Wisconsin · L 3-31
No tackles.
Richard has tackles in 7 of Michigan State’s 8 games: none against Wisconsin.
Michael Richard Jr.
Played for two head coaches at two programs in four seasons: Sonny Cumbie and Pat Fitzgerald. One game to point at: 5 tackles and 1 tackle for loss against Toledo — Week 1, 2026.
21 tackles · 0 sacks
Play style
Moves between deep coverage and the slot.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 3 tackles for loss, in the 7 games with play by play.
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| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Michigan State | 21 | 14 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- |
| 2025 | Louisiana Tech | 38 | 28 | 5.0 | 0.0 | 3 | 3 |
| 2024 | Louisiana Tech | 33 | 14 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- |
| 2023 | Louisiana Tech | 32 | 14 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 7 | -- |
| Career | 124 | 70 | 10.5 | 0.0 | 12 | 3 |
Last game (Wk 8): 3 tackles, 1 tackle for loss.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 7 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 30-20vs Toledo | 5 | 5 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 5 tackles |
| Wk 2 | W 35-7vs Eastern Michigan | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 10-27@ No. 3 Notre Dame | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 13-31vs Nebraska | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 37-38vs Illinois | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 7 | L 21-24vs No. 25 Northwestern | 4 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 10-28@ No. 9 UCLA | 3 | 3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 21 | 14 | 3.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 |
Ratings of the games shown run from -15 to +25 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
5%1 pass breakupsTackle volume
21tackles this seasonTFL rate
14%3 TFL21 tackles · 3 for loss · 1 pass breakup.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 7 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 3.4 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.2 |
| Road2g | 2.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 3.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.2 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 3.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Pat Fitzgerald
Pass share
44.3%
222 pass / 279 run
Plays / game
62.6
8 games
Team sack rate
9.4%
256 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS defensive backs who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #409 at the position.
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 37 games over four seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
2 coachesPlayed for 2 head coaches at 2 schools: Sonny Cumbie and Pat Fitzgerald.
Next stop · Transfer
Transferred to Michigan State
