Latest commitment packs character, smarts, instinctiveness
Jim Comparoni | Editor
Michigan State’s latest football commitment has rooted against the Spartans on a frequent basis - but maintained a secret affinity for MSU while doing so.
Edward Warinner committed to Michigan State on Wednesday via a phone call to head coach Mark Dantonio.
And Dantonio doesn’t mind for a second that Warriner rooted against MSU last year, and the year before that, and the year before that.
Warriner’s father, Ed, served as an assistant coach at Ohio State from 2012 to 2016. He left to become offensive line coach at run game coordinator at Minnesota on Jan. 10.
When Spartan fans were celebrating Jeremy Langford’s game-clinching TD run against the Buckeyes in the 2013 Big Ten Championship Game, or Michael Geiger’s game-winning field goal during the Spartans’ upset of Ohio State in 2015, Edward Warriner wasn’t quite so happy. But he was impressed.
“If you want to know the truth, I remember watching MSU in those games in 2013 and 2015 and all those years and thinking that would be a cool place to play,” Warriner said.
Cool enough to commit to Michigan State, just eight days after the Spartans offered him a scholarship.
The 6-foot-1, 225-pound Warriner will be a senior at Powell (Ohio) Olentangy Liberty High School next fall.
He is ranked the No. 42 player in Ohio by Rivals.com. He committed to Michigan State over offers from West Virginia, Rutgers, Cincinnati, Central Florida and others. He was scheduled to visit Iowa this weekend, but canceled when he realized his heart was with Michigan State.
“I really knew yesterday (Tuesday),” Warinner said. “I thought about it, I made my decision and I was all set. But I didn’t want to commit late that night because I had a lot of schoolwork to do.
“Wednesday morning, I shot Coach Tressel a text, saying that I wanted to call him at a specific time and that I had good news. Then I called Coach Tressel and I talked to him, and then he said, ‘You’ve got to talk to Coach Dantonio to commit,’ so he put me on the phone with Coach D and I committed, and here I am.
“To be committed to a great school, a great program like Michigan State is a great feeling. It’s really relieving.”
He could have chased more offers through the summer and fall, but realized he already had one he couldn’t pass up.
“I was thinking about my options that I had and the options that I could have had later on in recruiting as this moved forward, but yesterday I was perfectly sold and I knew I wanted to be a Spartan,” he said. “This wasn’t an impulse decision. I thought about it really thoroughly.
“I was supposed to visit Iowa this weekend and spend the whole weekend in Iowa City but I was so set on Michigan State that I decided to commit before I went out to Iowa City.”
Were the Hawkeyes going to be the next school to offer?
“Yeah, I think so,” he said. “I’m not going to say they were, because I’ll never know, but based on what I was supposed to do during the visit and the vibe I got from them, I think that would have happened. But that’s not really important to me because I’m set on Michigan State.”
What about Minnesota, his father’s new employer?
“I thought about Minnesota but for reasons that I will keep to myself, I didn’t think that’s where I wanted to play college football,” he said. “My dad was the most supportive of anyone when I committed to Michigan State and throughout the recruiting process. So it’s all good in my house.
Warinner’s father and Dantonio were briefly roommates in 1985 when they were assistant coaches at the University of Akron. Warriner was running backs coach at Akron. Dantonio was defensive backs coach. Akron was the first full-time assistant coaching job for both gentlemen. But Warriner soon left to join George Perles’ staff at Michigan State as a linebackers and secondary coach for the fall of 1985.
Warriner’s father has obviously watched Dantonio’s progress at Michigan State closely.
“He thinks it’s a great program and the success Coach Dantonio has had speaks for itself and it’s a great university,” said Edward Jr. “So he’s all sold on me going to Michigan State. He bought in.”
Warinner helped Olentangy Liberty to a 13-1 record and a berth in the state semifinals last year, although he sat out the last six games of the season after suffering a torn ACL.
“My recovery is going good,” Warinner said. “I’m all set to be cleared in May. I’m really doing well. The way it’s done today, it’s not even that big of a deal. I’m going to be all good for next year. All it did was take away the playoffs for me.
“I thought my knee was going to slow down a lot of things in recruiting for me, and it kind of did. Some schools that were talking to me kind of stopped but a lot of schools saw how well I was doing with the rehab, and they’ve seen all the dudes in today’s athletics who have come back from this injury even better than they were before, so there were enough schools on me that I knew I was going to be committed somewhere before August. Having it happen in April is pretty cool, too.”
HOW IT WENT DOWN
MSU offered Warinner on April 5 when he visited campus for the Spartans’ final practice of the spring.
“I took a day off from school and came up and visited and sat in the meetings and went to practice,” Warinner said.
Did he expect an offer during the visit?
“When I was driving up there, no,” he said. “But during the visit, the vibe I was getting, I kind of felt it coming and then it happened.”
While watching practice, he saw Dantonio point in his direction and call him out to mid-field.
“He pointed to me and told me to come over from the sidelines,” Warinner said, “and he offered me.
“I was really happy. Getting offered by any school is really cool. It was really a great feeling. Obviously it resonated well with me.”
What does Dantonio like about Warinner?
“He said he likes my character,” Warinner said. “He said I’m the type of person that would thrive at MSU. He said he loves the way I play linebacker. He said they think that I’m a really instinctive linebacker that makes plays, fills well, tackles well, plays smart.
“I’ve always been in charge of the defense since I’ve been in high school and they said they expect that to be the same when I go to Michigan State. They think that I’m an ideal guy to play in the middle. They think I can do really well at Michigan State and so do I.”
Dantonio didn’t push for a commitment. But eight days later, Warinner was eager to call him back with a decision.
“Coach D was happy when I talked to him and committed,” Warinner said. “It was all positive. We had a good talk and I’m feeling good.”
Last week marked Warinner’s third visit to Michigan State. His first was during last fall’s football game against Wisconsin.
“The atmosphere at Spartan Stadium is really cool,” he said. “Really pretty campus. It’s a football school. I mean you’re going to play in front of a nice crowd, passionate fans and it’s a great university.”
FILM REVIEW: When watching Warinner highlight tapes, it’s clear he crams in film study prior to games. He is always taking smart, early steps while making his reads, an indication that backfield flow, line play or other tendencies have tipped him off on where the play is headed.
He admits to being a film studier.
“We’re coached up really well,” he said. “I wouldn’t like playing in a football game if I wasn’t prepared. So I take pride in knowing the gameplan and knowing what I’m doing, especially at a position like linebacker.”
COMPARISONS? Linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator Mike Tressel likes Warinner’s mind.
“But Coach Tressel told me he thinks I’m smart, like Max Bullough,” Warinner said.
“I always liked watching Jon Reschke play and that’s the kind of player I would like to be. I mean shoot, being like any of the guys would be great - like Riley Bullough, Chris Frey, any of them.
“But I don’t want to compare myself to anyone because I haven’t earned that right to be compared to anyone yet.”
WHAT’S NEXT: Warinner isn’t sure if he will attend summer camps. And there’s no baseball or track and field for him this spring.
“Right now, my spring sport is rehab,” he said.
When news broke of his commitment at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, he declined to do interviews until after his team workouts were complete.
As for next fall, he’s dialing up for a run in the playoffs.
“We’ll be really good again this year,” he said. “We’re a well-coached team and we have a lot of guys that are pretty talented. I’m excited about it.”
Jim Comparoni | Editor
Michigan State’s latest football commitment has rooted against the Spartans on a frequent basis - but maintained a secret affinity for MSU while doing so.
Edward Warinner committed to Michigan State on Wednesday via a phone call to head coach Mark Dantonio.
And Dantonio doesn’t mind for a second that Warriner rooted against MSU last year, and the year before that, and the year before that.
Warriner’s father, Ed, served as an assistant coach at Ohio State from 2012 to 2016. He left to become offensive line coach at run game coordinator at Minnesota on Jan. 10.
When Spartan fans were celebrating Jeremy Langford’s game-clinching TD run against the Buckeyes in the 2013 Big Ten Championship Game, or Michael Geiger’s game-winning field goal during the Spartans’ upset of Ohio State in 2015, Edward Warriner wasn’t quite so happy. But he was impressed.
“If you want to know the truth, I remember watching MSU in those games in 2013 and 2015 and all those years and thinking that would be a cool place to play,” Warriner said.
Cool enough to commit to Michigan State, just eight days after the Spartans offered him a scholarship.
The 6-foot-1, 225-pound Warriner will be a senior at Powell (Ohio) Olentangy Liberty High School next fall.
He is ranked the No. 42 player in Ohio by Rivals.com. He committed to Michigan State over offers from West Virginia, Rutgers, Cincinnati, Central Florida and others. He was scheduled to visit Iowa this weekend, but canceled when he realized his heart was with Michigan State.
“I really knew yesterday (Tuesday),” Warinner said. “I thought about it, I made my decision and I was all set. But I didn’t want to commit late that night because I had a lot of schoolwork to do.
“Wednesday morning, I shot Coach Tressel a text, saying that I wanted to call him at a specific time and that I had good news. Then I called Coach Tressel and I talked to him, and then he said, ‘You’ve got to talk to Coach Dantonio to commit,’ so he put me on the phone with Coach D and I committed, and here I am.
“To be committed to a great school, a great program like Michigan State is a great feeling. It’s really relieving.”
He could have chased more offers through the summer and fall, but realized he already had one he couldn’t pass up.
“I was thinking about my options that I had and the options that I could have had later on in recruiting as this moved forward, but yesterday I was perfectly sold and I knew I wanted to be a Spartan,” he said. “This wasn’t an impulse decision. I thought about it really thoroughly.
“I was supposed to visit Iowa this weekend and spend the whole weekend in Iowa City but I was so set on Michigan State that I decided to commit before I went out to Iowa City.”
Were the Hawkeyes going to be the next school to offer?
“Yeah, I think so,” he said. “I’m not going to say they were, because I’ll never know, but based on what I was supposed to do during the visit and the vibe I got from them, I think that would have happened. But that’s not really important to me because I’m set on Michigan State.”
What about Minnesota, his father’s new employer?
“I thought about Minnesota but for reasons that I will keep to myself, I didn’t think that’s where I wanted to play college football,” he said. “My dad was the most supportive of anyone when I committed to Michigan State and throughout the recruiting process. So it’s all good in my house.
Warinner’s father and Dantonio were briefly roommates in 1985 when they were assistant coaches at the University of Akron. Warriner was running backs coach at Akron. Dantonio was defensive backs coach. Akron was the first full-time assistant coaching job for both gentlemen. But Warriner soon left to join George Perles’ staff at Michigan State as a linebackers and secondary coach for the fall of 1985.
Warriner’s father has obviously watched Dantonio’s progress at Michigan State closely.
“He thinks it’s a great program and the success Coach Dantonio has had speaks for itself and it’s a great university,” said Edward Jr. “So he’s all sold on me going to Michigan State. He bought in.”
Warinner helped Olentangy Liberty to a 13-1 record and a berth in the state semifinals last year, although he sat out the last six games of the season after suffering a torn ACL.
“My recovery is going good,” Warinner said. “I’m all set to be cleared in May. I’m really doing well. The way it’s done today, it’s not even that big of a deal. I’m going to be all good for next year. All it did was take away the playoffs for me.
“I thought my knee was going to slow down a lot of things in recruiting for me, and it kind of did. Some schools that were talking to me kind of stopped but a lot of schools saw how well I was doing with the rehab, and they’ve seen all the dudes in today’s athletics who have come back from this injury even better than they were before, so there were enough schools on me that I knew I was going to be committed somewhere before August. Having it happen in April is pretty cool, too.”
HOW IT WENT DOWN
MSU offered Warinner on April 5 when he visited campus for the Spartans’ final practice of the spring.
“I took a day off from school and came up and visited and sat in the meetings and went to practice,” Warinner said.
Did he expect an offer during the visit?
“When I was driving up there, no,” he said. “But during the visit, the vibe I was getting, I kind of felt it coming and then it happened.”
While watching practice, he saw Dantonio point in his direction and call him out to mid-field.
“He pointed to me and told me to come over from the sidelines,” Warinner said, “and he offered me.
“I was really happy. Getting offered by any school is really cool. It was really a great feeling. Obviously it resonated well with me.”
What does Dantonio like about Warinner?
“He said he likes my character,” Warinner said. “He said I’m the type of person that would thrive at MSU. He said he loves the way I play linebacker. He said they think that I’m a really instinctive linebacker that makes plays, fills well, tackles well, plays smart.
“I’ve always been in charge of the defense since I’ve been in high school and they said they expect that to be the same when I go to Michigan State. They think that I’m an ideal guy to play in the middle. They think I can do really well at Michigan State and so do I.”
Dantonio didn’t push for a commitment. But eight days later, Warinner was eager to call him back with a decision.
“Coach D was happy when I talked to him and committed,” Warinner said. “It was all positive. We had a good talk and I’m feeling good.”
Last week marked Warinner’s third visit to Michigan State. His first was during last fall’s football game against Wisconsin.
“The atmosphere at Spartan Stadium is really cool,” he said. “Really pretty campus. It’s a football school. I mean you’re going to play in front of a nice crowd, passionate fans and it’s a great university.”
FILM REVIEW: When watching Warinner highlight tapes, it’s clear he crams in film study prior to games. He is always taking smart, early steps while making his reads, an indication that backfield flow, line play or other tendencies have tipped him off on where the play is headed.
He admits to being a film studier.
“We’re coached up really well,” he said. “I wouldn’t like playing in a football game if I wasn’t prepared. So I take pride in knowing the gameplan and knowing what I’m doing, especially at a position like linebacker.”
COMPARISONS? Linebackers coach and co-defensive coordinator Mike Tressel likes Warinner’s mind.
“But Coach Tressel told me he thinks I’m smart, like Max Bullough,” Warinner said.
“I always liked watching Jon Reschke play and that’s the kind of player I would like to be. I mean shoot, being like any of the guys would be great - like Riley Bullough, Chris Frey, any of them.
“But I don’t want to compare myself to anyone because I haven’t earned that right to be compared to anyone yet.”
WHAT’S NEXT: Warinner isn’t sure if he will attend summer camps. And there’s no baseball or track and field for him this spring.
“Right now, my spring sport is rehab,” he said.
When news broke of his commitment at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, he declined to do interviews until after his team workouts were complete.
As for next fall, he’s dialing up for a run in the playoffs.
“We’ll be really good again this year,” he said. “We’re a well-coached team and we have a lot of guys that are pretty talented. I’m excited about it.”
