2020 Football Roster
Roster
Nailor, Jalen
Jersey Number 8
Jalen Nailor
- Position:
- WR
- Height:
- 6-0
- Weight:
- 185
- Class:
- Redshirt Sophomore
- Hometown:
- Palmdale, Calif.
- High School:
- Bishop Gorman
Bio
• Career Bio and Statistics (PDF)
CAREER NOTES: Three-year letterwinner finished his Spartan career with 86 receptions for 1,454 yards and 12 TDs in 28 career games from 2018-21, including 21 starts (one in 2018, four in 2019, seven in 2020, nine in 2021) . . . became the 46th Spartan to reach 1,000 career receiving yards in the Western Kentucky game on Oct. 2, 2021 . . . had four career 100-yard receiving outings (vs. Iowa, 11/7/20; vs. Western Kentucky, 10/2/21; vs. Rutgers, 10/9/21; vs. Pittsburgh, 12/30/21) and one 200-yard outing (vs. Rutgers, 10/9/21) . . . versatile playmaker finished with 1,844 career all-purpose yards (1,454 receiving, 179 kick return, 163 rushing, 48 punt return) . . . had 17 carries for 163 yards (9.6 avg) with one rushing TD, along with eight punt returns for 48 yards (6.0 ypr) and nine kick returns for 179 yards . . . closed his career ranked tied for 17th in school history in TD catches (12), 16th in yards per catch (16.9), 28th in receiving yards (1,454) and 41st in receptions (86) . . . MSU had a 20-8 record when Nailor was in the lineup, including a 9-0 mark in 2021 . . . led the Big Ten in yards per catch in 2020 (19.8 avg.) and ranked second in 2021 (18.8 avg.) . . . nickname is “Speedy" . . . selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the sixth round (No. 191 overall) of the 2022 NFL Draft.
2021 SEASON (REDSHIRT JUNIOR): Despite playing in only nine games, all starts, ranked second on the team with career highs in receptions (37), receiving yards (695) and TD catches (6) . . . started the first eight games of the season, but missed the last four games of the regular season with a hand injury; returned to the starting lineup for the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl and led MSU with six catches for 108 yards in the win over No. 12 Pitt, his fourth career 100-yard receiving game and third of the season . . . made a spectacular one-handed grab in the second quarter vs. Pitt that went for 50 yards . . . finished the bowl game with a team-high 124 all-purpose yards (108 receiving, 16 kick return) . . . MSU was 9-0 with Nailor in the lineup in 2021 . . . ranked among the Big Ten leaders in yards per catch (second with 18.8 avg.), receiving yards per game (seventh with 77.2), TD catches (tied for seventh with six), receptions per game (tied for 12th with 4.1), all-purpose yards (17th with 86.1 ypg) and receptions (21st with 37) . . . earned honorable mention All-Big Ten accolades by the media . . . ranked third on the team in all-purpose yards with a career-high 773 (695 receiving, 81 kick return, -3 rushing) . . . 28-of-37 (.757) catches went for either first down or touchdown . . . tallied four catches for 75 yards in Michigan game, all coming in the first half, before missing second half with a hand injury . . . three of the four catches against the Wolverines went for first downs, including two setting up MSU TDs, the second coming on a 40-yard pass play on a fourth-and-1 play from midfield, setting up Spartans at the UM 8, and MSU scored on next play . . . had four catches for 22 yards at Indiana, adding 8 kick return yards, taking lateral from Jayden Reed on kickoff . . . earned first career Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week award (10/11/21) for his performance at Rutgers, notching five receptions for a career-high 221 yards (44.2 avg.) and a career-high three touchdowns, tying the MSU record with three touchdown receptions and registering the fourth-most receiving yards in a single game in Michigan State history . . . hauled in touchdown receptions of 63, 63 and 65 yards to account for all the Spartans’ first half points and help Michigan State build a 21-13 halftime lead . . . the 221 receiving yards were the fifth most in a Big Ten game this season and tied for 11th most in the FBS . . .became the first Big Ten player to record more than 220 receiving yards and at least three touchdowns since Illinois’ A.J. Jenkins caught 12 passes for 268 yards and three touchdowns on Oct. 1, 2011 vs. Northwestern . . . the 44.2 yards per reception was the highest YPR in a game by a Big Ten player since 2000 (min. five receptions), bettering previous mark of 41.2 by Spartan legend Charles Rogers (2001 at Wisconsin) . . . also topped the SHI Stadium single-game receiving record by a visiting player of 207 yards held by Larry Fitzgerald of Pittsburgh in 2003 . . . teamed with quarterback Payton Thorne (339 yards passing) and Kenneth Walker III (233 rushing yards) to register the first time in Michigan State program history to have individuals with a 300-yard passing game, 200-yard rushing game and 200-yard receiving in the same game, and MSU becoming only the fifth team in FBS history to accomplish that feat, and first since 2008 . . . had career-high eight catches for 128 yards vs. Western Kentucky, teaming with Jayden Reed (127 yards) to mark the first time two MSU receivers had 100-yard efforts in the same game since Dec. 3, 2011, vs. Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game (B.J. Cunningham, five catches for 115 yards; Keshawn Martin, nine catches for 115 yards) . . . a total of 6-of-8 catches in WKU game went for first downs, including two coming on same scoring drive in fourth quarter, playing in 62 snaps after starting game at wide receiver . . . started Nebraska game and didn’t register a reception, adding one kick return for 15 yards, in playing 53 offensive snaps . . . started game at Miami and had four catches for 82 yards and a career-high tying two TDs, both coming in the second half, with an 11-yard TD catch in the third quarter, then a 39-yard TD catch with 4:12 left in the fourth quarter to seal the Victory for MSU . . . started Youngstown State game and had four receptions, for 39 yards, including a 16-yard TD in the third quarter, one of three going for first down or TD . . . started season-opening win at Northwestern, tallying two catches for 20 yards, with both going for first downs, and added one kick return for 12 yards.
2020 SEASON (REDSHIRT SOPHOMORE): Third-Team All-Big Ten selection by Phil Steele . . . had 26 catches for team-high 515 yards (19.8 ypc/73.6 ypg) with team-leading four TDs . . . led the Big Ten and ranked 14th in the FBS in yards per reception (19.8 avg.) . . . led MSU with 515 receiving yards and ranked sixth in the Big Ten in receiving yards per game (73.6 ypg) . . . had four catches of 50-plus yards . . . had MSU’s three longest plays overall (75-yard TD catch vs. Northwestern, 57-yard reception vs. Iowa, 56-yard reception vs. Iowa) . . . also had a 53-yard catch at Michigan and a 45-yard TD reception at Penn State . . . 22-of-26 (84.6 percent) receptions went for either first down or TD . . . added two rushes for 11 yards (5.5 ypc), along with two punt returns for 18 yards (9.0 ypr) and one kick return for 21 yards (21.0 ypr), for 565 all-purpose yards (80.7 ypg) . . . had two of team’s three 100-yard receiving outings . . . snared six catches for 100 yards at Penn State for his second career 100-yard receiving outing, with two touchdowns for first career game with multiple TDs, scoring on a 45-yard scoring strike early in the second quarter and a 7-yard TD catch later in the second stanza; 5-of-6 catches went for either a first down or a touchdown, including all four receptions in the first half . . . tallied four catches for 36 yards in Ohio State game, with three going for first downs, including two on back-to-back plays in the fourth quarter, with the first coming on fourth-and-1 going for 3 yards, and then on next play, a 10-yard catch, on MSU’s field goal drive . . . led all receivers with 99 receiving yards on three catches, with all three catches going for a first down or TD, including career-long 75-yard TD in the second quarter in win over No. 8 Northwestern, along with a 20-yard catch on third-and-2 to keep MSU drive alive that ended with game-tying field goal; also led all players with career-high 120 all-purpose yards, adding a 21-yard kick return in the first quarter . . . had one catch for 9 yards vs. No. 10 Indiana . . . had four catches for 119 yards at Iowa, including a 56-yard reception in the second quarter for a new career-long for only a quarter, as topped that with a 57-yard catch in the third quarter, marking second straight game with a career-high, surpassing a 53-yarder previous week at Michigan . . . the 119 receiving yards was first career 100-yard receiving outing and also new career-high, topping previous best of 84 yards in the season opener vs. Rutgers . . . had two catches for 68 yards at Michigan, including 53-yard catch in the second quarter to set up the Spartans’ second TD of the game . . . added 3-yard run and 15-yard catch on back-to-back play in third quarter against the Wolverines, as MSU kicked a field goal . . . started season opener vs. Rutgers and hauled in a career-best six receptions for 84 yards, including a 30-yard touchdown in the third quarter, and also had two punt returns for 18 yards with a long of 17 yards.
2019 SEASON (REDSHIRT): Limited to just four games due to an injury he suffered at the beginning of the year, but still preserved his redshirt season . . . missed nine games after the season opener, but returned to play in the final three and helped spark Michigan State to a three-game winning streak to close out the season . . . had 15 catches for 106 yards . . . also rushed five times for 27 yards . . . compiled a total of 227 all-purpose yards (106 receiving, 77 kick return, 27 rushing, 17 punt return) . . . hauled in a career-best tying five passes for 60 yards, including a season-long 23-yard reception, against Wake Forest in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl . . . also had one rush for 10 yards and one kick return for 26 yards to finish with 96 all-purpose yards . . . snared two catches for 14 yards and had two carries for 6 yards after starting Maryland game . . . returned to action and started at Rutgers, posting career-high five catches for 27 yards to go with two rushes for 11 yards . . . started season opener vs. Tulsa and finished with 73 all-purpose yards with 51 yards on two kick returns, 17 yards on two punt returns and 5 yards on three catches . . . returned opening kickoff 23 yards, setting up MSU in good field position and sparking the opening scoring drive, adding a 3-yard reception on the drive.
2018 SEASON (FRESHMAN): Finished the season with 279 all-purpose yards (138 receiving, 128 rushing, 13 punt return) . . . had eight catches for 138 yards (17.3 avg.) and nine carries for 128 yards (14.2 avg.) . . . scored three touchdowns (two receiving, one rushing) . . . averaged 15.6 yards per play on plays from scrimmage . . . had MSU’s longest pass play (48 yards vs. Purdue on Oct. 27) and second-longest rushing play (75 yards vs. Indiana on Sept. 22) of the season, both for TDs . . . played in eight games, missing five due to injury (Central Michigan, Northwestern, Penn State, Ohio State, Nebraska) . . . had 42 all-purpose yards vs. Oregon in the Redbox Bowl . . . in his first action as punt returner, had four returns for 13 yards against the Ducks, in addition to one reception for 26 yards and one carry for 3 yards . . . had one catch for 8 yards and one rush for 6 yards at Maryland in his first career start . . . led MSU with 94 all-purpose yards (70 receiving, 24 rushing) against Purdue . . . on MSU’s final drive of the game, rushed for 15 yards and a first down, then five plays later, caught a flip pass and ran it 48 yards for a touchdown . . . ended with three catches for 70 yards and TD, while rushing twice for 24 yards . . . had smashing performance at Indiana, scoring first two touchdowns of career, including a 75-yard TD run in the fourth quarter that sealed the win . . . with MSU up 28-21, busted loose for a 75-yard score on MSU’s first play from scrimmage after IU cut the lead to seven, and put the Spartans on top, 35-21, with 3:17 left in the game . . . the 75-yard play was MSU’s second-longest offensive play of the season . . . had three carries for 79 yards total . . . also had a 16-yard TD reception in the first quarter that gave MSU a 7-0 lead, part of four different Spartans in game that all scored their first TD of MSU career . . . named the MSU Offensive Player of the Week for his performance in the Indiana game . . . snared one catch for 4 yards and had two carries for 16 yards at Arizona State . . . made Spartan debut in opener vs. Utah State, one of three true freshmen to make debut, and had one catch for 14 yards.
