Michigan State University Athletics
Spartan Spring Football Wrap-Up
4/14/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
April 14, 2001
Michigan State head football coach Bobby Williams
Opening Comments:
"This has been a very, very good spring for us. I think we are a much improved football team. With the addition of a few new players here and there and working with the freshman group, we are starting to develop very good team chemistry. We have taken the areas where I thought we were somewhat weak last fall and we have really tried to identify and work on those areas. The offensive line is coming together as a group and being a little bit more aggressive. The defensive line is more aggressive and it's focusing on stopping the run and trying to improve our pass rush. On special teams, we're really trying to make a big improvement there, with special emphasis on our return game. We're also looking at some new guys and some new schemes. I think we've had very positive overall production from that area. Last year, we had problems committing far too many penalties and we're really trying to make a special emphasis in that area this spring. We're also concentrating on just coming together as a team and putting all the pieces together. I thought the two new coaches jumped in and really did a fine job of learning the system and getting with the players and jumping right in and doing an excellent job in that area. It's tough when you lose coaches but when you have guys come in and adapt well, it makes the transition a lot smoother.
"Overall, I think it's been a very good spring. I think we will need our freshman class to come in and supplement us a little bit. I think we have guys coming in that will help us this fall. We have some guys that will definitely impact the program right away.
"We had a team vote Wednesday for our 2001 captains. I thought they did an outstanding job with the selection of our captains. We will have three captains again this year. Herb Haygood was selected from the offensive side of the ball. Ivory McCoy was selected on the defensive side and for the second-straight year, Josh Thornhill was selected as a team captain. I thought the team did an excellent job. Josh won by a landslide. Ivory and Herb split the rest of the votes. I thought all three of those guys did a tremendous job. I'm really proud of Herb because he's been out all spring with an injury, yet he's been one of the most vocal guys at practice, trying to help the young players. You look at our receiving corps and Herb's done a great job coaching those guys and helping them line-up in the right places."
Where do you expect to see a lot of improvement from last season?
"When you look at last year's personnel, we were limited from an offensive standpoint. I don't think we had the big-play threat that we had in our passing game in 1999. It seems like we have a chance to have that deep threat this year with our receiving corps.
"Defensively, we didn't have the pass rush and sack production that we had in 1999. It seems that is an area where we will be a little better.
"And on special teams, we really wanted to improve because I felt we had outstanding special teams in 1999. We were winning games with our special teams and putting ourselves in position to win games. That's something where I think we will make real improvement. Those are three areas where I think we will be a much-improved team."
Is the improvement in special teams because of personnel or system?
"I think 90 percent of it has to do with personnel. You have to make sure you have the right guys on the field. Overall, it comes from guys really wanting to do it. It's not just a down, it's a down that you have to take seriously and it takes effort and execution."
How is your depth on the offensive line?
"I think depth is real critical because when you look at our depth, we only have a few guys with game experience and most of those guys are on the first team. When you look at the second unit, those guys don't have much game experience. From a talent standpoint, I think we will have 10 solid offensive linemen and then we have to look at the guys that are coming in this fall. Hopefully, a few of them will fit in and make the travel squad to give us some more depth there. We don't have a whole lot of experience up front so that will be a concern to get some guys experience early."
Describe the quarterback situation.
"The quarterback race continues. The competition has been very good. Ryan Van Dyke has had the best spring of his career and Jeff has had a very good first spring. The race is so close that we can't determine the starting quarterback at this point. Hopefully, we'll be able to settle on a starting quarterback in the first few weeks of preseason camp."
Could you use a two-quarterback system?
"If we get down to game week and it's still a draw, we'll play both guys and see how they respond in game situations. You have two guys that are very experienced and very talented. They both should be able to lead this football team."
What have you done with the pass rush?
"We've done some things from a personnel standpoint and we're still not where we should be. I also think some different schemes are going to help us. Moving Mike Labinjo from fullback to defensive end gives us some speed on the edge. Samalj Gordon, Greg Taplin and Josh Shaw - those guys all have experience, so they all should help with upgrading the pass rush."
What upperclassmen have made some big strides this spring?
"There have been a few. With moving McCoy over to defense, Luc Mullinder was forced into a larger role at tight end and he's stepped up and improved a great bit. It's really nice to see Marcus Waters take the next step as a receiver. Charles Rogers has really come on strong and BJ Lovett has been a pleasant surprise. Out of all the new receivers, BJ is the oldest and most mature. He can make plays for us.
"Jason Bradley has emerged as the back-up middle linebacker, behind Josh Thornhill. Mark Goebel has really solidified himself as the starting weak-side linebacker. We've also taken Monquiz Wedlow from his safety position and made him a nickel linebacker where he's really done a great job. Duron Bryan is pushing to be in the starting lineup at the safety spot opposite Thomas Wright. Bryan and Lorenzo Guess have good competition going there at free safety. Broderick Nelson is really coming around at the corner position. There have been a lot of guys who have really showed some improvement."
Talk about Charles Rogers' development.
"Every day, the guy works extremely hard on the football field. He's improved daily. He has a tremendous amount of ability but he's still learning. I think we are going to have a situation that will really benefit Charles' development because he won't have to be the primary focus of our offense. We have a number of other guys that can make plays down the field. When you only have one big-play receiver, people tend to really focus on him. I don't think defenses will be able to do that with our receiving corps."
