Michigan State football hits practice field for fall camp
Michigan State football practices under new coach Pat Fitzgerald at the team facility in East Lansing on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026.
EAST LANSING – Rodney Bullard Jr. gave Pat Fitzgerald the first victory of his Michigan State football career, even before his Spartans coaching debut.
It’s a chance for the senior wide receiver to play the game he loves for one more year.
MSU’s compliance department received word Monday, Aug. 24, that the NCAA reconsidered Bullard’s appeal for an extra year and overturned its previous decision that rendered him ineligible. Fitzgerald learned about it on the field shortly before the practice as the Spartans were stretching, informing Bullard in front of his teammates.
The decision comes three days before Bullard and his attorneys were set to take college sports’ governing body to court while seeking a “preliminary and permanent” injunction and “a temporary restraining order (if necessary).” That preliminary show-cause hearing was scheduled for Thursday in the 30th Circuit Court in Lansing.
“I didn’t know it was happening today,” Bullard said after practice Monday. “I was still expecting the court date on Thursday. They happened to come and tell me today, so the faster the better. I was happy. …
“(My teammates) were happy. Actually, Kenny Soares, he knocked my helmet off in excitement just slapping me. So it was pretty cool. Everybody was happy.”
Now, the next date that matters for Bullard and MSU is Friday, Sept. 4. The decision means the Albany, Georgia, native will be in uniform when the Spartans open the season – and the Fitzgerald era – against Toledo (8 p.m., FS1).
“I’m ecstatic,” Fitzgerald said Monday. “Maybe they got this thing called common sense in [Indianapolis]. I don’t know, I have no idea, but I’m happy they did. So it’s never too late when it’s before the opener. …
“It’s been a long road. So really happy for him and his family.”
Bullard’s attorney, William H. Horton, filed for the injunction on Aug. 17, according to court documents. Horton – a Troy-based attorney with the firm Giarmarco, Mullins and Horton – argued in his filing that the NCAA violated its rules by determining that Bullard is not eligible to play for MSU this season “because he used up his four years of eligibility by being a full-time student in the fall of 2021” at Division II Valdosta State. Horton countered that Bullard was a part-time student in the fall of 2021.
“I wanted to keep fighting for it,” Bullard said of his eligibility appeal. “With the avenue of getting the legal team, I was trying to fight any way I could to be able to make sure I could play and expedite the process.”
Fitzgerald said he was “100% supportive” of Bullard and his family using the legal system to force the NCAA’s hand.
“We felt from Day 1 that this was a no-brainer,” Fitzgerald said. “We were asking for his fourth year. This wasn’t like we were asking for his seventh or some of these people that are coming back from the NFL. I mean, are you kidding me? We were literally asking for him to get his fourth year of eligibility and look at what happened to him as he matriculated to college.”
Bullard arrived at MSU from Valdosta State in January 2025 believing he had two seasons of eligibility remaining. The 5-foot-11, 188-pound wideout had five catches for 119 yards in 131 snaps last season for the Spartans, including a 71-yard touchdown catch from returning quarterback Alessio Milivojevic against Minnesota on Nov. 11, and added a rushing TD on an 8-yard end around against Youngstown State on Sept. 13.
After a redshirt year in 2022, Bullard played in 28 games for Valdosta State the following two seasons, catching 42 passes for 1,001 yards with 12 touchdowns and an average of 23.8 yards per catch in 2024 as the Blazers made it to the Division II national title game (where they lost to Ferris State). In 2023, Bullard had 43 catches for 566 yards and seven scores and returned 16 kicks for a 24.8-yard average with a 99-yard touchdown return.
“He’s definitely a very big, key piece to our offense,” safety Nikai Martinez said Monday, adding that he feels Bullard can be “the X-factor” for MSU’s offense this season.
The Spartans lost six of their top seven pass catchers from 2025, including leading receiver Nick Marsh (Indiana) to transfer and No. 2 wideout Omari Kelly to graduation. Those two combined for 1,288 yards and 106 catches along with eight touchdowns last season. Senior Chrishon McCray (330 yards, 30 catches, three TDs) is the most experienced returning wide receiver, along with Bullard.
Milivojevic on Monday called Bullard “a difference-maker.”
“Rod is an amazing player. He’s made a lot of great plays throughout spring, throughout fall and in the summer,” the third-year sophomore quarterback said. “It’s awesome to see a guy who’s really worked – like, he’s worked so hard so hard throughout the year without even knowing if he was certainly going to play. It’s just awesome to see. I’m proud of him, happy for him and excited to play with him this year.”
With the case on appeal, Bullard worked out with the Spartans this summer and has been running with the No. 1 wide receivers during preseason camp. Fitzgerald said MSU was prepared to continue to help Bullard with his lawsuit against the NCAA and wait into the season for a decision if need be.
“The one thing that kind of kept me going is just nothing changed,” Bullard said. “So no matter what happened, I was able to keep practicing every day. I was able to do everything that I would be doing if I was eligible. So as long as nothing changed and I kept going, I was still motivated. …
“Everyone on the team checked on me every single day, asking if I heard anything. Actually, the team, they were ready to all pull up to the court and support me.”
Instead, in the final days of preseason camp, the new coach now knows Bullard – who wants to become an athletic director after finishing his last class for a master’s degree in sports administration this fall – is available and ready to play against the Rockets.
Which does not leave much time for Bullard to celebrate his win over the NCAA.
“I know I’m about to get in the ice tub after this and relax. I don’t know, I’ll probably call my family and talk to them,” Bullard said. “I gotta get back to work tomorrow and practice again. Just gearing up for the season – that’s my reward, I guess, being able to play.”
Spartans name 6 captains
Milivojevic, Martinez and Soares were three of the six Spartans who were named captains Monday after a vote by their teammate. Senior linebacker Jordan Hall is a captain again for the second season. Soares is one of three first-year transfers to be named captain, along with punter Rhys Dakin (Iowa) and center Trent Fraley (North Dakota State).
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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