HIGH SCHOOL AND PERSONAL DATA: Named the No. 1 wide receiver prospect in the state of Nevada by 247Sports and Rivals.com . . . listed as one of the best overall players in the state of Nevada by 247Sports (No. 6), ESPN (No. 6) and Rivals.com (No. 7) . . . ranked among the top wide receivers in the nation by 247Sports (No. 120) . . . also returned punts and kicks . . . played three seasons for Coach Kenny Sanchez at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Nevada, and was a member of three state championship and two national championship teams . . . had 108 receptions for nearly 2,000 yards (1,995) and 28 touchdown catches during his varsity career for one of the most storied high school programs in the nation . . . named to the 2017 ALL-USA TODAY Nevada First Team after helping lead Bishop Gorman to a 13-2 record and a No. 14 national ranking by MaxPreps . . . the Gaels also won their ninth consecutive state title in 2017 . . . caught 41 passes for 807 yards and 12 touchdowns and accounted for more than 1,000 all-purpose yards as a senior . . . also recorded 18 tackles, one interception and three pass break-ups as a safety on defense . . . scored a season-high three touchdowns in a win over Clark on Oct. 6, including an interception return and two TD catches (60 yards, 6 yards) . . . led the Gaels in 2016 with 52 receptions, 929 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns as Bishop Gorman went 15-0 and finished the season ranked No. 1 in the nation by USA TODAY . . . named to the 2016 ALL-USA TODAY Nevada Second Team . . . caught 15 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore on Bishop Gorman’s 15-0 state championship team that finished No. 1 in the USA TODAY Super 25 rankings . . . two-time all-state honoree (2017 first team, 2016 second team) . . . three-time All-Southwest League selection (2017 first team, 2016 second team, 2015 second team) . . . also ran track and won four state titles his senior year while helping Bishop Gorman to its first-ever team track state championship . . . broke his own program record in the 100 meters (10.70) and 200 meters (21.57) in winning individual state titles . . . was also a member of the state winning 400-meter relay team (41.46) and 800-meter relay team (1:26.22) . . . son of Jamar Nailor and Farrah Shelton . . . born March 2, 1999 . . . human development and family studies major . . . high school teammate of fellow Michigan State offensive lineman Jacob Isaia.
CAREER NOTES: Three-year letterwinner finished his Spartan career with 86 receptions for 1,454 yards and 12 TDs in 28 career games from 2018-21, including 21 starts (one in 2018, four in 2019, seven in 2020, nine in 2021) . . . became the 46th Spartan to reach 1,000 career receiving yards in the Western Kentucky game on Oct. 2, 2021 . . . had four career 100-yard receiving outings (vs. Iowa, 11/7/20; vs. Western Kentucky, 10/2/21; vs. Rutgers, 10/9/21; vs. Pittsburgh, 12/30/21) and one 200-yard outing (vs. Rutgers, 10/9/21) . . . versatile playmaker finished with 1,844 career all-purpose yards (1,454 receiving, 179 kick return, 163 rushing, 48 punt return) . . . had 17 carries for 163 yards (9.6 avg) with one rushing TD, along with eight punt returns for 48 yards (6.0 ypr) and nine kick returns for 179 yards . . . closed his career ranked tied for 17th in school history in TD catches (12), 16th in yards per catch (16.9), 28th in receiving yards (1,454) and 41st in receptions (86) . . . MSU had a 20-8 record when Nailor was in the lineup, including a 9-0 mark in 2021 . . . led the Big Ten in yards per catch in 2020 (19.8 avg.) and ranked second in 2021 (18.8 avg.) . . . nickname is “Speedy" . . . selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the sixth round (No. 191 overall) of the 2022 NFL Draft.
