EAST LANSING, Mich. — Spring football served as the perfect remedy for an ailing Michigan State offense. New offensive coordinator Brad Salem made his introduction and has worked to install what has been hailed as a “new age” offense that will fit the personnel at his disposal. Quarterback Brian Lewerke hit the reset button, impressing in the spring game and inspiring many to believe he can regain his 2017 form. Spring can sometimes be more hype than substance, but these were steps in the right direction.
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With the session coming to an end, we now have plenty of time to reflect and project ahead of the next round of availability — fall camp in August. First things first, a new depth chart. Starting with the offense. (The defense will follow on Tuesday.)
As a reminder, here’s how we thought things would look heading into the spring, so you can get an idea of how things have changed over the past few weeks. Most of the updates you’ll find come from the second- and third-string players who stood out this spring and made a push for more playing time. Based on the spring game, what the coaches and players have been saying and what we saw in practice, here are where things stand offensively at Michigan State.
Quarterback
Starter: Brian Lewerke
Backup: Rocky Lombardi
Overview: Coaches had to be encouraged by Brian Lewerke‘s spring. He announced himself pain-free in early March and looked healthy, confident and calm by the end of the session, completing 14-of-20 attempts for 181 yards, two touchdowns and an interception in the spring game.
Michigan State coaches have, unsurprisingly, kept much of the offensive developments under wraps this spring, but Lewerke said Salem is installing a “new age” offense that will feature more RPOs. It’s only spring, but that should be music to the ears of Michigan State fans, considering Lewerke’s dual-threat ability that was so often underutilized last year.
There’s work to be done, of course. If you ask most players and coaches across the country, they’ll tell you they’re happy with how their spring turned out. But Lewerke tightened his grip on the starting job, and that’s important. If he’s right, Michigan State’s ceiling is sky high.
This is no knock against Rocky Lombardi, who will enter the fall as Lewerke’s backup — a very capable one at that. Lombardi spent a portion of his pre-spring offseason traveling to IMG Academy in Florida to work with quarterback coaches. There, he worked to quicken his release and learn how to effectively throw when the pocket collapses around him, something he struggled with at times last year as a wide-eyed redshirt freshman. This is what you want to see from your No. 2 — a player who prepares like a No. 1.
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But this was always going to be Lewerke’s job to lose, and he performed well enough to keep this from becoming a true quarterback competition.
Running back
Starter: Connor Heyward
Backup: La’Darius Jefferson, Anthony Williams Jr.
Overview: Mark Dantonio challenged his running backs this spring, openly addressing the room to ask which of them will step up and lead the team with 200-plus touches. That’s what he’s looking for, and the search is ongoing.
As it stands now, after the allotted 15 spring practices, there’s a clear pecking order at the top of the depth chart. Connor Heyward, entering his junior season, will get the first shot at being the lead back. He’s the most experienced of the bunch and will be given another opportunity to show what he’s got after a much-maligned sophomore season.
The highlight of Heyward’s spring came on April 13, when he took a screen pass 50 yards for a touchdown against the No. 1 defense. He showed his usual versatility on the play, looking comfortable and natural as a receiver, but it was his improved burst that stood out more than anything else. Heyward said he felt like he lacked explosive plays last season, and one of his goals this offseason was to get his body right in order to pull away from defenses when he has room to run in 2019. He came into spring football listed at 236 pounds, finished around 227 pounds and said he expects to be closer to 220 when the season begins. He’s doing what he can to keep his starting spot.
Behind Heyward is La’Darius Jefferson, a sophomore who played in 11 games as a true freshman a year ago. Jefferson came in with plenty of hype — particularly for his size and frame at 6-feet-2, 223 pounds — but he wasn’t always the bruiser many expected him to be last season. He’s at his best when he can easily locate the hole and make a decisive move, but given the current status of Michigan State’s offensive line, that wasn’t always the case. Jefferson struggled as a result.
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Still, there’s value in his skill set, especially considering it was his first full year playing the position. He’ll likely enter the fall as the No. 2.
The top two players listed have long been thought of as the front-runners for the job, but perhaps no running back on the roster made a bigger move toward playing time than Anthony Williams Jr. The early enrollee is viewed as an all-purpose back with the sort of quick-twitch ability the roster has lacked since Jeremy Langford. He was often praised by Dantonio and mentioned as a standout, and his teammates believe he can contribute right away. Williams put himself in a position to compete and, as it stands right now, appears to be the third back heading into fall camp.
Wide receiver
Starters: Cody White, Darrell Stewart Jr., Jalen Nailor
Backups: Cam Chambers, Laress Nelson, Brandon Sowards, CJ Hayes
Overview: It was a relatively quiet spring for wide receivers, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Jalen Nailor, Darrell Stewart Jr. and Cody White have a firm grip on the three starting spots and should begin the season as one of the more talented trios in the Big Ten. If anything, this group offers the least concern of any on offense.
Though he didn’t make much noise in the spring game, Michigan State fans already know what White can do. He broke the school record for receiving yards by a freshman and led the team in yards a year ago despite missing four games with a broken hand. Now, with Felton Davis III off to the NFL, he’s motivated to become the team’s true No. 1 wide receiver.
Stewart, working from the slot, has been a reliable target in past seasons. It always seems like good things happen when the ball is in his hands, mainly because of his ability to make people miss. Often overshadowed by White and Davis the past two seasons, Stewart seemed more motivated than anyone on offense this spring, perhaps sensing his time at Michigan State is coming to an end. If his performance in the spring game is any indication — five catches, 82 yards and two touchdowns — Stewart could be in store for his best year to date.
