Dantonio largely positive, assertive in Big Ten spring teleconference
Jim Comparoni | Editor
EAST LANSING - The rebuild and reset of Michigan State football is hitting the next stage.
With his team heading out of spring practice and toward the summer months, Mark Dantonio sounded as steadfast and task-oriented as ever during his seven-minute press briefing as part of the annual Big Ten spring football teleconference, Wednesday.
Reiterating a theme of threatened attrition he first mentioned in the season-wrap press conference in December, Dantonio publicly challenged his team to continue to work and bond, or become roadkill.
“We’re going to come together as a football team and we’re all going to go in the same direction and if we’re not going in the same direction, those people will be left behind,” Dantonio said.
Wednesday’s briefing marked Dantonio’s second football-specific press conference since Feb. 1, as he has stayed away from cameras and microphones while the program faces the scrutiny of investigations into alleged sexual assault. Three unnamed players have been suspended since early-February as a result of the allegations, as the Ingham County Prosecutor’s office continues to investigate. No charges have been brought against the players. Curtis Blackwell, the MSU football team’s director of college advancement and performance, is also suspended as a result of allegations.
“Obviously there is a concern off the field that we had and I addressed that in an earlier press conference so we need to work through those situations,” Dantonio said. “There’s no question that we need to continue to solidify ourself in every respect. But as much as anything, when you have a young football team, you need to find leadership and that leadership needs to translate on the field and off the field as well. So that’s what we’re doing. We’re finding who our leaders are.”
Dantonio’s press briefing lasted for seven minutes. He fielded six questions.
RED-LOCK AND UPWARD TRENDS
During the short briefing, he complimented sophomore quarterback Brian Lewerke and sophomore offensive lineman Tyler Higby for continuing to come back strong from injuries which ended their 2016 seasons.
But the first question he fielded centered around suspensions. He was asked if any players who played in the Green-White Game on April 1 had been suspended.
Dantonio acknowledged that there have been new suspensions, but downplayed the significance.
“We red-lock people from time to time,” Dantonio said. “We use the term ‘red-lock’ for various things. So yes there has been. There’s constant people in and out of different situations. I think that’s normal.”
This admission led to continued negative headlines about the team although Dantonio was otherwise positive and progressive about the direction of the Spartans.
“There are some other guys that are trending upward, they’re just young players,” Dantonio said. “Guys like Tyler Higby, who was a redshirt freshman last year and is coming off a broken (ankle), has improved and is getting back to playing and he could be a very good player. And he’s just one of the guys. A lot of those type of things have occurred.
“Matt Sokol looks good at tight end. I think our running back situation is going to be strong.
“So there’s a lot of areas on our football team that have strength and there are some other areas that have youth. I think that’s natural. When you look around, every football team in the country has positions of strengths and weaknesses and you have to capitalize on your strengths.”
CONTINUED ATTRITION?
As for weaknesses, Dantonio is working to fix those - possibly by subtraction.
He said in December that he expected attrition, following a 3-9 season - his worst in 10 years as MSU’s head coach.
Dantonio revealed in late March that third-stringer Drake Martinez had opted to transfer out of the program. Former starter Jon Reschke announced his plans to transfer in March after admitting to making what he called “an insensitive and totally regrettable comment” involving a former teammate.
On Wednesday, Dantonio was asked how much more attrition he expected prior to the outset of summer camp in late July.
“That’s a tough thing to evaluate because people make decisions after spring ball relative to what they’re going to do,” Dantonio said. “Some people tend to change. I think that’s natural.
“I can’t put a number on that. All I can do is we are going to do the things we have to do to move forward as a program.”
SPRINGING FORWARD?
Michigan State played the earliest spring football game of any team in the Big Ten this year, playing the Green-White Game on April 1, earlier than ever in a calendar year for the program.
Also, for the first time ever, Michigan State had two more practices after the spring game.
With spring practice having officially concluded, Dantonio was asked if he saw the type of improvement he needed to see through 15 spring practices.
“Yeah, I think we did, “Dantonio said. “We have a young football team. I don’t think there is any question about that. When you have eight seniors on your team, scholarship players, you are going to be relatively young.
“But we have a very strong junior class. I’ve been impressed with our younger players as they’ve moved forward. Guys are getting a lot of reps. They improve. When you’re young, you improve. It’s the daily improvement. The learning curve is a little bit greater, so you see a little bit more drastic improvement as you go.”
Examples?
“I’ve been very impressed with our quarterback, Brian Lewerke,” Dantonio said. “He’s 215 pounds now. He’s bigger, he’s faster.”
