Last year was a much-anticipated junior campaign for Michigan State defensive back Dillon Tatum, a four-star recruit rounding into a playmaker. Instead, a season-ending injury midway through last year’s opener against Florida Atlantic put him out for the season. Now healthy, Tatum is seeking a different program to make his comeback.

Tatum entered the transfer portal Monday morning, he announced via X (formerly Twitter). He is the second scholarship player among the Spartans to leave after spring camp. Tatum played in 22 career games, nine of them starts, in a variety of spots in the secondary but mostly at cornerback.

“First and foremost, I’d like to thank God for allowing me to play the game I love,” Tatum wrote in his announcement. “I would live to thank coach (Mel) Tucker and staff for recruiting me to the school I’ve always dreamt of playing at. I’d like to thank coach (Jonathan) Smith for keeping me here through the staff transition. Special thanks to the athletic training and strength staff for believing in me through and through.

“Thank you to the MSU community and teammates for being such a special part in my career. With that being said, I’ll be entering the transfer portal as a grad transfer with 2 years of eligibility remaining.”

A four-star prospect out of 2020 Division 1 state champion West Bloomfield, Tatum started his Michigan State career in 2022 and made an immediate impact playing in all 12 games his first year. At 5-11 and 208 pounds, Tatum’s athleticism made him a threat in the secondary, where he recorded 62 tackles (2.5 of them for loss) with eight pass breakups. The majority of that production came in his sophomore season, when he was one of the bright spots on a 4-8 Spartans team in the wake of Mel Tucker’s firing.

Tatum stayed for Jonathan Smith’s first season leading Michigan State, but it quickly went awry. After 21 snaps on defense against FAU, Tatum sustained a lower-body injury. He didn’t suit up for another game as Michigan State went 5-7, part of a rash of injuries in the secondary that left as many as seven defensive backs out at once (against Purdue, a 24-17 win).

Heading into 2025, Tatum was expected to be an impact player as part of a secondary that lost some impact players to the transfer portal including Charles Brantley and Jaylen Thompson. Instead, he’ll take his talents to a different school with two years of remaining eligibility.

Michigan State retains a few impact players in the secondary.

At cornerback, Michigan State brings back a healthy Chance Rucker as well as returners Jeremiah Hughes, Ade Willie and Andrew Brinson IV. At safety, Nikai Martinez, Justin Denson Jr. and a healthy Khalil Majeed return.

That group is bolstered by the addition of a couple of defensive backs in December’s transfer window: Joshua Eaton (Texas State), Malcolm Bell (Connecticut) and NiJhay Burt (Eastern Illinois).