EAST LANSING — Nikai Martinez wanted to ball out last season as a senior safety for Michigan State. Instead, bad luck on the injury front kept him off the field. He appeared in four games, and he wasn’t really himself in those, either. Most of the time, he trotted along the sideline in his jersey and sweatpants, watching teammates muddle through a 4-8 season.
Last season’s tribulations add a sense of gratitude as Martinez approaches his final season of college football. He is counting down the days to Michigan State’s season opener against Toledo on Sept. 4, when he can finally complete his comeback.
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“It’s gonna be a surreal moment, for sure,” Martinez said Monday, Aug. 24, and he didn’t shy away from the emotions he thinks he’ll feel. “My last first game at Spartan Stadium. Being able to soak it all in but still be controlled because you still gotta play the game.”
Martinez is expected to be one of Michigan State’s starting safeties this season. He holds a lengthy résumé including 43 games played, 150 tackles made and three years studied under defensive coordinator Joe Rossi’s tutelage. Teammates voted Martinez one of six captains. Hearing the way they and their coaches speak about him, those ballots are no shock.
“He’s always been a general in our room,” safeties coach James Adams said. “He’s always been a voice and a presence. But for him now to be back in the grass, actually doing the work, not just being coach-guy, has been really cool.”
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Martinez joined Michigan State under former head coach Jonathan Smith in 2024, after the Apopka, Fla., native caught eyes in two seasons at Central Florida. He made 51 tackles in 2024 and seemed poised for a breakout in 2025, but a shoulder injury kept him out of his would-be senior season until Week 3 against Youngstown State. He suffered a concussion the next week against Southern Cal, then appeared in just two games — against Michigan and at Minnesota — the rest of the way. A redshirt gave him another chance to close out his college career this season.
Even when he was injured, Martinez stayed involved with his team at a time when that was no guarantee for a group unravelling on the field. As eight straight losses and their painful lessons piled up for the Spartans, Martinez tried to make his impact in the film room.
“He made every meeting,” Adams said. “And he’s a guy that’s going to be five to 10 minutes early with his notebook open. He’s watching film, and so he’s continued to be that guy all the way through.”
When the dust settled, Martinez made the decision to stay with Rossi and the Spartans under new management when Pat Fitzgerald became head coach. In the spring, Martinez praised the energy of his new coach. He also took it upon himself to be a guide for his new teammates, especially a crop of safeties and nickelbacks including touted Maine transfer Devin Vaught and Louisiana Tech transfer Michael Richard.
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“He helped a lot,” Vaught said. “Nikai is a very vocal guy on and off the field.”
And it’s safe to say that a healthy Martinez will be a big help for Michigan State’s secondary, which struggled last season without his communication. That got better as the season progressed, but having Martinez back to get his teammates organized has been a noticeable help on the communication front.
“It’s everything,” Adams said. “A saying we have in our room is you see and say everything, and when you don’t think it matters, it matters.”
Getting one more shot at college football matters to Martinez, too. He isn’t trying to waste it. Even if preseason prognostications are low — USA Today’s preseason poll tabbed the Spartans 17th among 18 Big Ten teams, and Vegas oddsmakers set the wins total at 3½ — Michigan State’s defense has already placed a chip on its shoulder that it can be a difference-maker. Outside of Mike linebacker Jordan Hall, Martinez may play as big a role as anyone in this defense becoming the kind of unit that can be a calling card.
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“Being able to play football is always a blessing,” Martinez said. “I’ve been playing since I was 3 years old, so any point where I get to put the cleats on, the shoulder pads and just do what I love is always a blessing.”
cearegood@detroitnews.com
@ConnorEaregood
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Nikai Martinez healthy, eyeing ‘surreal’ return to Spartan Stadium