LEWERKE 'CLEARLY' THE STARTER
Lewerke started two games last year at mid-season, but was lost for the year with a broken leg in the second half of Michigan State’s loss to Michigan.
He completed 54.4 percent of his passes last year for 381 yards with two TDs and one interception.
“He throws the ball, has great rhythm,” Dantonio said. “He’s clearly the starter heading into the off-season. I think that’s warranted.”
Lewerke was expected to be pushed by redshirt freshman Messiah de Weaver during the spring, and fifth-year senior Damion Terry. But injuries limited Terry and de Weaver in the spring.
Neither player saw action in the Green-White Game on April 1. Dantonio expanded on their injuries for the first time, Wednesday.
“Messiah de Weaver had some back issues so he missed the majority, really almost all of the spring,” Dantonio said. “So that set him back a little bit. But I believe he is a fast learner and he is going to have opportunities here as he moves forward.”
“Damion was able to do a lot of pass skel (7-on-7) work. He had a surgery coming out of the season so we had to hold him out of contact work. But he’s a fifth-year senior. He has a lot of experience and he can be a very good quarterback but he has to stay injury-free. But he got a lot of reps in terms of drill work and things of that nature.”
THE REST OF IT
Dantonio’s seven-minute and 21-second teleconference appearance was near the conference average on Wednesday, with new Indiana coach Tom Allen having the shortest teleconference at 5:53 and Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz having the longest at 11:03.
Dantonio was asked which state, other than his school’s home state, is the most important for his program in terms of recruiting. Not surprisingly, Dantonio said Ohio.
“For Michigan State, we tend to go into Ohio,” Dantonio said. “My background’s in Ohio. We understand the football that’s played there. They play a high level of football. Michigan State has always been a place where we’ve gotten a lot of players from Ohio.
“Last year we had over 30, I believe, from the state. It’s a very important recruiting area for us. We have had some outstanding players from there.”
Ironically, Dantonio gained a commitment from his latest Ohio recruit shortly after the teleconference when linebacker Edward Warinner of Powell (Ohio) Olentangy Liberty High School committed to the Spartans over West Virginia, Rutgers, Cincinnati and growing interest from Iowa.
Brian Lewerke heads into the off-season as the clear No. 1 at QB, Dantonio said.
Jim Comparoni | Editor
EAST LANSING - The rebuild and reset of Michigan State football is hitting the next stage.
With his team heading out of spring practice and toward the summer months, Mark Dantonio sounded as steadfast and task-oriented as ever during his seven-minute press briefing as part of the annual Big Ten spring football teleconference, Wednesday.
Reiterating a theme of threatened attrition he first mentioned in the season-wrap press conference in December, Dantonio publicly challenged his team to continue to work and bond, or become roadkill.
“We’re going to come together as a football team and we’re all going to go in the same direction and if we’re not going in the same direction, those people will be left behind,” Dantonio said.
Wednesday’s briefing marked Dantonio’s second football-specific press conference since Feb. 1, as he has stayed away from cameras and microphones while the program faces the scrutiny of investigations into alleged sexual assault. Three unnamed players have been suspended since early-February as a result of the allegations, as the Ingham County Prosecutor’s office continues to investigate. No charges have been brought against the players. Curtis Blackwell, the MSU football team’s director of college advancement and performance, is also suspended as a result of allegations.
“Obviously there is a concern off the field that we had and I addressed that in an earlier press conference so we need to work through those situations,” Dantonio said. “There’s no question that we need to continue to solidify ourself in every respect. But as much as anything, when you have a young football team, you need to find leadership and that leadership needs to translate on the field and off the field as well. So that’s what we’re doing. We’re finding who our leaders are.”
Dantonio’s press briefing lasted for seven minutes. He fielded six questions.
RED-LOCK AND UPWARD TRENDS
During the short briefing, he complimented sophomore quarterback Brian Lewerke and sophomore offensive lineman Tyler Higby for continuing to come back strong from injuries which ended their 2016 seasons.
But the first question he fielded centered around suspensions. He was asked if any players who played in the Green-White Game on April 1 had been suspended.
Dantonio acknowledged that there have been new suspensions, but downplayed the significance.
“We red-lock people from time to time,” Dantonio said. “We use the term ‘red-lock’ for various things. So yes there has been. There’s constant people in and out of different situations. I think that’s normal.”
This admission led to continued negative headlines about the team although Dantonio was otherwise positive and progressive about the direction of the Spartans.
