Spartan Preseason Camp Notes

8/6/2021 5:08:00 PM | Football

• Michigan State begins its second season under head coach Mel Tucker in 2021. Tucker, who was hired on Feb. 12, 2020, led the Spartans through a pandemic-shortened seven-game regular season in 2020. The second-year head coach conducted his first spring practice at MSU this year in preparation for the 2021 season.

• A 25-year coaching veteran with championship experience, Tucker was named Michigan State University's 25th head football coach on Feb. 12, 2020, following Mark Dantonio's retirement on Feb. 4. Tucker's resume, which began as a graduate assistant at Michigan State under Nick Saban, has an impressive track record of success. The journey that led him back to East Lansing included a head coaching position at Colorado (2019), five seasons as a defensive coach in the Southeastern Conference (2000; 2015-18), 10 seasons in the NFL (2005-14), and four seasons at Ohio State (2001-04). He was a defensive coordinator in the NFL for seven seasons and 11 seasons overall in his coaching career.

• In 149 games as a full-time coach in the FBS, Tucker's teams have collected a 108-41 (.725) record, including 10 postseason bowl games (2000 Peach, 2002 Outback, 2003 Fiesta/BCS National Championship, 2004 Fiesta, 2004 Alamo, 2015 Cotton/CFP Semifinal, 2016 CFP/National Championship, 2016 Liberty, 2018 Rose/CFP Semifinal, 2018 CFP/National Championship), three conference championships, three national championship games and two national championships (2002 with Ohio State, 2015 with Alabama).

• Four of Tucker's seven wins as a head coach in his first two seasons have come against AP Top 25 opponents (No. 11 Northwestern and No. 13 Michigan at MSU; No. 25 Nebraska and No. 24 Arizona State at Colorado). Tucker is 4-4 overall against AP Top 25 opponents (2-2 at Colorado; 2-2 at MSU). He became the first Spartan head coach to defeat a ranked team (AP No. 11 Northwestern) in his first home win.

• The Spartans are returning 49 letterwinners, including 26 on offense, 21 on defense and two on special teams. The Spartans welcome back 10 starters on offense (LT AJ Arcuri, RG Matt Carrick, LG J.D. Duplain, TE Trenton Gillison/Tyler Hunt, RB Connor Heyward, RT Kevin Jarvis, WR Tre Mosley, WR Jalen Nailor, WR Jayden Reed, C Nick Samac), seven on defense (DE Drew Beesley, CB Kalon Gervin, NB Angelo Grose, LB Noah Harvey, S Xavier Henderson, DE Jacub Panasiuk, DT Jacob Slade) and two on special teams (P Bryce Baringer, PK Matt Coghlin). MSU has 31 players returning with starting experience, including 20 on offense and 11 on defense.

• Six Spartan seniors – center Matt Allen, offensive tackle AJ Arcuri, defensive end Drew Beesley, offensive lineman Luke Campbell, kicker Matt Coghlin and defensive end Jacub Panasiuk – are taking advantage of a rare opportunity, staying at MSU for another year with an extra season of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Allen, Arcuri, Beesley, Campbell and Coghlin are all back for a sixth year, while Panasiuk returns for a fifth season.

• Michigan State added 20 transfers on its 2021 roster. Here's a breakdown of the incoming transfers by conference/division:

-SEC (5): LB Quavaris Crouch-Tennessee; RB Harold Joiner-Auburn, CB Chester Kimbrough-Florida; TE Powers Warren-Mississippi State; CB Ronald Williams-Alabama
-ACC (4): WR Christian Fitzpatrick-Louisville; DE Drew Jordan-Duke; CB Marqui Lowery-Louisville; RB Kenneth Walker III-Wake Forest
-Big Ten (3): LB Itayvion Brown-Minnesota; TE Maliq Carr-Purdue; LB Ben VanSumeren-Michigan
-AAC (1): QB Anthony Russo-Temple
-Big 12 (1): P Cody Waddell-Texas Tech
-Pac-12 (1): CB Khary Crump-Arizona
-Sun Belt (1): OT Jarrett Horst-Arkansas State
-Independent (1): LB Samih Beydoun-Army West Point
-Division II (1): DB Kendell Brooks-North Greenville
-Division III (1): CB Spencer Rowland-Wheaton College
-Junior College (1): OT Brandon Baldwin-Independence Community College

QUICK LOOK AT THE 2021 SCHEDULE
• For the first time since 1982, Michigan State will open the season with a conference road game as the Spartans travel to Evanston, Illinois, to take on defending Big Ten West Champion Northwestern on Friday, Sept. 3 at 9 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on ESPN. The Spartans defeated the eighth-ranked Wildcats (CFP) last season in Spartan Stadium on Nov. 28, 29-20.

• Michigan State's home opener is set for Saturday, Sept. 11 vs. Youngstown State at noon in Spartan Stadium. After a season without fans due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it will mark the first home game Spartan fans will be able to attend since Nov. 30, 2019, against Maryland. MSU is 2-0 all-time against Youngstown State, with wins over the Penguins in 2011 and 2013.

• The Spartans will then face Miami at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Saturday, Sept. 18 at noon. It will mark the fifth all-time meeting between the Spartans and Hurricanes and the first since 1989.

• Michigan State hosts the first of four Big Ten home games on Saturday, Sept. 25 as Nebraska heads into East Lansing for the first time since the 2014 season.

• Homecoming is set for Saturday, Oct. 2 at 7:30 p.m. against Western Kentucky in the first-ever matchup between the Spartans and Hilltoppers.

