Ben Nelson is a massive, high-IQ depth piece for Michigan State’s defensive line
In the 2025 season, Ben Nelson was a 6-7, 311-pound redshirt junior who appeared in five games and handled 22 special-teams snaps, while Michigan State also noted he has three career tackles and three straight Academic All-Big Ten selections.[1][7][12] His appeal is the size, length, and steady, team-first profile: he gives the Spartans a developmental interior/edge body with proven reliability, classroom discipline, and low-drama depth value rather than flashy box-score production.[1][7]