Nailor is a receiver on the rise. He is among the more intriguing players on offense because of his ready-made speed and big-play ability. The key with Nailor will be to creatively and consistently get him the ball in space, in order to take advantage of what he brings to the offense. Though, if need be, Nailor has the skills to turn short side jet sweep into something far more than a 3-yard loss.
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The three starting receivers complement each other well and, because of the myriad injuries last season, we know which players will get the nod if someone goes down. Cam Chambers is back in the mix and should be the first receiver off the bench. Laress Nelson‘s quickness could make him more of a factor. And of course, there’s Brandon Sowards — a player destined to join former Kansas forward Perry Ellis and Clemson receiver Hunter Renfrow as college athletes who seemingly stayed in college for a decade.
Seriously, though. Someone check if Perry Ellis is still at Kansas.
Tight end
Starter: Matt Dotson
Backups: Trent Gillison/Noah Davis/Matt Seybert
The decline of the tight end position has been one of the more puzzling offensive developments for Michigan State in recent years, which is saying a lot. MSU tight ends have combined for 510 receiving yards the last two seasons.
Looking ahead to 2019, there’s really only one guy with significant playing experience and that’s junior Matt Dotson. On paper, the skill set is absolutely there for Dotson to blossom into one of the better tight ends in the Big Ten. He’s a former four-star recruit with underrated speed to outrun linebackers along with ideal height that should make him a red-zone target.
But as talented as Dotson is, he has been equally as frustrating for the offense.
Too many times last year, Dotson or fellow tight end Matt Sokol dropped passes that — as highly recruited Power Five scholarship tight ends — they simply had no business dropping. Dotson’s mental lapses, specifically, hurt Michigan State on more than one occasion and the Nebraska game stands out as the most notable example. In a single game, he managed to drop a would-be touchdown, get called for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in the red zone and turned what would’ve been a 26-yard chip-shot field goal into a 41-yard attempt — one that was later missed in poor conditions. Michigan State lost by three points.
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Still, there’s hope that Dotson and fellow tight ends Trenton Gillison (an intriguing former four-star recruit himself) and Noah Davis (who missed all of the 2018 season with an undisclosed injury) and Matt Seybert (now back at tight end after playing defensive end a year ago) can turn things around. They’ve got a new coach in Mark Staten, who oversaw the position the first few years of his Michigan State tenure before making the switch to offensive line. We’ll see if it makes a difference.
Offensive line
Starters: LT Cole Chewins, LG Tyler Higby, C Matt Allen, RG Kevin Jarvis, RT Jordan Reid
Backups: OT AJ Arcuri, OG Matt Carrick, C Blake Bueter, OG Luke Campbell, OT Mustafa Khaleefah, OT Nick Samac
Spring football offered a chance for new blood to emerge in hopes of better all-around production after a season in which MSU finished 116th in rushing. New offensive line coach Jim Bollman figured to shake things up and evaluate the position with a fresh perspective after making the switch from coaching tight ends.
Now that the spring dust has settled, however, we’re sticking with the same starting five as the previous depth chart.
The truth of the matter is, four of these five players took the field with the first-team offense in the opening drive of the spring game. The only returning starting lineman who didn’t get time with the first team is Cole Chewins, who was held out for precautionary reasons after getting nicked up in practice. None of this should come as much of a shock.
If there’s anything we’ve learned, it’s that this staff favors experience/seniority when there isn’t an easy, logical replacement. In last year’s season opener, an out-of-position Tyler Higby got the start at center over the younger, more natural choice in Matt Allen. Tyriq Thompson – a redshirt junior at the time — got the first crack at Sam linebacker over Brandon Bouyer-Randle, then a redshirt sophomore who turned in a strong spring. And Josh Butler filled in for an injured Josiah Scott over guys like Shakur Brown, Tre Person, Kalon Gervin and more, and will likely get the nod again with Justin Layne off to the NFL.
When in doubt, experience wins out.
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“We’ve had guys that have experience and so you’re seeing the communication, seeing guys working together, juggling guys around a little bit right and left and figuring out what the best fit is,” Salem said earlier this spring. “As you go into a season you always try to find eight or nine guys that can play and who’s the next guy in, does it move somebody else? So, we’re just solidifying that but really just trying to get a lot of football in with these guys.”
The hope is that the familiarity with the starting group, along with a scheme change and increased communication, will lead to a more cohesive effort. It also helps that each returning starter now weighs 300 pounds or more.
If all else fails, there will come a time for others to get their chance. Michigan State used nine different starting offensive lines in 2018, and unless last year’s group suddenly turns it all around, we could see some more shuffling. That’s where things get interesting.
AJ Arcuri looked formidable filling in for Chewins at left tackle, and could make a push for playing time. Luke Campbell made an impromptu switch from tackle to guard last season and is looking for more consistency with a full year under his belt. Top recruit Devontae Dobbs has yet to reach campus and he’ll almost certainly see the field in Year 1, while fellow true freshman and early enrollee Nick Samac got some time with the second-team offense and held his own in the spring game.
The bar is low, so expect improvement. Just how much improvement will we see? That could ultimately determine how far this offense goes in 2019.
(Top photo: Al Goldis / Associated Press)
