First-Time Captains Ready to Lead in 2016
8/25/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
By Steve Grinczel, MSUSpartans.com Online Columnist
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Riley Bullough, Tyler O'Connor and Demetrious Cox couldn't have plotted three more divergent vectors to the same destination: the captaincy of the Michigan State football team.
The fifth-year senior trio was selected to lead the 2016 Spartans by a player vote that was announced Thursday.
Bullough ascended to the post almost as if by birthright; O'Connor never stopped dreaming he'd be co-captain despite times when it looked like it might never happen; Cox wouldn't have even been around for consideration if head coach Mark Dantonio hadn't suppressed the urge to play him as a true freshman in 2012.
Bullough's captaincy was all but presumed since last season ended in the second College Football Playoff. His older brother Max captained Michigan State in '12 and '13 and his father, Shane, received a captain's ring after the '86 season. Furthermore, Grandfather Henry (1952-54) and Uncle Chuck (1988-91) loom as prominent figures in Spartan lore.
Riley Bullough, however, wasn't about to rest on his or the First Family of MSU Football's laurels.
"It's always great to be honored by teammates and them voting for us three means a lot," said the fiery middle linebacker. "(O'Connor and Cox) have been leaders for a while around here. I think the other people on the team noticed that, they recognized that and I think that's what you see today.
"They feel like us three can represent the team well, and I feel the same way. It's an exciting time -- finally voted a captain. This is my fifth year so to be at this point and to be voted captain is awesome. Last year we had great captains (Jack Allen, Darien Harris and Shilique Calhoun) and they did a great job. It wasn't my turn yet so I feel like I waited my turn and here we are."
Leadership might be written into the Bullough genetic code, but that doesn't mean Riley takes it for granted.
"It's never easy (because by) being a leader there's always tough things that are going to come your way," he said. "But you learn to deal with those things and you kind of get used to doing it. Being a leader is just kind of my personality. It does come natural, but it's never easy.
"It's a lot of hard work to get (to this point) because nothing here comes easy. I feel like I've put in a lot of work to get to where I'm at now and to see it pay off by being voted captain is really special to me. I do think it's been passed down from my grandfather and I got a lot of it from Max, growing up seeing how he handled things. I just kind of followed his footsteps."
Riley still would have been allowed to show his face at family gatherings had he not been elected captain -- after all, Henry and Chuck weren't -- but he's responsible for one more "C" on the family coat of arms.
"They would be proud either way but they'll be excited for me," he said. "I'll call my parents and I'll call Max later today and they'll definitely be excited."
Riley leads both vocally and by example.
"I think my enthusiasm and my intensity," he said when asked to cite his strongest leadership attributes. "Every day I come out here and try to get better -- not only myself but I try to get others better. I think that's an important part of being a leader and one of the things I do well."
O'Connor, who Dantonio named earlier in the week as MSU's No. 1 quarterback, began trying to emulate former Spartan quarterback Kirk Cousins in 2011. Dantonio was recruiting O'Connor out of Lima (Ohio) Central Catholic High School and Cousins was finishing up his career as a three-time starter and only the second three-time captain in school history.
For a brief time in '13, it appeared O'Connor might do Cousins one better because he was in the thick of the competition for the starting position as a redshirt freshman. Had O'Connor won the job, he would have been set up to be a four-year starter.
Alas, O'Connor ceded the job to Connor Cook, who for the next three seasons distinguished himself as one of the all-time Spartan greats. Meantime, O'Connor patiently watched and waited from the wings.
If perseverance and positivity aren't his greatest leadership skills, knowing how to follow an example and then adopting it would have to be. O'Connor takes pride in being able to relate to every member of the team -- from highest-rated former 5-star to most obscure walk-on -- just as Cousins did.
 | "It's always great to be honored by teammates and them voting for us three means a lot. (O'Connor and Cox) have been leaders for a while around here. I think the other people on the team noticed that, they recognized that and I think that's what you see today." |
"When I first got here, Kirk had just left," O'Connor said. "He was a three-time captain here and that was my first goal. I wanted to do the same thing Kirk did. It was after I watched him give a great speech at the Big Ten Luncheon, and he was a really important role model to me.
"Obviously, I didn't get the chance to be a captain for three years like he did, but this day and this opportunity is something I've been looking forward to for a long time. You get a sense of things going on around here by reading between the lines, essentially. That's kind of what I did with the starting-quarterback job. You start to get more reps with the ones and they start treating you more as `What do you like?' and things like that.
"Same thing with captain. The guys come and approach you, and you know that you have their respect, so you can kind of read between the lines. At the same time, to officially have those titles is a pretty big deal and I'm very thankful for it."
And yet, after all this time, O'Connor doesn't feel the formal designation was needed to validate his stature on the team.
"Sure, it's nice to finally get the title and whatever, the plaque that says `Captain' on it and things like that, but at the same time it's not going to change who I am, what I've done or how I'm going to treat each and every day here," he said. "I think the biggest thing is, I'm team-oriented. It's how I've been taught and it's everything I'm about no matter how well I'm doing or anything. If the team's doing well, then great.
"I care so much about everybody around me..., and want to make sure this team's going the right way. I'm just so team-oriented and all about this program. Kirk could have had all the publicity in the world but he was such a humble and selfless guy. Obviously, things are working out for him in the long run and that's just how it is: you stay the course and do things right and things will work out."
Cox was destined to be a difference-maker for the Spartans almost from the time he signed his name to an athletic scholarship tender. A highly regarded prep All-American defensive back out of Jeannette (Pa.) High, Cox made the travel roster as a true freshman in '12.
Cox's name rolled off Dantonio's tongue on a near-weekly basis as Michigan State struggled through close loss after close loss. Dantonio resisted temptation to burn Cox's redshirt all the way to a 7-6 finish, and as a result will be able to rely on his leadership this season.
Cox, whose next start will be his 16th in 42 games, plans to lead with a nurturing spirit.
"I just want to be a fun person to be around, somebody guys like to come to (for counsel)," said the rangy free safety who claims he's also more than a shoulder to cry on. "I don't want to be a captain, or leader, that says something just to say things.
"I'm pretty cool until I feel like something needs to be said, then I'll say something to whoever. I can have a lot of fun and bring a lot of enthusiasm but when it's time to get down to work that's what we've got to do and that's the kind of leader I want to be remembered as."
Cox's journey allows him to speak with the voice of experience. Despite Dantonio's high regard for him '12, Cox didn't crack the starting lineup in '13 and started only one game the following season.
Last year, the versatile Cox proved to be the most indispensable player on defense as illness and injury ravaged the secondary. He started the first four games at field cornerback, moved back to safety for the next two, switched back to corner for four more and played the final four at safety.
"Really, it was just the evolution of going through adversity, learning from past leaders' mistakes and my mistakes and getting through those mistakes to be able to make the next step in my career here without looking back or taking a step back," Cox said. "Being a positive vibe for the team has really been important for me.
"I feel like I can just be that voice between the coaches and the players. When things are going wrong, Coach D always says a player-led team is going to be better than a coaches-led team. There are certain things players are going to say to me that they aren't going to say to Coach D and that can be for a lot of different reasons. I feel like a lot of guys will be comfortable in my position to talk to me."
Three different approaches to inspiring on the field, providing guidance on and off it and managing issues on an individual basis before they adversely affect the whole.
They could also be called vectors for victory.