2021 SEASON (REDSHIRT JUNIOR): Despite playing in only nine games, all starts, ranked second on the team with career highs in receptions (37), receiving yards (695) and TD catches (6) . . . started the first eight games of the season, but missed the last four games of the regular season with a hand injury; returned to the starting lineup for the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl and led MSU with six catches for 108 yards in the win over No. 12 Pitt, his fourth career 100-yard receiving game and third of the season . . . made a spectacular one-handed grab in the second quarter vs. Pitt that went for 50 yards . . . finished the bowl game with a team-high 124 all-purpose yards (108 receiving, 16 kick return) . . . MSU was 9-0 with Nailor in the lineup in 2021 . . . ranked among the Big Ten leaders in yards per catch (second with 18.8 avg.), receiving yards per game (seventh with 77.2), TD catches (tied for seventh with six), receptions per game (tied for 12th with 4.1), all-purpose yards (17th with 86.1 ypg) and receptions (21st with 37) . . . earned honorable mention All-Big Ten accolades by the media . . . ranked third on the team in all-purpose yards with a career-high 773 (695 receiving, 81 kick return, -3 rushing) . . . 28-of-37 (.757) catches went for either first down or touchdown . . . tallied four catches for 75 yards in Michigan game, all coming in the first half, before missing second half with a hand injury . . . three of the four catches against the Wolverines went for first downs, including two setting up MSU TDs, the second coming on a 40-yard pass play on a fourth-and-1 play from midfield, setting up Spartans at the UM 8, and MSU scored on next play . . . had four catches for 22 yards at Indiana, adding 8 kick return yards, taking lateral from Jayden Reed on kickoff . . . earned first career Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week award (10/11/21) for his performance at Rutgers, notching five receptions for a career-high 221 yards (44.2 avg.) and a career-high three touchdowns, tying the MSU record with three touchdown receptions and registering the fourth-most receiving yards in a single game in Michigan State history . . . hauled in touchdown receptions of 63, 63 and 65 yards to account for all the Spartans’ first half points and help Michigan State build a 21-13 halftime lead . . . the 221 receiving yards were the fifth most in a Big Ten game this season and tied for 11th most in the FBS . . .became the first Big Ten player to record more than 220 receiving yards and at least three touchdowns since Illinois’ A.J. Jenkins caught 12 passes for 268 yards and three touchdowns on Oct. 1, 2011 vs. Northwestern . . . the 44.2 yards per reception was the highest YPR in a game by a Big Ten player since 2000 (min. five receptions), bettering previous mark of 41.2 by Spartan legend Charles Rogers (2001 at Wisconsin) . . . also topped the SHI Stadium single-game receiving record by a visiting player of 207 yards held by Larry Fitzgerald of Pittsburgh in 2003 . . . teamed with quarterback Payton Thorne (339 yards passing) and Kenneth Walker III (233 rushing yards) to register the first time in Michigan State program history to have individuals with a 300-yard passing game, 200-yard rushing game and 200-yard receiving in the same game, and MSU becoming only the fifth team in FBS history to accomplish that feat, and first since 2008 . . . had career-high eight catches for 128 yards vs. Western Kentucky, teaming with Jayden Reed (127 yards) to mark the first time two MSU receivers had 100-yard efforts in the same game since Dec. 3, 2011, vs. Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game (B.J. Cunningham, five catches for 115 yards; Keshawn Martin, nine catches for 115 yards) . . . a total of 6-of-8 catches in WKU game went for first downs, including two coming on same scoring drive in fourth quarter, playing in 62 snaps after starting game at wide receiver . . . started Nebraska game and didn’t register a reception, adding one kick return for 15 yards, in playing 53 offensive snaps . . . started game at Miami and had four catches for 82 yards and a career-high tying two TDs, both coming in the second half, with an 11-yard TD catch in the third quarter, then a 39-yard TD catch with 4:12 left in the fourth quarter to seal the Victory for MSU . . . started Youngstown State game and had four receptions, for 39 yards, including a 16-yard TD in the third quarter, one of three going for first down or TD . . . started season-opening win at Northwestern, tallying two catches for 20 yards, with both going for first downs, and added one kick return for 12 yards.
