With the spring transfer portal window closing, players are choosing their next opportunity to reach the next level. The Michigan State Spartans found a talented defensive end in the portal in Jack Lamancusa from Hope College.
Lamancusa is a two-sport transfer with an unconventional path to East Lansing. He committed to Michigan State two days after the Spartans landed Isaac Smith from Texas Tech.
Michigan State’s Jack Lamancusa Takes Unconventional Path from Hope College to Big Ten
Jack Lamancusa, a former basketball player turned defensive end, transfers to Michigan State from Hope College with three years of eligibility after a unique journey through trade school.
Lamancusa, 21, graduated in 2022 from Rockford High School, where he predominantly played basketball. For his senior season, friends convinced him to try football for the first time since middle school.
“And I kind of fell in love with it,” Lamancusa said Friday. “But after high school, I was drained from sports because I played AAU basketball year-round. So I took a gap year to figure out what I wanted to do.”
After high school, Lamancusa enrolled in an electrician apprenticeship through C.S. Erickson in Grand Rapids. His passion for football persisted, and a chance encounter reignited it.
In fall 2023, Lamancusa ran into Hope College football coach Peter Stuursma on the sidelines at a Rockford game at Caledonia. Stuursma had recruited him in high school and remembered his potential.
Lamancusa enrolled at Hope in January 2024 as an exercise science major and, after spring practice, emerged as a starter for the Flying Dutchmen. The 6-foot-2, 250-pound Lamancusa recorded 43 tackles and four sacks, earning first-team All-MIAA honors and second-team all-region recognition from D3football.com.
Hope finished eighth nationally in run defense, allowing 61.3 yards per game, with Lamancusa playing a major role.
“He has worked his butt off in that gym. This is all on him,” his mother, Stephani Lamancusa, said. “It’s a Cinderella story. That gap year allowed him to really appreciate academics and athletics.”
After the season, Lamancusa approached Stuursma about leaving the program. Because Division III schools cannot offer athletic scholarships, he wanted to explore opportunities to fund his education.
“I said, ‘Buddy, what’s the question? Go be great,’ ” Stuursma said. “He doesn’t have to be anybody he’s not. Just be you. And he was great. … I’m telling you, that dude can flat-out play.”
Stuursma praised Lamancusa’s maturity, class and dignity.
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“It’s a cool story because of him,” Stuursma said. “It says a lot about his family and a lot about him. We’re super-proud of him. We’ll see where it goes.”
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