• MSU returns to Big Ten action with back-to-back road contests at noon against Rutgers (Oct. 9) and Indiana (Oct. 16).
• Following a bye week, the Paul Bunyan Trophy will be on the line as Michigan State hosts rival Michigan on Saturday, Oct. 30 in Spartan Stadium. The Spartans have won nine of the past 13 games over the Wolverines.

• MSU opens November with a road game at Purdue (Nov. 6) before welcoming Maryland to Spartan Stadium on Nov. 13. The Spartans will face defending Big Ten Champion Ohio State in Columbus on Nov. 20 and then close out the regular season against Penn State at home on Nov. 27.

SPARTANS EARN PRESEASON HONORS
Several Michigan State Spartans have earned preseason honors entering the 2021 season:

• DE Drew Beesley (Pro Football Focus, third-team All-Big Ten)
• K Matt Coghlin (Athlon Sports, third-team All-Big Ten; Pro Football Focus, honorable mention)
• LB Quavaris Crouch (named one of the top 100 impact transfers by The Athletic at No. 69)
• OG J.D. Duplain (Pro Football Focus, third-team All-Big Ten)
• LB Noah Harvey (Phil Steele, third-team All-Big Ten)
• S Xavier Henderson (Phil Steele, third-team All-Big Ten)
• RB Connor Heyward (Paul Hornung Award Watch List)
• OT Jarrett Horst (Outland Trophy Watch List)
• WR Jalen Nailor (Phil Steele, second-team All-Big Ten; Athlon Sports, third-team All-Big Ten )
• DE Jacub Panasiuk (Athlon Sports, second-team All-Big Ten; Pro Football Focus, third-team All-Big Ten)
• WR Jayden Reed (Paul Hornung Award Watch List; Phil Steele and Pro Football Focus, third-team All-Big Ten at kick returner)
• QB Anthony Russo (named one of the top 100 impact transfers by The Athletic at No. 86)
• DT Jacob Slade (Pro Fooball Focus, honorable mention All-Big Ten)
• RB Kenneth Walker III (Doak Walker Award Watch List; Pro Football Focus, first-team All-Big Ten; named one of the top 100 impact transfers by The Athletic at No. 30)

SPARTAN COACHING STAFF
• Nine of Michigan State head coach Mel Tucker's 10 assistant coaches from 2020 are back on the sidelines this fall for the Spartans. Tucker promoted Travares Tillman to an on-field role as cornerbacks coach in January after Tillman was a senior defensive assistant at MSU in 2020.

• In addition, Harlon Barnett, who is entering his 13th season overall on the Spartan defensive staff and second with Tucker, will transition from cornerbacks to secondary coach. Barnett has coached four All-Americans, nine first-team All-Big Ten selections and 10 NFL Draft picks during his time at MSU (2007-17; 2020-).

• Chris Kapilovic, who enters his second season as the offensive line coach and run game coordinator at Michigan State, was promoted to assistant head coach in January. Kapilovic, 52, joined Tucker's staff in East Lansing in February 2020 after spending the 2019 season as the offensive line coach and run game coordinator in Colorado. Kapilovic has nearly 30 years of coaching experience, including roles as an offensive coordinator and/or run game coordinator at Southern Mississippi (2008-11), North Carolina (2012-18) and Colorado (2019). He has coached multiple NFL players, first-round draft picks and record-setting offenses during his career.

• Jay Johnson is the program's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Johnson, 51, is a veteran coach and administrator of 26 seasons, including 11 as an offensive coordinator at five FBS schools (Michigan State, Colorado, Minnesota, Louisiana, Southern Mississippi) in addition to coaching quarterbacks, running backs and tight ends as a position coach.

• A 25-year coaching veteran with stints at all levels of collegiate football and the NFL, Scottie Hazelton is in his second season as the Secchia Family Defensive Coordinator. Last season, Hazelton installed a new 4-2-5 defensive scheme for the Spartans. Hazelton arrived in East Lansing after spending one season as the defensive coordinator and linebackers coach at Kansas State in 2019.

• Ted Gilmore coaches the tight ends for the Spartans. Gilmore, who has coached 26 years, has experience at the FBS and NFL ranks and has developed numerous NFL players, draft picks and All-Americans during his ccareer. He was named the 2011 FootballScoop Wide Receivers Coach of the Year after mentoring consensus All-American Robert Woods and 2011 Freshman All-American Marqise Lee at USC. Gilmore, 54, previously spent five seasons (2015-19) as the wide receivers coach at Wisconsin.

• Former Spartan great Courtney Hawkins is in his second season as the wide receivers coach, while William Peagler enters his second year coaching the running backs.

• With more than three decades of coaching experience, Ross Els is in his second season as the program's linebackers coach and special teams coordinator. Els, 54, has previous experience in the Big Ten, serving as the defensive coordinator at Purdue in 2016 and four seasons at Nebraska under Coach Bo Pelini from 2011-14.

• Ron Burton, who enters his 29th year of coaching, is in his ninth season on the defensive staff at Michigan State and coaches the defensive line. Burton is the only coach to win the FootballScoop National Defensive Line Coach of the Year Award twice, an honor he won for the second time in 2018 after MSU finished with the top-ranked rushing defense in the country. Burton also won the award during his first season in East Lansing in 2013 when the Spartans claimed the Big Ten Championship, won the Rose Bowl, and finished No. 2 in the FBS in total defense and rushing defense.