2020 SEASON (REDSHIRT SOPHOMORE): Third-Team All-Big Ten selection by Phil Steele . . . had 26 catches for team-high 515 yards (19.8 ypc/73.6 ypg) with team-leading four TDs . . . led the Big Ten and ranked 14th in the FBS in yards per reception (19.8 avg.) . . . led MSU with 515 receiving yards and ranked sixth in the Big Ten in receiving yards per game (73.6 ypg) . . . had four catches of 50-plus yards . . . had MSU’s three longest plays overall (75-yard TD catch vs. Northwestern, 57-yard reception vs. Iowa, 56-yard reception vs. Iowa) . . . also had a 53-yard catch at Michigan and a 45-yard TD reception at Penn State . . . 22-of-26 (84.6 percent) receptions went for either first down or TD . . . added two rushes for 11 yards (5.5 ypc), along with two punt returns for 18 yards (9.0 ypr) and one kick return for 21 yards (21.0 ypr), for 565 all-purpose yards (80.7 ypg) . . . had two of team’s three 100-yard receiving outings . . . snared six catches for 100 yards at Penn State for his second career 100-yard receiving outing, with two touchdowns for first career game with multiple TDs, scoring on a 45-yard scoring strike early in the second quarter and a 7-yard TD catch later in the second stanza; 5-of-6 catches went for either a first down or a touchdown, including all four receptions in the first half . . . tallied four catches for 36 yards in Ohio State game, with three going for first downs, including two on back-to-back plays in the fourth quarter, with the first coming on fourth-and-1 going for 3 yards, and then on next play, a 10-yard catch, on MSU’s field goal drive . . . led all receivers with 99 receiving yards on three catches, with all three catches going for a first down or TD, including career-long 75-yard TD in the second quarter in win over No. 8 Northwestern, along with a 20-yard catch on third-and-2 to keep MSU drive alive that ended with game-tying field goal; also led all players with career-high 120 all-purpose yards, adding a 21-yard kick return in the first quarter . . . had one catch for 9 yards vs. No. 10 Indiana . . . had four catches for 119 yards at Iowa, including a 56-yard reception in the second quarter for a new career-long for only a quarter, as topped that with a 57-yard catch in the third quarter, marking second straight game with a career-high, surpassing a 53-yarder previous week at Michigan . . . the 119 receiving yards was first career 100-yard receiving outing and also new career-high, topping previous best of 84 yards in the season opener vs. Rutgers . . . had two catches for 68 yards at Michigan, including 53-yard catch in the second quarter to set up the Spartans’ second TD of the game . . . added 3-yard run and 15-yard catch on back-to-back play in third quarter against the Wolverines, as MSU kicked a field goal . . . started season opener vs. Rutgers and hauled in a career-best six receptions for 84 yards, including a 30-yard touchdown in the third quarter, and also had two punt returns for 18 yards with a long of 17 yards.
2019 SEASON (REDSHIRT): Limited to just four games due to an injury he suffered at the beginning of the year, but still preserved his redshirt season . . . missed nine games after the season opener, but returned to play in the final three and helped spark Michigan State to a three-game winning streak to close out the season . . . had 15 catches for 106 yards . . . also rushed five times for 27 yards . . . compiled a total of 227 all-purpose yards (106 receiving, 77 kick return, 27 rushing, 17 punt return) . . . hauled in a career-best tying five passes for 60 yards, including a season-long 23-yard reception, against Wake Forest in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl . . . also had one rush for 10 yards and one kick return for 26 yards to finish with 96 all-purpose yards . . . snared two catches for 14 yards and had two carries for 6 yards after starting Maryland game . . . returned to action and started at Rutgers, posting career-high five catches for 27 yards to go with two rushes for 11 yards . . . started season opener vs. Tulsa and finished with 73 all-purpose yards with 51 yards on two kick returns, 17 yards on two punt returns and 5 yards on three catches . . . returned opening kickoff 23 yards, setting up MSU in good field position and sparking the opening scoring drive, adding a 3-yard reception on the drive.
