Michigan junior tight end Erick All plows forward for a first down, dragging the tackling Michigan State junior linebacker Quavaris Crouch during the second quarter on Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021 in East Lansing. (Jake May | MLive.com)Jake May

Michigan State will be without its top offensive weapon in the final game this season as All-American running back Kenneth Walker III declared for the NFL draft earlier this month.

The No. 10 Spartans (10-2, 7-2 Big Ten) also have other players whose status is questionable for Thursday’s Peach Bowl against No. 12 Pittsburgh (11-2, 7-1 ACC) in Atlanta.

“We have a few guys that have decided not to play,” Michigan State coach Mel Tucker said on Sunday during a videoconference from Atlanta. “I support that and then we have some guys that are dealing with injuries that are either out or trying to play.”

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Tucker said linebacker Quavaris Crouch and tight end Tyler Hunt are unlikely to play while the status for left tackle Jarrett Horst remains uncertain. He didn’t mention starting receiver Jalen Nailor, who missed the last four games of the regular season with an apparent right hand injury, or others who have been out due to injury.

“I would say Crouch is doubtful, Hunt is doubtful, Horst is questionable,” Tucker said, “and I think everyone else is trying to get to the game, trying to play.”

Tucker also said defensive back Michael Dowell, who entered the portal on Nov. 28, is not expected to play in the Peach Bowl. However, there are other Spartans who have gone in the portal available against Pittsburgh.

“Those are individual decisions the players are making and I’m supporting them on the decisions that they do make,” said Tucker, whose team arrived in Atlanta on Friday. “I just told the guys at the very beginning, at the onset, if you’re in, you’re in 100 percent, and if you’re not in, let’s communicate that and then we’ll support you. And that’s the way we’re handling everything.”

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Michigan State has had 16 players enter the portal since the season began, including 13 since the end of the regular season. A team spokesman said of the players who have dressed for a game this season, Dowell is the only one of those 13 – other than receiver Ricky White and defensive back Michael Gravely, who were suspended from all team activities all season – who is unavailable for the Peach Bowl.

The others who entered the portal since the regular season ended are defensive backs Emmanuel Flowers and C.J. Hayes, tight ends Trenton Gillison and Kameron Allen, defensive end Jack Camper, offensive lineman James Ohonba, receiver Ian Stewart, linebacker Cole DeMarzo, defensive lineman Tyson Watson and walk-on kicker Evan Johnson.

Pittsburgh coach and former Michigan State defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi has a different view than Tucker on players entering the portal and still being available.

“I think it’s a bad deal when you let guys go in the portal and still play for you,” Narduzzi said Sunday. “I just wonder what it’s like in the locker room. … Once you go in the portal, you’re in the portal and you can stay in the portal.”

Aside from the availability of players in the portal, Michigan State may need to replace key veterans on both sides of the ball against Pittsburgh.

Crouch, an offseason transfer addition from Tennessee, has 75 tackles, two sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in 10 games this season. He started the first nine games before missing a win against Maryland, was limited while wearing a knee brace in a loss at Ohio State and didn’t play in a win against Penn State to close the regular season.

Hunt, a former walk-on punter who converted to tight end last year, has 14 catches for 136 yards and a touchdown in 11 games this season and didn’t play against Penn State due to an apparent injury. Horst, a transfer from Arkansas State, started the first eight games of the season but missed the last four due to what Tucker said was a medical reason.

Dowell started the first four games this season at nickelback before Darius Snow took over at the spot. He has 40 tackles, including two for a loss, and three pass break-ups this year.

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Related Michigan State football stories:

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Michigan State’s Kameron Allen, Ian Stewart and Cole DeMarzo enter transfer portal

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In just one season at Michigan State, Kenneth Walker III leaves lasting legacy

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