Aug. 20, 2008

Coach Dantonio Podcast

EAST LANSING, Mich. - With preseason camp set to wrap up Thursday, head coach Mark Dantonio met with the media prior to Wednesday's practice. Dantonio talked about the team's development during camp, the depth at linebacker and the play of the secondary. Several other players and coaches talked with reporters, including linebackers/special teams coach Mike Tressel and sophomore linebacker Greg Jones. The Spartans open the season Saturday, Aug. 30 at California, with kickoff set for 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Michigan State Head Coach Mark Dantonio

On what is expected his second year...
I think it's important that our players understand where we're at and how we do things. They have come to work everyday and have had a good attitude and have gotten things done. We probably haven't had any more injuries or distractions than most teams. There is always something a little out of whack as you go through, but I think our players for the most part have had a pretty normal operation.

On the effect from position changes...
In the end, when you move people around, you give yourself additional strength in that area. So you go from being one dimensional to having a guy that can play a variety of positions. So in the end, I believe those things help us, when you have a little bit of adversity you have to change things around and make needed adjustments.

On what he has seen from his team...
Well, I like our team, but I think that there is always room for improvement; we are a young football team. The first thing we have to do is establish who our leaders are on the football team. I really like the way our seniors have shown leadership throughout the whole fall camp thus far. They have done a great job. We are going to have to assess this team as we head through our games. Certainly in a week and a half that will be a big challenge for us.

On the play of Ross Weaver...
I think he has been solid, he has made some plays on some deep balls and that's good to see. He tackled very well yesterday. He has been very solid, and we have a couple big guys who can run. I think he has been pretty consistent.

On the play of the cornerbacks...
The guy that has had a great fall camp thus far is Chris L. Rucker. He has basically solidified his position and we see him making plays everyday.

On what is expected heading into Cal...
I want to see a sense of urgency. Fall camp just becomes so routine that you don't even know what day it is at some point. I think we can at least change our focus a little bit to someone else. That's going to provide a little bit more excitement around here.

On the position battles...
At the back-up tailback position, we have some guys there, but they all have a little bit different dimension on how we are going to use those guys. I think some of them will show up on special teams as well. Defensive line a little bit; the interior part of it, but those are very good situations because we have depth at both those positions.

On Brian Hoyer's progression...
I don't think he (Hoyer) ever had the deer in the headlight look. I thought he played very well early in the year. A lot of things happened toward the end of the games as it was his first year playing last year. But, you look at the productivity he had as a starter - he was very productive. It was a tough bowl game but those things happen. If you look at him as an entire quarterback over the whole year, I thought he was very good.

Any difference in Hoyer this year...
He's more familiar with the offense, the system and the coaches. It's his second year as the starting quarterback; coach (Doug) Warner does a great job with him and has a great relationship with him. All of those things help him become a better football player and a better leader. I think the quarterback position is so much about decision making and I think he'll make good decisions.

On the linebackers...
We can go a couple of different ways. If you look at our entire program, we've got some pieces. We had eight linebackers last year and only lost one of them, so we have pieces and parts there that we can mix and match. They've played enough last year, in the spring and across the board in different positions. We'll be able to put our best players and best tacklers on the field.

On guard Mike Bacon's role...
Mike will either be the starting guard or the first guy in - there is a lot of competition at that last offensive line position. He has ability to play center and either guard, so he's been able to adapt and that's a strength for him.

On the cornerback positions...
Corner is one of our strengths. We've got six or seven guys that can play out there. The way we play, they have to be fresh and have to be able to run. That should be a strength - when you've been in the mix and played at Spartan Stadium. We've got experience and we're going to use that experience.

On Keshawn Martin...
Keshawn will play for us as will Fred Smith - both are freshmen, and there will be some others. Keshawn has great body control, great ability to run after the catch and is very smooth. He has a good understanding of concepts because he's been a quarterback.

On the team's depth...
Our quality of depth is pretty good from an ability standpoint, but from the experience standpoint, we have quite a few red-shirt freshmen. So they will get their first playing time experience this year and it takes a little while to get your feet on the ground and not be nervous about walking out there. So I'm sure they'll have some butterflies but that is a good thing, too.

