Michigan State’s 2022 recruiting class following a recruitment process impacted by the pandemic and he redshirted his first year under then-head coach Mel Tucker. In 2023 as a redshirt freshman, Masunas appeared in nine games, primarily on special teams.
As mentioned, in the first year under Smith, Wozniak and offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren, Masunas carved out a steady role in the offense — primarily as a blocker — while flashing potential as a downfield option before his season was cut short. Now, with another year in the system and continued development under Wozniak, the redshirt junior knows it’s time to bring everything together.
“You know, we’ve all been in the offense for about a year now … but now it’s like we’ve all been through it and now it’s time to get the smaller details, get the right footsteps, right placement and just fine-tuning the details so we can all elevate our game,” Masunas said in the spring.
So long as Masunas is fully recovered and able to stay healthy, he should be in line for a lot of snaps in 2025, and he can make an impact in both the passing game and running game. It’s clear the staff was high on him last year as he earned a starting role, which may have surprised some fans and pundits as he was able to jump a couple of his counterparts on the depth chart. But if he is back to full strength from his injury, there’s no reason to believe Masunas won’t have a similar or larger role this season.
Brennan Parachek, junior
Parachek entered the 2024 campaign with high expectations as a pass-catcher, but dealt with injuries in the spring of 2024, which may have prevented him from really breaking out at the start of the regular season, although it did not force Parachek to miss any game action in the fall. When Masunas went down with his injury last season, Parachek filled his role as the other tight end next to Velling.
Unfortunately, the injury bug for Parachek carried over to March and April of this year, as the junior was sidelined for spring practices, but Smith has high hopes he’ll be back to workouts in the summer to start the season on time.
It’s clear the coaching staff is keen on mixing in their tight ends to be used in all aspects of the offense, and they should be on a mostly level playing field with all the guys in the room expected to be healthy to begin the year.
A former four-star recruit in a stacked 2023 class, Parachek played in all 12 games last season and started three (Oregon, Ohio State and Purdue). He would finish the 2024 campaign with eight catches for 63 yards. As a true freshman in 2023, Parachek made six catches for 55 yards and also saw some time on special teams.
The Dexter native certainly lifts the ceiling for this group and has the tools to be a high-level player in the offense. It’ll probably come down to whether coaches see more value in Masunas as a blocker or Parachek as a downfield threat, but they should both get their opportunities to be mixed in different situations and different formations.
Wyatt Hook, redshirt freshman
The lone scholarship signing at tight end in the 2024, Hook was one of the recruits flipped from Oregon State when Smith and Wozniak were hired in at Michigan State, as he had previously been committed to the staff while they were with the Beavers. Hook would redshirt and did not see any game action last year.
Hook ranked as the No. 77 tight end and No. 93 prospect out of the talented state of California in the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry rankings.
Standing at 6-foot-6 and weighing 255 pounds, Hook has the ideal size for the position, coupled with his impressive athleticism. It may still take some time for his abilities to catch up to his physical tools as a Big Ten athlete, but having one year under his belt in the system will give him an upper hand to work his way up the depth chart.
With the way injuries unfolded for this group last season, Hook should be prepared if his name is called, but as of now, his role remains to be seen.
Kai Rios, redshirt junior
Kai Rios is a redshirt junior transfer from Indiana State. Rios will have two years of eligibility remaining after committing to MSU on April 27 and arriving in East Lansing this summer. Last season with the Sycamores, he played in 11 games, collecting seven catches for 61 yards and a touchdown in a run-heavy offense. He played 396 offensive snaps and 31 snaps on special teams in 2024, according to Pro Football Focus.
The 6-foot-6, 260-pound Rios will look to earn a role in Michigan State’s tight ends room in 2025 and beyond. The MSU staff likes Rios’ frame and physicality as a blocker, but he also possesses good athleticism at his size and a large catch radius in the passing game.
Jayden Savoury is an in-state product who comes to Michigan State as a true freshman in 2025. The Orchard Lake St. Mary’s Preparatory product was the lone tight end signee for the Spartans from the 2025 cycle and built a strong connection with Wozniak during the process. Savoury comes in with a good size, but room to grow out his frame, as he was listed at 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds when he signed with MSU last December.
Savoury ranked as the No. 12 prospect in the state of Michigan and the No. 42 tight end in the 2026 cycle, according to Rivals. He received around 20 scholarship offers throughout his recruitment. Savoury is an accomplished multi-sport athlete, as he helped lead the Eaglets to state championships in both basketball and football throughout his high school career. A redshirt year as a true freshman is likely for Savoury due to the current depth at the position, but he could work his way onto the field, and he has exciting potential and will look to make an impact in the future.
Others tight ends on the roster
- Jaxson Wilson, redshirt sophomore – played in two games in 2024.
- Charlie Baker, redshirt freshman – redshirted in 2024 and did not see game action.
- Jay Coyne, fullback, redshirt junior – 15 career games played, one career catch for 12 yards