Why Michigan State football hiring Cass Tech's Thomas Wilcher 'goes beyond recruiting'

Kalon Gervin glowed when he learned that Michigan State football coach Mel Tucker hired his high school coach, Thomas Wilcher, to be the Spartans’ director of community and high school relations earlier this month.

And the junior cornerback thinks bringing the legendary Cass Tech coach aboard will be a major boost for MSU’s recruiting in Detroit.

“That was great, man. I love that dude. He's like a father figure to me,” Gervin said earlier this month. “It's great to have your high school head coach right on the team with you. It was amazing when I found out that he was coming. …

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“He brings everything. He knows the game, he knows how to recruit. He's just a great dude. I think a lot of kids gonna are find out that he's just someone you can talk to. He's never gonna give you a wrong answer, he's always gonna tell you how it is straight up. And he's gonna embrace everyone.”

Tucker on Friday at Big Ten media day said adding the 56-year-old former two-sport standing at Michigan “actually goes beyond recruiting.”

“We want to have the best people in our organization,” Tucker said. “The best leaders, the best influencers, the best role models, people that care about young people, care about young men. Who love the game of football, live the game of football and have a proven track record of success. And so that's what coach Wilcher brings to us.”

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The Spartans struggled to mine talent from the city in the waning years of Mark Dantonio’s tenure. Tucker talked about making Detroit a priority in his recruiting efforts the day he was hired officially in February 2020, and he fired a direct salvo at Michigan by hiring Wilcher — who was a football and track standout for the Wolverines in the 1980s before taking Cass Tech to three state championships (2011, 2012, 2016) and another runner-up finish, winning 190 of his 260 games over 23 seasons.

While Tucker said “it remains to be seen what type of effect it has on recruiting in Detroit and elsewhere,” Gervin feels the union of his high school coach Wilcher and his college coach Tucker will be “a huge bridge” to making MSU a hit again in Motown.

“I think Coach Tucker hit the jackpot,” Gervin said. “It's a huge deal, especially for Detroiters. I think we'll get a lot more players from the city of Detroit to come here and play.”

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State hiring Thomas Wilcher 'goes beyond recruiting'