Donovan Winter, a three-star defensive lineman from Orlando, Florida, was expected to sign with the Spartans Wednesday, but that reportedly will not happen. According to the Orlando Sentinel, Winter was arrested Monday night on charges of burglary and larceny of a firearm. As of Wednesday morning, the Sentinel is reporting, Winter remains in custody at the Seminole County jail.
When reached by the Sentinel, Bishop Moore High School’s coach confirmed that Winter would not sign with the Spartans at the school’s ceremony. On top of that, the paper is reporting that Winter is not even enrolled at the school anymore.
The Sentinel learned early Wednesday morning that Winter would not be signing with Michigan State after his name was not on the tables set up for the other seniors set to sign their National Letters of Intent. The ceremony started at 7:30 a.m.
When asked via text, prior to the ceremony, if Winter would be signing today, Bishop Moore head coach Matt Hedrick replied via text, “No, he’s not signing. Long story.” Later Wednesday morning, the Sentinel learned that Winter is no longer a student at Bishop Moore and the school could not further comment on the situation.
The 6-foot-4, 240-pound Winter, rated as the No. 50 weakside defensive end in the country by Rivals, originally made his verbal commitment to MSU all the way back in June. Now, his status with the program is completely up in the air.
Though February 1 is the day most prospects sign, the signing period doesn’t officially close until April 1. MSU had a similar situation last year with defensive lineman Auston Robertson. The four-star prospect did not sign with the Spartans on signing day because of a misdemeanor charge. Robertson later entered a diversionary program and the Spartans accepted his signature later in February.
In Winter’s situation, he could perhaps sign with MSU if his legal situation is resolved. If not, Winter, who was expected to be one of 21 class of 2017 signees for the Spartans, could be left seeking another opportunity.
The Spartans are no stranger to signing day drama. In addition to the legal issues of Winter and Robertson, five-star defensive lineman Malik McDowell signed with MSU back in 2014, but his parents would not send in the National Letter of Intent. Two months later, on April 2, the NLI was finally sent to MSU. McDowell made an immediate impact for the Spartans and declared for the 2017 NFL draft.
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