QB Damion Terry, Erie Cathedral Prep School (PA) - 6-foot-4, 210 pounds
Ratings: Rivals (NR), Scout (NR), 24/7 (3 stars), ESPN (4 stars)
Other notable offers: Illinois, Boston College, Duke
MSU picked up its second recruit of the day when dual-threat quarterback Damion Terry announced his commitment to MSU on Monday.
I am officially a Michigan State Spartan!!
— Damion Terry (@DamionTerry) April 16, 2012
Ohio linebacker Shane Jones announced his commitment to MSU earlier in the day.
Terry likely will be the only quarterback in the 2013 class for MSU. The Spartans have brought in one new quarterback each year except 2007, when Kirk Cousins and Nick Foles were both part of Mark Dantonio's first recruiting class. Terry's skill set definitely is the most unique of those quarterbacks. Outside of split snaps from Keith Nichol in 2009, MSU has used a pro-style quarterback every season under Dantonio, the first two of which have or will have NFL careers.
Terry had visited MSU on April 5 and at junior day in late February, where MSU was the first school to extend an offer. MSU had offers out to higher-ranked quarterbacks, so it was wise for Terry to commit to the Spartans sooner rather than later, given that MSU was by far the most prestigious program that had extended an offer to him.
In Terry, MSU is getting a player with a strong arm and the ability to make plays with his legs. He has great touch on the deep ball and pocket presence. The issue with Terry has been his accuracy.
But as mentioned above, Dantonio has never had a full-time quarterback that can run like Terry. When MSU was splitting snaps between Cousins and Nichol in 2009, there were some designed quarterbacks runs from Nichol. MSU ran plenty of wildcat formations with wide receiver Keshawn Martin, who was a quarterback in high school. Terry's athletic ability could give him a chance to see the field early in his career in situations like that.
The commitment of Terry turns the attention to his high school teammate, safety/athlete Delton Williams, who visited MSU with Terry and said the opportunity to play with Terry is something he'd like to do. Scout rates Williams as a three-star prospect and he reportedly has offers from MSU, Penn State, Pitt and West Virginia, among others.
The chance for Terry to become a starter obviously depends on his development. Maxwell has the starting job for the next two years, and the coaches seem to really like redshirt freshman Connor Cook. Elite 11 quarterback Tyler O'Conner is coming to East Lansing this summer for his freshman season.
Terry doesn't fit the mold of recent MSU quarterbacks, but assuming he signs with the Spartans next year, the MSU coaches will find a way to take advantage of his skill set.
Other MSU commits (w/ linked TOC bios): LB Shane Jones, LB Jon Reschke, OL Caleb Benenoch, RB Gerald Holmes, RB R.J. Shelton (bio coming), ATH Jalyn Powell (bio coming)