Went to the basement to join America's birthday party. I brought a cooler full of Keystone Light, fireworks and thought the party would be raging. Let's face it, everything is rolling right now for the green and white.... They have the legendary Coach Mel Tucker(CMT) and his dream team staff working away restoring Spartahhh to glory!!.
Except the basement was in a somber mood. CMT was supposed to both take MSU recruiting national AND retake the state. The current object of obsession is Jamari Buddin. Jamari was supposed to pick MSU over UM and PSU, proving Spartahh is back. Except Basement mod Corey Robinson just put a futurecast in for PSU... Today, Comp is busily hiding all sharp objects from the mob. Good luck Jamari, you weren't Spartan Dawg material anyway... At least they have this season to look forward to, right?
The most experienced position group for Spartahhh is their offensive line. Which poses a key question. When you return a veteran group, who has sucked every year they played, is this a good thing?
Here's the breakdown:
Overall
Left Tackle
Long-term outlook: Grim. They are devoid of depth and talent. Their recruiting has been awful and many kids have left through the portal. Unless they get an influx of talent, they will be Rutgers bad next year.
Except the basement was in a somber mood. CMT was supposed to both take MSU recruiting national AND retake the state. The current object of obsession is Jamari Buddin. Jamari was supposed to pick MSU over UM and PSU, proving Spartahh is back. Except Basement mod Corey Robinson just put a futurecast in for PSU... Today, Comp is busily hiding all sharp objects from the mob. Good luck Jamari, you weren't Spartan Dawg material anyway... At least they have this season to look forward to, right?
The most experienced position group for Spartahhh is their offensive line. Which poses a key question. When you return a veteran group, who has sucked every year they played, is this a good thing?
Here's the breakdown:
Overall
Key losses: Sparty only loses Cole Chewins and Tyler Higby from last year's crew. Which is fine considering Chewins had his career derailed by injuries and Higby played left tackle with guard-like athleticism.
Upgraded coaching. Welcome Dream Teamer, Chris Kapilovic to the MSU staff. Yes, that Chris Kapilovic. I have no idea how a coach can install a new OL system over Zoom, but if anyone can, a guy making 700K a year can. (editors note: like CMT proved, ransom is the best salary negotiating tactic. Tip your cap to the man for almost doubling his salary after 1 year at Colorado).
Left Tackle
- AJ Acrui (RS Sr, 3-Star). The great news: when healthy Acuri was an upgrade over Higby. The bad news, he isn't that much better and has a hard time staying healthy.
- Devonte Dobbs (RS Fr, 6-Star). Dobbs was last year's monster signing (beating UM) and he got to play in the max 4 games. The bad news is that we got to see him play in those 4 games. He showed a concerning lack of athleticism and strength. Thank god Lewerke had wheels. He needed them with Dobbs playing. There are rumblings he has a Higby-level ceiling.
- Spencer Brown (RS-Fr, 4-Star). Brown got tons of hype as another recruiting win over Michigan. He never sniffed the field last year. That is never a good sign when the guys playing in front of you were injured, awful, were desperate for depth and your reps don't count against your eligibility.
Outlook for the season. Acuri had best stay healthy, which he has never done. And even then, a healthy Acuri is a middle of the B1G-level LT talent. Besides him, MSU does not have a legitimate LT on their roster.
Left Guard
- J.D. Duplain (Soph, 3-Star). A bright spot for MSU last year as a freshman. He showed promise at LG and burned his redshirt. Looks like a solid starter for Sparty for the next 3 years.
- Luke Campbell (Sr., 3-Star). Played on bad knee all year and had ACL/meniscus surgery in offseason. He has bounced around the line all 3 years and has played with MAC-like ability when healthy. Who knows if he will be over the surgery when the season starts.
- Daymon Kaylor (RS-F, 3-Star). Late 2018 signing for Sparty with MAC offers. Did not sniff the field as a freshman and practice reports indicate his future may be brightest in the transfer portal.
Outlook for season. J.D. Duplain better stay healthy. Otherwise hope Campbell gets healthy and returns to early career form. That is a tall task for a guy who has never met anywhere near his potential.
Center
- Matt Allen (Sr. 2-Star). Allen also could not stay healthy. His older brother was a very good Center for MSU but the family resemblance ends there. Matt Allen is above average on his best day. But as a senior, Sparty should get the best of what he has to offer.
- Nick Samak (Soph, 3-Star). Played in 7 games as a true freshman. He didn't get Lewerke killed in pass pro. He saved that for the running backs who he was blocking for. A lack of strength was his biggest issue. He should be a decent backup for 2020.
- Blake Beuter (RS-Jr., Walk-on). Depth guy at best but saw spot duty at center and both guard positions. When he gets snaps, it means he is the last man standing.
Outlook for season. Matt Allen should hold down the position but it is not expected to be a position of strength on their line. Nick Samak, if he worked in the offseason, should be stronger and be the starter of the future.
Right Guard
- Kevin Jarvis (RS-Jr, 4-Star). Another mediocre-skilled interior guy who can't stay healthy. Jarvis was thrown in last year at LT due to desperation and performed poorly. Center is his home if healthy. If we see him getting reps at LT, then the end is neigh.
- Matt Carrick (RS-Jr, 3-Star). The good news, played a lot last year. The bad news he ranked the 6th best OL by PFF on a horrific MSU line. Unless he got body snatched by aliens and physically transformed in the offseason, he is going to be a depth guy in 2020. Having played as much as he did, there are worse depth guys on their roster.
- Jacob Isaia (RS-Soph, 3-Star). This is one of those "worse depth guys on their roster."
Outlook for season. Kevin Jarvis better stay healthy, which he has not shown the ability to do. Otherwise, they are making bad line position switches due to necessity. If healthy, Jarvis should be able to offer up B-level play.
Right Tackle
- Jordan Reid (Sr. 3-Star). Projects at center in the NFL. It seemed like just yesterday Reid signed with MSU. He has been undersized most of his career but is finally up over 300 lbs. He would be 3rd string at Michigan at RT. But he may be MSU's 2nd best lineman.
- Mustafa Khaleefah (RS-JR, 3-Star). Played sparingly. Had practice hype early in his career but has yet to have that hit the field. If he stepped up his game, it would be a major boost to MSU's line depth this year.
- James Ohonba (RS-Soph, 4-Star). Has gotten very few snaps in games. He may be a COVID victim in that another bad spring performance would have him through the Transfer Portal to greener pastures. He is showing the classic signs of being a bust.
Outlook for season. Reid has started at RT for 2 years and has played all 3. There is no reason to think he will be anything more than serviceable in 2020. Unless Coach Kapilofic can Zoom-inject some additional athleticism into him.
Outlook for season. In a normal world, Kapilofic would have installed the new scheme in spring ball. Even then, we know how challenging it is when changing schemes. Even with good players. Take this rag tag bunch of mediocrity and: change to a new scheme, via zoom, without spring practice, a new coach, terminology and you have a recipe for a death pool countdown for Rocky Lombardi. And with MSU's QB room being the grease fire it is, that will be just fine with me
Long-term outlook: Grim. They are devoid of depth and talent. Their recruiting has been awful and many kids have left through the portal. Unless they get an influx of talent, they will be Rutgers bad next year.
Last edited:
