Former Michigan State offensive lineman Ethan Boyd retires from football

Earlier this offseason, Michigan State and coach Jonathan Smith experienced one of the largest transfer classes of any college football program in the country.

Coach Smith lost nearly 20 scholarship players at once to the transfer portal. The mass exodus included several starters from last season and players who were expected to compete for a starting position this season, such as offensive lineman Ethan Boyd, who left for the University of Colorado.

According to Colorado Beat writer Brian Howell, Boyd will not only not participating Colorado’s football program this upcoming season, but will not be joining a college football program at all, as its talented offensive linemen are reportedly retiring altogether. Boyd’s retirement from football is one of many examples of former Michigan State players finding themselves in surprising situations after transferring from Michigan State upon the arrival of Smith.

According to 247Sports, Boyd was one of the top-ranked offensive tackles in the 2021 recruiting class, ranked 42nd best offensive lineman in the nation and 12th best offensive lineman out of Michigan in the 2021 recruiting class. Boyd was an Academic All-Big Ten selection during the 2022 season, where he was a redshirt freshman.

During his redshirt sophomore season, he played in all 12 games for Michigan State, including three starts at right tackle. He also earned Big Ten academic honors for the second consecutive season and saw a significant increase in playing time from the previous season. The 6-foot-7, 325-pound offensive lineman was primarily a reserve his last two seasons at Michigan State, but was expected to start more games for Michigan State this season before transferring to Colorado.

Boyd’s departure from Michigan State came as a surprise, as he is originally from East Lansing and was productive on the court for Michigan State.

Boyd was ranked as a three-star offensive lineman coming out of college, and his departure from Colorado’s football program was even more surprising than his departure from Michigan State. According to Pro Football Focus, Boyd earned an overall grade of 60.5 during the 2023 season, with a run-block grade of 67.7 and a pass-blocking grade of 43.3. Boyd was considered a key addition for Colorado this coming season.

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