2018 SEASON (FRESHMAN): Finished the season with 279 all-purpose yards (138 receiving, 128 rushing, 13 punt return) . . . had eight catches for 138 yards (17.3 avg.) and nine carries for 128 yards (14.2 avg.) . . . scored three touchdowns (two receiving, one rushing) . . . averaged 15.6 yards per play on plays from scrimmage . . . had MSU’s longest pass play (48 yards vs. Purdue on Oct. 27) and second-longest rushing play (75 yards vs. Indiana on Sept. 22) of the season, both for TDs . . . played in eight games, missing five due to injury (Central Michigan, Northwestern, Penn State, Ohio State, Nebraska) . . . had 42 all-purpose yards vs. Oregon in the Redbox Bowl . . . in his first action as punt returner, had four returns for 13 yards against the Ducks, in addition to one reception for 26 yards and one carry for 3 yards . . . had one catch for 8 yards and one rush for 6 yards at Maryland in his first career start . . . led MSU with 94 all-purpose yards (70 receiving, 24 rushing) against Purdue . . . on MSU’s final drive of the game, rushed for 15 yards and a first down, then five plays later, caught a flip pass and ran it 48 yards for a touchdown . . . ended with three catches for 70 yards and TD, while rushing twice for 24 yards . . . had smashing performance at Indiana, scoring first two touchdowns of career, including a 75-yard TD run in the fourth quarter that sealed the win . . . with MSU up 28-21, busted loose for a 75-yard score on MSU’s first play from scrimmage after IU cut the lead to seven, and put the Spartans on top, 35-21, with 3:17 left in the game . . . the 75-yard play was MSU’s second-longest offensive play of the season . . . had three carries for 79 yards total . . . also had a 16-yard TD reception in the first quarter that gave MSU a 7-0 lead, part of four different Spartans in game that all scored their first TD of MSU career . . . named the MSU Offensive Player of the Week for his performance in the Indiana game . . . snared one catch for 4 yards and had two carries for 16 yards at Arizona State . . . made Spartan debut in opener vs. Utah State, one of three true freshmen to make debut, and had one catch for 14 yards.
HIGH SCHOOL AND PERSONAL DATA: Named the No. 1 wide receiver prospect in the state of Nevada by 247Sports and Rivals.com . . . listed as one of the best overall players in the state of Nevada by 247Sports (No. 6), ESPN (No. 6) and Rivals.com (No. 7) . . . ranked among the top wide receivers in the nation by 247Sports (No. 120) . . . also returned punts and kicks . . . played three seasons for Coach Kenny Sanchez at Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas, Nevada, and was a member of three state championship and two national championship teams . . . had 108 receptions for nearly 2,000 yards (1,995) and 28 touchdown catches during his varsity career for one of the most storied high school programs in the nation . . . named to the 2017 ALL-USA TODAY Nevada First Team after helping lead Bishop Gorman to a 13-2 record and a No. 14 national ranking by MaxPreps . . . the Gaels also won their ninth consecutive state title in 2017 . . . caught 41 passes for 807 yards and 12 touchdowns and accounted for more than 1,000 all-purpose yards as a senior . . . also recorded 18 tackles, one interception and three pass break-ups as a safety on defense . . . scored a season-high three touchdowns in a win over Clark on Oct. 6, including an interception return and two TD catches (60 yards, 6 yards) . . . led the Gaels in 2016 with 52 receptions, 929 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns as Bishop Gorman went 15-0 and finished the season ranked No. 1 in the nation by USA TODAY . . . named to the 2016 ALL-USA TODAY Nevada Second Team . . . caught 15 passes for 259 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore on Bishop Gorman’s 15-0 state championship team that finished No. 1 in the USA TODAY Super 25 rankings . . . two-time all-state honoree (2017 first team, 2016 second team) . . . three-time All-Southwest League selection (2017 first team, 2016 second team, 2015 second team) . . . also ran track and won four state titles his senior year while helping Bishop Gorman to its first-ever team track state championship . . . broke his own program record in the 100 meters (10.70) and 200 meters (21.57) in winning individual state titles . . . was also a member of the state winning 400-meter relay team (41.46) and 800-meter relay team (1:26.22) . . . son of Jamar Nailor and Farrah Shelton . . . born March 2, 1999 . . . human development and family studies major . . . high school teammate of fellow Michigan State offensive lineman Jacob Isaia.
Jonathan Smith | Football Press Conference | Sep. 1 2025
Monday, September 01
Jonathan Smith Post Game Comments | WMU | Aug. 29 2025
Friday, August 29
Jonathan Smith | Football Press Conference | August 25, 2025
Monday, August 25
Jonathan Smith | Football Press Conference | August 18, 2025
Monday, August 18