Michigan State interested in Notre Dame QB transfer Malik Zaire

Well that was quick.

The 2016 football season officially ended for Michigan State just a few days ago but 2017 is already off to a potentially interesting start.

News broke today that Notre Dame senior quarterback Malik Zaire is expected to get his formal release from the university this Wednesday. The lefty is on track to graduate in December which would make him eligible to play immediately and, as the tweet says, four schools are “running out front” — Wisconsin, Pitt, Florida and Michigan State.

Zaire isn’t overly experienced but has shown flashes of brilliance. He led an upset win over LSU in the 2014 Music City Bowl and starred in the 2015 season-opening 38-3 rout of Texas, a game in which he threw for 313 yards and 3 TD’s. Sadly for him, Zaire injured his ankle the following week and relinquished the job to DeShone Kizer.

MSU was rumored to have reached out to Alabama transfer Blake Barnett earlier this year, so their interest shouldn’t come as a total shock, but given that Zaire would only be around for a year and wouldn’t overlap with Brian Lewerke or Messiah deWeaver, he makes a little more sense for the Spartans.

Some of the appeal stems from MSU not having a surefire starter for 2017. Damion Terry will be a senior but has never been able to play well for more than a half and has had consistent health issues. Lewerke, who is widely presumed to have the inside track on the job, has limited experience and is coming off a broken leg and deWeaver will only be a redshirt freshman. Zaire’s legs would also bring a dimension MSU hasn’t had at the quarterback position with the limited exception of the Terry #WHYldcat.

So, what do you think? Should MSU pursue the grad transfer or roll with the guys they have in house? Vote and leave your thoughts in the comments.