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Katin Houser making debut as starting QB for Michigan State today

On3 imageby: Jim Comparoni10/14/23JimComparoni
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Piscataway, NJ – Katin Houser is primed to make his debut as the starting quarterback for Michigan State. An Michigan State official confirmed with SpartanMag at 11:30 a.m. that Houser will start at QB for the Spartans today.

He is getting the starting nod over Noah Kim. Kim did not attempt any throws during pre-game. True freshman Sam Leavitt repped as the No. 2 QB during pre-game. Kim is in uniform. It’s unclear if an ailment or injury is limiting Kim.

UPDATE: Houser finished 18 of 29 for 133 yards with 2 TDs and 0 interceptions, 27 yards rushing on eight carries. He drew three pass interference penalties with deep shots, but for the most part sought to move the chains with short passes and occasional intermediate throws. Both of his short TD passes were sharp, difficult, encouraging passes.

However, Michigan State had only two drives in the fourth quarter and both went three-and-out. A well-thrown pass to Maliq Carr into tight coverage was

UPDATE: Houser was 11-of-18 for 92 yards in the first half with one TD pass, a 12-yard TD rush on a QB draw and no interceptions, although he had a near-miss when Rutgers CB Robert Longerbeam dropped an interception late in the second quarter. Michigan State led 17-6 at halftime.

UPDATE: Houser led Michigan State on a 14-play, 75-yard TD drive on the opening series of the game. It marked the first time this season the Spartans have scored a touchdown on its opening drive.

Houser finished the drive with a pinpoint 13-yard TD pass to Montorie Foster. Foster withstood a hard hit from defensive back Flip Dixon to hang onto the pass.

Houser was 4-of-4 for 42 yards on the opening drive. On fourth-and-1 from the 29-yard line, Houser fumbled a mesh handoff fake to Nathan Carter, but recovered it and advanced it 3 yards for the first down.

Houser has played in four games this year. He is 9-of-16 for 158 yards with one interception and zero touchdowns. He didn’t play in game five against Iowa, but he played for most of the fourth quarter of the 31-9 loss to Maryland. He drove the Spartans into the red zone late in that game, but threw an interception and was replaced by true freshman Sam Leavitt.

Houser also played in the loss to Washington and engineered a scoring drive which ended with him diving into the end zone for a 4-yard TD run.

In 2022, Houser played six snaps in a victory over Akron in game two. He completed 1 of 2 passes for 2 yards and also had a 13-yard run. He didn’t play the rest of the year and preserved redshirt status.

Houser competed with Noah Kim for the starting job throughout August camp. Former Michigan State head coach Mel Tucker kept the results of the preseason competition quiet until opening night. 

Houser, Kim and former Spartan Payton Thorne competed for the starting job during spring practice. Thorne opted to enter the transfer portal after spring practice and transferred to Auburn.

Houser, from St. John Bosco Prep in Bellflower, Calif., came to Michigan State ranked the No. 210 player in the country in the On3 Industry Rankings, listed as the No. 13 quarterback in the country and the No. 16 player in California.

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