Michigan State Linebacker Greg Jones
On being a leader in the locker room...
I realized what I need to do to get better for this game coming up and looking back on last year, I felt like I was always trying to keep up with the older guys and figure out what they were doing. After the season, Kaleb Thornhill talked to me and told me I had to prepare more and Coach Dantonio said the same thing and I really took that to heart. I'm not the only one in there calling out things. Eric Gordon and Adam Decker are really taking charge also. It's really not just me; we are all working together.

Greg Jones

On all the attention from other players and coaches...
I feel like I just want to be a normal guy. I want the guys to treat me the same like last year. I just want to build the trust up from my teammates. We work together on the field. It's not just me by myself. I need the other 10 guys out there with me. We are working hard out there together.

On his preference on playing the middle or outside...
I don't have a preference. I feel like whatever makes the team better. I think Decker runs a good defense. I just do my best on the field. We feed off of each other and we communicate well.

On feeling more comfortable in his second season...
I feel much more comfortable. I feel like things are slowing down for me a little in the sense that last season I was just trying to get in and prove myself to the coaches. Now, I just want to get ready for California. That first game is going to be a big deal.

On his feelings about the history of Spartan linebackers...
Having Kaleb Thornhill around was awesome. He was always talking to me, keeping me down to earth, telling me to relax, that everything was going to be okay and not to think too much about things. Then having his brother play here... it just means a lot to me to be a linebacker here.

Michigan State Linebackers/ Special Teams Coach Mike Tressel...
On the linebacker position...
Today with the first group, we had Adam Decker in the middle, Greg Jones and Eric Gordon on the outside. Yesterday, we had Jones in the middle and Brandon Denson and Gordon at the outside. There is still a battle for that third spot. Some of it has to do with who has bumps and bruises at the end of camp. I have been very happy with the way Decker and Denson have stepped up from last year. Quite honestly, Ryan Allison is up there too. We have five linebackers we feel really good about. Latest information, Adam Decker, Greg Jones and Eric Gordon started.

On Greg Jones' strengths on the outside and the middle...
He is a good leader on the field and he can do that regardless of the position. His leadership is not necessarily getting everyone lined up and telling them what there assignment is. It's more like smacking a guy in the head when he needs to be smacked in the head and leading by making a play and getting people fired up just by doing big things. He can do those things at either spot. In the middle, theoretically, he can be involved in more plays. You can't run away from him. Outside, he is more comfortable and that is mainly because he did it all year last year. The other thing about him being on the outside is you can blitz him off the edge more. He is phenomenal blitzing off the edge.

On Greg Jones staying in one spot...
I'd like him to stay at one spot. The one thing I know for sure is that in the nickel package, we can move him all over the place, blitz him here and there. We are bouncing all over the place and doing lots of things. We can get him doing a million things. I'd like him to have a home. Honestly, a 12-game season in the Big Ten, there are going to be some people playing in positions based on who is healthy.

On communication at this position moving a lot of guys around...
We're really not moving a lot of guys around. Greg Jones is playing two different positions, but he is really the only one. Quite honestly, I think everyone understands that he is a phenomenal football player and wherever he is they're happy to have him out on the field with them. They're communicating a lot better than they were last year because of an extra year experience. Kaleb Thornhill was a great communicator, but he was also a first-year in the system guy. Communication is not a worry simply because we are steps ahead of where we were last year.

Additional practice notes:
Arthur Ray Jr., who is re-enrolling at Michigan State for classes this fall semester, stopped by a team meeting Wednesday afternoon and received a standing ovation from his teammates. Ray is currently undergoing physical therapy for his second surgical operation he underwent this spring.

Ray, an offensive lineman who was a member of Coach Dantonio's first recruiting class, did not enroll at MSU in fall 2007 after recovering from successful chemotherapy and surgery to remove a cancerous tumor on top of his leg bone near the calf. He enrolled at MSU in spring 2008 but had to leave due to an infection in his leg.