Trieu: Oliver Martin’s stock rises with U.S. Army showing
Once again, wide receiver Oliver Martin has proved he belongs among the best.
Martin is on the West squad at this week’s U.S. Army All-American Bowl and has been one of the most impressive skill players during practices for Saturday’s game.
That has brought about a new offer from Auburn, and while he may visit the Tigers, at this point, there is only one official visit he has set in stone. That is Michigan State for the weekend of Jan. 13.
"Michigan State's for sure,” he said. “After that, I'm not sure what I will do. I might try to take another official visit, but I'm not sure where yet."
Martin is still considering Notre Dame, Iowa, Oregon and Michigan, as well.
The Spartans have not traditionally landed many players from the state of Iowa, but have one already this year in quarterback Rocky Lombardi, who Martin has known for a long time. He will be a part of the official visit weekend Martin will be on, and Martin says he is not going into the visit with any preconceived notions or expectations.
"I'm just going to let them show me their school,” he said. “One of my good friends, Rocky Lombardi, will be there and a lot of the other recruits in the class, so I'll be able to get around them and get a feel for them and the other players and see every part of the school I haven't before."
At this time, Martin does not have a decision date set.
He said offensive fit, coaching staff, past success and facilities will all play into his final decision.
Trieu: Michigan commits stand out in U.S. Army practices
West Coast DT may change MSU official
Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei defensive tackle Austin Faoliu is one of the recent players Michigan State has offered and he quickly set a visit to East Lansing. An Arizona commit, he has also added an Oklahoma offer and now the clock is ticking for him to be able to visit all those schools before Signing Day.
For that reason, Faoliu may have to change his plans.
"I have Michigan State for (Jan. 13) but I may visit Oklahoma that weekend and try and do a mid-week visit to Michigan State the same week as the Ole Miss one (Jan. 27),” he told Scout’s Greg Biggins.
Despite these visits, Faoliu maintains his commitment to Arizona.
Recruiting's huge riddle: Will Najee Harris land at UM?
Spartans offer D.C. safety
Noah Boykin, a junior safety from Washington (D.C.) Woodson, was offered by Michigan State on Thursday.
Boykin (6-2, 165 pounds) has additional offers from Iowa State, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Toledo.
Boykin has been to Michigan State. He was on campus as part of a college bus tour.
He finished his junior season with four interceptions on defense and nine touchdown catches on offense.
More information
Allen Trieu began covering the state of Michigan for Scout.com in 2005 and began managing the entire Midwest in 2009. He has been featured on the Big Ten Network on its annual Signing Day Show. His Michigan and Michigan State recruiting columns appear weekly at detroitnews.com.