Spartans Welcome NFL to East Lansing for Annual Pro Day

EAST LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan State football program welcomed NFL coaches, scouts and personnel to the Duffy Daugherty Football Building on Wednesday as the Spartans hosted their annual Pro Day.

Ten former Spartans participated on Pro Day, including defensive back Shakur Brown, defensive tackle Naquan Jones and linebacker Antjuan Simmons from the 2020 team. Brown and Jones earned invites to the NFL Combine, but the annual event wasn't held this year in Indianapolis due to COVID-19 concerns.

In addition, MSU head coach Mel Tucker welcomed back players from the 2019 team to work out in front of NFL personnel since last year's Pro Day was canceled. Seven players from 2019 returned to campus to perform on Wednesday: defensive backs Josh Butler and David Dowell, quarterback Brian Lewerke, offensive lineman Tyler Higby, tight end Matt Seybert, linebacker Tyriq Thompson and long snapper Ryan Armour.

All 32 NFL teams had representation at the event, and a total of 35 NFL personnel were in attendance.

Shakur Brown

Brown, who earned first-team All-Big Ten honors from the coaches as a cornerback in 2020, is looking to become the 10th Spartan defensive back drafted since 2010. He garnered second-team All-America accolades from the Walter Camp Football Foundation as a junior last fall after ranking first in the FBS in interceptions per game (0.71 pg; five in seven games).

The Stockbridge, Georgia, native tied for third in the FBS with five total interceptions in starting all seven games (first two at nickelback; final five at cornerback) for the Spartans. In addition, he ranked tied for second in the Big Ten with nine passes defended (five interceptions, four pass break-ups) and finished with a career-high 107 interception return yards, ninth most in an MSU season and second most in the Big Ten in 2020. He also had a career-high 25 tackles.

"It's just a feeling of excitement," said Brown after working out on Pro Day. "It's a blessing to be here…(I) just wanted to show what type of player I am, and what type of work ethic I have."

Naquan Jones

Jones recorded 24 tackles with a career-high 5.0 tackles for loss (7 yards) in his fifth year on the Spartan roster in 2020. A four-year letterwinner from 2017-20, Jones had 78 tackles, including 12.5 for losses (44 yards) and 3.0 sacks (20 yards), with three pass break-ups, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery, in 46 career games, making five career starts (one in 2019, four in 2020). Following the season, he competed in the 2021 Hula Bowl All-Star Game on Jan. 31 in Hawai'i.

"I've dreamt of this forever, for when I started playing football," said Jones about the opportunity to play in the NFL. "It's just one step closer. I set some goals for myself during this draft process, and I was able to meet many of them, and I'm still working toward meeting the rest of them.

"It was a tough decision to make (about possibly coming back for a sixth year in 2021), but I handled some things in college that I felt like I was ready to take that step. I got my degree, I've been here for five years now, and I felt like it was time for me to make that step, and I think I made the best decision."

Simmons led the Spartans in tackles for the past two seasons with a career-high 90 in 13 games as a junior in 2019 and 75 in just seven games in 2020. He earned second-team All-Big Ten recognition as a senior after averaging 10.7 tackles per game, which ranked second best in the Big Ten, and closed his career by starting 20 consecutive games at linebacker. Simmons ranks 26^th in Spartan history with 26 tackles for loss and 44^th with 231 career tackles.

"I've been pretty much working on everything," said Simmons about his preparation for Pro Day. "It wasn't one thing we had focused on. We wanted to make sure that everything was as good as it could possibly be when the day came. I felt good. I definitely felt like I put everything out there, I went as hard as I possibly can, so I can definitely live with the results."

The 2021 NFL Draft is set for April 29-May 1 in Cleveland, Ohio. Michigan State is one of just four schools (Florida, Michigan, USC) to have had at least one player chosen every year since the inception of the common NFL Draft in 1967. In addition, at least one Spartan has been selected in the NFL Draft since 1941, the third-longest streak in the FBS (80 straight).