Demetrius Cooper spent most of his first three seasons at Michigan State absorbing as much knowledge as he could from a veteran, talented defensive line. It came as a bit of a shock this summer when he stepped back enough to see he was now the one doling out advice.
What triggered him to make that realization? Things had gotten much quieter in those offseason position group meetings.
“Honestly it feels a lot different. Going into summer camp, it’s a big change,” Cooper said. “Now it’s more of a business type of thing because we’ve got a lot of young guys in there trying to learn the playbook. There’s not as much time to joke around.”
The Spartans defensive line has been a linchpin of the program’s recent success. It also was the loosest and goofiest group on the roster during the team’s run to a College Football Playoff berth last season. Former starters Lawrence Thomas, Joel Heath and all-conference jester-in-residence Shilique Calhoun all are on NFL rosters this August, leaving Michigan State with a room full of less experienced and less gregarious linemen eager to take their vacant spots.
Talent and size aren’t major issues in East Lansing. Defensive line coach Ron Burton has plenty of raw material at his disposal, starting with preseason All-American Malik McDowell in the middle. McDowell, the line’s only returning starter, is joined by a group of underclassmen who have impressed the Spartans coaching staff during the first week of practice.
Redshirt freshman Raequan Williams and true freshman Mike Panasiuk both have shown the strength and technique to be run-stoppers in the middle. Burton said fellow rookies Auston Robertson and Josh King have the size to contribute as pass-rushers this season. All of them are still works-in-progress, though.
“Their size is there and their athleticism is there,” Burton said. “They have to continue to work on their fundamentals. That’s what we’re harping on right now. They’re showing the athleticism that allows them to get on the field right now, but at some point in time [being] assignment sound is going to have to be the key.”
Michigan State did its best to import some of the experience that normally molds fundamentals by signing transfers Kevin Williams and Gabe Sherrod to join the group this season. Both Williams (formerly of Nebraska) and Sherrod (Delaware State) are in their final season of eligibility, but believe helping their younger teammates is part of their responsibility even as one-term players for the Spartans.
Williams said he and head coach Mark Dantonio discussed mentoring younger players as being a big part of his role in East Lansing while the former Cornhusker was deciding where to transfer this summer. He acknowledged that trying to help others despite being the new guy on campus and competing for playing time at the same position has its potential pitfalls, but said he hasn’t encountered many issues on that front so far.
“It’s been really smooth and it’s been going well,” Williams said. “Those guys have been showing that they know how to play with technique and really improve themselves. I like where we’re going.”
Williams probably ingratiated himself with the Spartans defensive line by telling them his old team “might have gotten away with one” when Nebraska upset Michigan State in the final seconds of their meeting last November.
The competition on the defensive front will increase this week during what Burton called “separation week,” when coaches will try to get a better feel for how much each player will be able to contribute in the 2016 season. The coach can expect more quiet days with heads buried in playbooks in his immediate future.
