Michigan State’s latest football signings skyrocket in the rankings

I’m usually one of the first to tell you that recruiting rankings don’t mean that much. Of course, you want Michigan State football to get as many four- and five-star players as possible, versus three-star players, but you never really know how a recruit is going to turn out.

However, when an MSU recruit’s ranking improves significantly, it’s usually a sign that he’s a very good player.

And that’s exactly what just happened to one of Michigan State’s newest recruits.

Derrick Simmons is a three-star defensive lineman from Frankenmuth, Michigan. He recently committed to Michigan State on June 27, shortly after his official visit to East Lansing on June 14.

Simmons wasn’t a particularly high-profile recruit to begin with, barely making it into the top 1,300 in his class. But that has changed, and in a big way.

According to the 247Sports rankings, Simmons has risen to No. 530 nationally since June 28. He is also the No. 9 player from Michigan and the No. 57 defensive player in the country.

That’s the biggest jump a player will ever make, and the increase was so big that it almost earned Simmons the coveted fourth star – 247Sports rated Simmons 88 out of 100, one spot below the usual four-star status of 89.

Whether he ends up being a four-star or not is something I don’t really care about. This massive increase shows us that recruiting sites are putting a lot of value on Simmons, and at the end of the day, that’s all that really matters.

Jonathan Smith and his team have clearly made a good catch and now we hope they can keep this recruiting momentum going for the rest of the summer.