“There are some other guys that are trending upward, they’re just young players,” Dantonio said. “Guys like Tyler Higby, who was a redshirt freshman last year and is coming off a broken (ankle), has improved and is getting back to playing and he could be a very good player. And he’s just one of the guys. A lot of those type of things have occurred.
“Matt Sokol looks good at tight end. I think our running back situation is going to be strong.
“So there’s a lot of areas on our football team that have strength and there are some other areas that have youth. I think that’s natural. When you look around, every football team in the country has positions of strengths and weaknesses and you have to capitalize on your strengths.”
CONTINUED ATTRITION?
As for weaknesses, Dantonio is working to fix those - possibly by subtraction.
He said in December that he expected attrition, following a 3-9 season - his worst in 10 years as MSU’s head coach.
Dantonio revealed in late March that third-stringer Drake Martinez had opted to transfer out of the program. Former starter Jon Reschke announced his plans to transfer in March after admitting to making what he called “an insensitive and totally regrettable comment” involving a former teammate.
On Wednesday, Dantonio was asked how much more attrition he expected prior to the outset of summer camp in late July.
“That’s a tough thing to evaluate because people make decisions after spring ball relative to what they’re going to do,” Dantonio said. “Some people tend to change. I think that’s natural.
“I can’t put a number on that. All I can do is we are going to do the things we have to do to move forward as a program.”
SPRINGING FORWARD?
Michigan State played the earliest spring football game of any team in the Big Ten this year, playing the Green-White Game on April 1, earlier than ever in a calendar year for the program.
Also, for the first time ever, Michigan State had two more practices after the spring game.
With spring practice having officially concluded, Dantonio was asked if he saw the type of improvement he needed to see through 15 spring practices.
“Yeah, I think we did, “Dantonio said. “We have a young football team. I don’t think there is any question about that. When you have eight seniors on your team, scholarship players, you are going to be relatively young.
“But we have a very strong junior class. I’ve been impressed with our younger players as they’ve moved forward. Guys are getting a lot of reps. They improve. When you’re young, you improve. It’s the daily improvement. The learning curve is a little bit greater, so you see a little bit more drastic improvement as you go.”
Examples?
“I’ve been very impressed with our quarterback, Brian Lewerke,” Dantonio said. “He’s 215 pounds now. He’s bigger, he’s faster.”
LEWERKE 'CLEARLY' THE STARTER
Lewerke started two games last year at mid-season, but was lost for the year with a broken leg in the second half of Michigan State’s loss to Michigan.
He completed 54.4 percent of his passes last year for 381 yards with two TDs and one interception.
“He throws the ball, has great rhythm,” Dantonio said. “He’s clearly the starter heading into the off-season. I think that’s warranted.”
Lewerke was expected to be pushed by redshirt freshman Messiah de Weaver during the spring, and fifth-year senior Damion Terry. But injuries limited Terry and de Weaver in the spring.
Neither player saw action in the Green-White Game on April 1. Dantonio expanded on their injuries for the first time, Wednesday.
“Messiah de Weaver had some back issues so he missed the majority, really almost all of the spring,” Dantonio said. “So that set him back a little bit. But I believe he is a fast learner and he is going to have opportunities here as he moves forward.”
“Damion was able to do a lot of pass skel (7-on-7) work. He had a surgery coming out of the season so we had to hold him out of contact work. But he’s a fifth-year senior. He has a lot of experience and he can be a very good quarterback but he has to stay injury-free. But he got a lot of reps in terms of drill work and things of that nature.”
THE REST OF IT
Dantonio’s seven-minute and 21-second teleconference appearance was near the conference average on Wednesday, with new Indiana coach Tom Allen having the shortest teleconference at 5:53 and Iowa’s Kirk Ferentz having the longest at 11:03.
Dantonio was asked which state, other than his school’s home state, is the most important for his program in terms of recruiting. Not surprisingly, Dantonio said Ohio.
“For Michigan State, we tend to go into Ohio,” Dantonio said. “My background’s in Ohio. We understand the football that’s played there. They play a high level of football. Michigan State has always been a place where we’ve gotten a lot of players from Ohio.
“Last year we had over 30, I believe, from the state. It’s a very important recruiting area for us. We have had some outstanding players from there.”
Ironically, Dantonio gained a commitment from his latest Ohio recruit shortly after the teleconference when linebacker Edward Warinner of Powell (Ohio) Olentangy Liberty High School committed to the Spartans over West Virginia, Rutgers, Cincinnati and growing interest from Iowa.
Brian Lewerke heads into the off-season as the clear No. 1 at QB, Dantonio said.
