LB Jon Reschke (6-foot-2, 225 pounds)
Ratings: Rivals (4 stars), Scout (4 stars), 24/7 (4 stars), ESPN (NR)
Other notable offers: Toledo
Recruiting a former player's relative can be interesting. Sometimes, it's a no-brainer, and the relationship pays off, but sometimes, it's complicated.
In Jon Reschke, MSU has the latest son of a former Spartan. Jon's father, Paul, was a two-way walk-on lineman at MSU in the early 1980s. Earlier this week, Jon told ESPN.com that the No. 1 reason he committed to MSU was because his father played in East Lansing. But MSU has more than an extension of the lineage, it has one of the top linebackers in the country.
At Brother Rice, Reschke played defensive end as a sophomore before moving to middle linebacker this past season, so he does have good skill on the blitz and still came of the edge some as a junior. Scout said that Reschke earned a Toledo offer last summer while transitioning to linebacker. He ran a 4.6 40-yard dash at an MSU camp and was offered by MSU in July.
This fall, Reschke was All-Catholic League and Brother Rice won a state title. Throughout the year, he kept in contact with the MSU coaches and attended a few games in East Lansing. Reschke told ESPN.com he was hearing from a wide variety of schools, including many Big Ten, Pac-12 and SEC schools. So although you only see Toledo at the top of this page under notable offers, this is one of the more sought-after linebackers in the country. As he kept hearing from more schools, he said it was clear MSU was always the No. 1 choice. He ended up committing in mid-February. Of course, his dad was happy.
"I'm sure we (could have started) looking at other places and spent time and see some things," Paul said, "But when you're so far out in front, then it's just the right place."
MSU has done a good job bringing in top linebacker recruits under Mark Dantonio, with Reschke being the latest. Other notable highly-rated linebackers that have recently come to MSU include Chris Norman, Jeremy Gainer, Max Bullough and Lawrence Thomas.
Looking at Reschke's junior film at linebacker, he's got a really good burst and a nose for the football. His time on the line seems to have helped with his ability to turn the corner. If he's going to be a middle linebacker, he probably needs to bulk up a little bit, but he's got plenty of time to add some weight while keeping his speed.
MSU has quite a few quality linebackers in the wings already, but Reschke told Rivals when he committed that Dantonio told him he'd have a chance to play early and follow in Bullough's footsteps. Reschke would be a freshman when Bullough is a senior, so there could be a smooth transition there, similar to how MSU went from Greg Jones to Bullough. It's possible Thomas moves to the defensive line.
Allen Trieu of Scout also thinks Reschke could compete for early playing time.
With another year of high school to get comfortable at linebacker, I think he'll end up ultimately coming into college ready to compete. He still has some room to get bigger. You'd like to see him up around 230-235 while keeping his speed, but you have to like his ability to find the football and get to it. A good early pick up for the Spartans.
Dantonio has pointed to the fact MSU has used just two quarterbacks over five years as a big reason for consistent success. The same can be said for the quarterback of the defense. Dantonio has basically had three starting middle linebackers in his five years as head coach (with Adam Decker sprinkled in there), and Bullough presumably will do the same thing for the next two years. After that, Reschke could be next in line.
As you'd like to see from any commit, Reschke told ESPN he is working on getting more recruits to commit to the Green and White, especially the all-important defensive linemen MSU needs.
"I've been working on recruiting other players in the country. I've been adding them on Facebook and sending them messages," he said. "I look up guys and go after them, especially some D-linemen I want playing in front of me."
I don't think you could ask for much more with this commitment: highly-skilled, appreciation for MSU's past and looking to bring more recruits to the party.
Previously: An introduction and look at OL Caleb Benenoch