Talk more about the battle for the starting job at quarterback.
"Jeff Smoker's performance level hasn't fallen off but rather, Ryan Van Dyke has raised his game. When we said the quarterback job was open, the race really brought out the best in both guys. Ryan went into the 2000 season as the starting quarterback and he was very sharp. After he injured his thumb, he never got back to where he was at the start of the season. Now, he's where he was heading into the 2000 season. Now, he's a lot older and more mature. He's also in pretty good shape right now and I'm happy with his production. I'm pleased with the way they both have performed this spring.
"It's been such a tight race all spring. They both graded out fairly even in the first two spring scrimmages. Smoker graded out higher in the first scrimmage while Van Dyke graded out better in the second scrimmage. It's impossible to say who's ahead right now. Both guys have different strengths. Smoker runs the option a little better but Ryan throws better on rollouts.
"Right now, it (the quarterback situation) isn't an issue. If we don't have a starting quarterback by Sept. 8, it becomes an issue. That's when we need to say, `Hey, this is the guy.' I'm very confident that this quarterback situation will be straightened out before the season opener. As I said earlier, if the quarterback race remains deadlocked then they both are going to have to play and we'll have to judge their performance based on what happens in the game. If we have this same situation on Sept. 8, they both will play. If today was the season opener, Jeff would start and at some point in the game, Ryan would come in."
Linebacker was a question mark heading into the spring. How have you address your concerns?
"Josh Thornhill is the starter at the middle linebacker, with Mark Goebel at weak-side linebacker and Ivory McCoy at the strong-side position. The second unit looks like this, with Jason Bradley backing up Thornhill, Monquiz Wedlow working behind Goebel and Dominick Brown playing behind McCoy.
"James Cooper was competing for the job at weak-side linebacker but got injured early in the spring. I'm sure James will make another push when he returns in the fall. We'll also look at a few freshmen when they report in August. We also have some depth at linebacker, with Matt Dawes at MIKE, Matt Kropf at WILL and Dedrick Roper at SAM."
How do you upgrade the performance of your special teams?
"It all comes down to execution and that's where we fell off last year. We didn't have the execution that we needed. We simply had too many breakdowns at critical times.
"The specialists have performed better this spring. Craig Jarrett is really punting the ball a lot better and with more consistency. Craig's back to the form he had in 1999. Dave Schafer also has improved but he's getting pushed by Michael Servis, who also has had a very good spring. The placekicking battle is still going and we'll have a little kick-off competition today.
"I'll never say I'm satisfied with anything. We're making progress on the special teams but we're still not where we need to be. The place-kicking competition will go into the fall because I want to look at an incoming freshman, who might be a factor in this race."
Talk about the progress Dominick Brown has made this spring.
"Dominick Brown has had a very good spring. We're looking at Dominick as a strong-side linebacker first and a defensive end second. Dominick is such a big kid at 255 pounds that at some point where going to have to decide which position fits him best. Right now, we're looking at him as a combo linebacker/defensive end. If he continues to grow, he may turn into a defensive end. It's scary because he's such a big kid and he's only a sophomore. He's grown from the fall to the spring and we'll continue to watch his development this summer. Dominick is in the same boat as Charles Rogers from a learning standpoint. Both of those guys didn't play last fall and they're still learning the system and learning how to play at this level. Their continued development is going to be critical this summer."
Has Charles Rogers taking over as the team's punt returner?
"Charles Rogers has been working with the first team back there, backed up by Shawn Foster and Ziehl Kavanaght. Right now, Charles is the guy that we're going to put back deep to return punts."
What kind of an impression had James Cooper made a linebacker prior to his injury?
"James Cooper was making strides at WILL linebacker. We were high on him last fall because of what we saw from him on the scout team. James has a lot of ability. The injury has set him back some because he has missed three weeks of work but I'm confident that he'll get back into the swing of things. He's a guy that can help us."
How important was it for Chris Baker to return for his senior season?
"Chris Baker has always been a productive tight end for us and he's an important player in our offense, so I'm glad we got him back for another year. Chris has had a very good spring and this is a big year for him in terms of improving his stock as a pro prospect. He's an important part of our offensive playbook."
At the conclusion of the press conference, Coach Williams displayed the team's new helmet design for this fall.
"Here's the look for the 2001 Michigan State Spartans. The Block S returns on the green metallic helmet. The Block S will be on both sides of the helmet with a single stripe down the middle. I don't know how familiar you are with the history of the Spartan helmet but in the late 1930s and early 1940s, the Block S appeared on the front of the leather helmets. Then in the 1980s and mid-90s, the Block S was just on one side of the helmet. In 2001, the Block S decal will be on both sides.
"The Block S is the most-recognized symbol of Michigan State University - not just the athletics department but the entire university. I'm excited that the Block S is back on the helmet and so are the players. There's one other change to the uniform. The team will wear black Nikes too.
"The decision to change the look of the helmet isn't a personal issue with me. University marketing research has indicated that the Block S is the symbol that the public associates with Michigan State."
