Michigan State Depth Chart Preview: Jack Velling ready to crank at TE
East Lansing, Mich. – The following is the sixth in a series of articles projecting Michigan State’s football depth chart, heading into preseason camp. Our goal is to provide analysis on the latest developments at each position, and reacquaint the fanbase with names and faces on the roster heading into Jonathan Smith’s first season at Michigan State.
TIGHT END:
1. JACK VELLING (6-5, 246, Seattle, Wash. | Oregon State transfer)
Velling is arguably the most proven college football player on the roster, having transferred to Michigan State in January. He participated in spring practice and began establishing himself as a leader.
Last year at Oregon State, he earned second-team All-Pac 12 honors. He had 29 catches for 438 yards with eight touchdowns, which tied for the most in the country.
But he’s not a finished product.
“I’m nowhere close,” he said.
Velling says he has a lot of work to do in order to become a quality blocker.
“I think he’s being tough on himself with that,” said tight ends coach Brian Wozniak. “He can always improve. But he did a pretty good job this spring, especially when you match him up correctly.”
Wozniak, Jonathan Smith and offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren are sticklers in the blocking game at the tight end position. The previous Michigan State staff said the same thing, but never gained much traction in that area.
Things should be different with the new staff, as Lindgren, Smith and Wozniak have worked together previously and had success.
They have a lot of work to do in order to get the current tight end room up to a Big Ten standard in the blocking department. The Spartans have a lot of young, unproven players at that position. The blocking piece can be a long-term developmental task.
“Any time you bring a high school kid to college, running the schemes we are, the blocking is always going to be second because it’s harder to teach, it’s harder to get comfortable with, it’s the most muscle memory, compared to depth of a route and those type of things,” Wozniak said.
“What we talk about is when we are good in the run game, when the tight end room is good in the room game, it opens up a whole can of worms for us when it comes to the pass game and play action.”
Velling will encounter bigger defensive linemen and edge players in the Big Ten than he did in the Pac-12. And he’s likely to be quicker and more skilled than Big Ten defenders normally see at the tight end on a weekly basis.
“It’s a fun offense to be a part of,” Velling said. “It’s kind of a grind offense. We’re physical. We pound the ball down low and then boom we’re over the top and getting explosive plays. Whether that’s it’s on the ground or through the air.
“We stretch the line of scrimmage and get guys going back and forth and then we’ll call a duo play and put it down.”
Wozniak’s background as a physical blocking tight end at Wisconsin from 2009-13 made him an attractive candidate for a graduate assistant job at Oregon State in 2015. He moved up to analyst and then tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator for Jonathan Smith at Oregon State.
Michigan State recruited Wozniak out of high school. Wozniak remembers having a recruiting conversation in Mark Dantonio’s office as a high schooler.
“But they (Michigan State) ended up signing Dion Sims, who turned out to be pretty good,” Wozniak said.
Wozniak was on the Wisconsin roster for the epic Badger-Spartan games of 2011 when Michigan State won at home on a Hail Mary and then lost a see-saw battle to Wisconsin in the inaugural Big Ten Championship Game.
“He’s played the position and I like that he can help you in other ways that other coaches may struggle with who haven’t played tight end,” Velling said. “He’s understanding. He’s been through it and he knows what’s he’s doing.”
Velling put his trust in Wozniak and Smith to follow them to East Lansing.
“Coach Woz, he’s had multiple guys drafted in the NFL,” Velling said. “I’m just trying to be the next guy. So that was definitely a big part of it.
“The biggest reason is the coaching staff – Coach Smith and Coach Woz. I think they’re two of the best guys in the business and I thought I would be missing out if I didn’t come over here and get coached by two of the best.
“For a long time, I was going to stay (at Oregon State) and figure it out. And the more I thought about it, the more I realized I didn’t want to regret it down the line that I could have stayed with the staff and that’s what led me to the decision (to come to Michigan State).
“I think the tight end room is being coached by the best so I think we’ll be there in no time,” Velling said.
THE BOOK ON JACK VELLING
(Jack Velling photo by Nick King | USA Today Network.)
He has hands, height at 6-foot-5 and body control. Defenses have to know where is at pre-snap. He can line up tight to the formation and still get downfield, threatening the seam deep. Or he may line up wide like a split end, force a lot of communication and pre-snap rotation from the defense, only to motion inward at the last moment and deliver a wham block in the run game.
“The more alike you get them (at tight end), the harder it is for a defense to defend you,” Wozniak said. “You play some base (defense), great we’re going to spread it out and throw it all over you. You play some nickel, great we’re going to shrink it down and run the ball down your throat. Smith is always five steps ahead of you.”
On a key third-and-two in a victory over then-No. 10 Utah last season, Oregon State went with a three-TE formation to the right. A play action fake gave a hard sell on a wide zone run to the left. Velling sold an inside block, then released late to the right on a corner route. He was open to catch the ball four yards downfield and turn it into a 10-yard gain.
Velling is skilled as a pass catcher, dangerous and highly-utilized in the red zone. And he’s bent on becoming a more well-rounded player to help the team.
“I want to be able to look back in 10 or 15 years and think, ‘I was one of the guys that was there and brought Michigan State football back to where it belongs,’” he said.
Velling will be a plus player at the tight end position. Behind him, there are a bunch of intriguing variables. The rest of the Michigan State tight end corps has combined for only 10 catches and 20 games played. Two of the players who account for 11 of those games appearances and nine of the 10 returning receptions (Brennan Paracheck and Tyneil Hopper) missed the spring while recovering from fall injuries.
2. BRENNAN PARACHEK (6-5, 254, Soph., Dexter)
(Brennan Parachek photo by Dale Young | USA Today Network.)
Parachek was the only true freshman to earn a varsity letter last year, playing in eight games. He played 93 snaps on offense and had six catches for 55 yards.
His best moment last year came on a 17-yard catch on third-and-three during the opening series against Nebraska.
He missed spring practice due to an injury sustained late in the 2023 season.
Parachek was a four-star recruit, ranked No. 5 in Michigan and No. 324 in the nation. He was a slick, athletic, pass-catching tight end in high school with excellent ball skills. He came to Michigan State a bit slim at 235, enrolled early and immediately began trying to bulk up and work on his blocking.
Those areas will continue to require work as he heads into his second year as a Spartan under a new coaching staff and system which should be a good match for his skill set, frame and athletic potential.
“We’re excited to see him running around,” Wozniak said. “I think he’s one of those guys that football speaks to him. It just comes so easy. And I know he’s itching to get going. He’s a big, talented kid and can definitely help us.”
3. MICHAEL MASUNAS (6-5, 255, R-Soph., Tucson, Ariz.)
Masunas redshirted in 2022 due partly to an injury and then played sparingly last year. He saw four snaps on offense in 2024, and caught a 1-yard pass in the season final against Penn State.
Michigan State fans and media had barely seen Masunas in a Spartan uniform prior to the spring. He promptly went out and had an impact March and April for the Spartans. He moved ahead of Jack Nickel on the depth chart and looks like he’s ready to earn a role in 2024. Nickel has since transferred out.
“Michael, we didn’t know,” Wozniak said. “Didn’t have a ton of tape on him. He’s battled some injuries early on. But the kid hasn’t missed a step. He’s smart, he’s into it, he gets it. He’s a tough, physical guy but he’s not a one-trick pony. He can go out and get some pass reps.”
Masunas had one reception for nine yards in the Spring Showcase, from QB Tommy Schuster on a short curl on third-and-11.
4. TYNEIL HOPPER (6-3, 257, Gr., Rosewell, Ga.)
Hopper transferred from Boise State prior to last season, but played only three games before going down with a leg injury which caused him to miss the rest of the season, and the spring of 2024.
Hopper was granted a seventh year of eligibility, and is back with the Spartans. Hopper will turn 25 years of age on Nov. 15.
Hopper doesn’t have great size for the TE position at 6-foot-3 and was merely a mediocre blocker as a second-stringer for Boise State in 2022. But he showed good hands when given the opportunity to catch the ball for the Broncos in the games viewed by SpartanMag, and backed that up with some good snags in practice last year.
Hopper had two catches for Michigan State last year, both of which were impressive. He had a 13-yard TD against Richmond, and then an a tough, 11-yard catch over the middle against Washington, battling hard to advance the ball near the goal line, only to get his legs rolled up and sustain a season-ending injury.
The new Michigan State coaches haven’t worked with him in pads on the field yet, but don’t close the door on the possibility that he could provide a role in 2024. The new staff invited him to come back as a seventh-year college player for a reason.
5. ADEMOLA FALAYE (6-7, 252, R-Jr., Brockton, Mass.)
Falaye transferred to Michigan State from Norfolk State last year. He was a bit player for Norfolk State in 2022, with only four receptions. His addition from the transfer portal seemed like a questionable one at the time, in 2023. When SpartanMag watched video of two of Norfolk State’s games from the 2022 season, we predicted that he would have no role for the Spartans in 2023. He was thin and couldn’t block.
But he has height and runs pretty well. He had a long way to go as a prospect when he arrived.
However, Falaye looked like a new man in the Spring Showcase. We’re not ready to say he’s ready to make an impact in 2024, but he’s starting to look like a viable football player. In fact, we think he’s the most improved player on the roster.
“Mola has been a pleasant surprise, just kind of building him up,” Wozniak said. “He looks different. He’s 252 pounds and he can still move.”
OTHERS: SpartanMag views incoming freshman tight end Wyatt Hook (6-6, 230, San Jose, Calif.) as the most underrated member of the 2024 recruiting class. He has nimble athleticism, terrific hands, a broad catch radius and mountains of potential. Hook gets up to speed quickly for a guy of his height and runs good, tight routes with good footwork. He’s young and thin, so it’s going to take a while to develop, but the former Oregon State commitment is a potential jewel from the West Coast for this program.
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