Players respect MSU's Hevesy as father figure
Mississippi State offensive line coach John Hevesy begins just about every summer with a tradition.
He picks out a couple of weddings of former players he can get to and makes sure he's there.
“I tell them, ‘Get married in a good place and I'll go,'” Hevesy said. “If one is getting married in Hawaii and one in North Dakota, I can tell you which one I'm going to.”
At first glance, Hevesy might not look like the type of guy who spends his off time witnessing nuptials. His big, intimidating figure and gravelly voice doesn't let on that he sometimes spends summer days possibly tossing birdseed at former linemen after they say, ‘I do.'
Yet there's more than meets the eye when it comes to Hevesy, who has spent the last 23 years coaching offensive linemen in some shape, form or fashion. Some might label him an imposing figure.
“I can't lie, when I first got here, he used to be really scary to me,” Mississippi State junior offensive lineman Deion Calhoun said.
However there is a fatherly demeanor underlying Hevesy's gruff exterior that has earned him respect and admiration from many that have played for him.
“I'm 21 now, so I'm not scared of him anymore,” Calhoun said. “He's the best coach I've been around because he's a wise man. He teaches us football, but he also teaches us life lessons every day that we can take down the road with us.”
Hevesy's stern, yet in some ways nurturing, coaching style has the MSU offensive line overcoming injuries and inexperience to anchor the Southeastern Conference's third-best rushing offense in 2017. The unit has also allowed only three sacks all season – the fewest allowed among all Power 5 schools.
All this comes despite MSU starting a pair of freshmen in the two tackle spots the last two weeks.
Senior left tackle Martinas Rankin went down with an ankle injury at Auburn on Sept. 30 and hasn't played since, though he is expected back this Saturday at Texas A&M.
One constant amid the shuffling has been the guidance of Hevesy. MSU head coach Dan Mullen, who has worked with Hevesy for about a decade and a half, isn't surprised Hevesy has his group playing well. He just thinks Hevesy deserves a bit more praise.
“Nobody else coaches the offensive line,” Mullen said. “(Hevesy) does. I see for him, if they're doing poorly, people jump all over him. If they're doing well, he deserves all the credit and should be getting rewards for that.
“It's one of the toughest positions, coaching-wise. Very rarely when you do well does anybody really talk much about it, but they really talk about you when you don't do well. It's somewhat thankless of a job.”
To no surprise, Hevesy isn't one to need much in the form of pats on the back. He says his payment for a job well done is the results his players get, both on the field and when they leave MSU.
“To me, they give a lot back to me, but I don't ever ask for a dime,” Hevesy said of his guys. “I don't want a dime from them. I want them to be successful.”
Hevesy's formula for getting that success is somewhat simple in stating, but a bit more difficult in execution. First, he prioritizes academics and does all he can to ensure his players get their degrees. Like lining up against a tough defensive lineman, Hevesy even turns his players' grades into a competition.
“I want the highest GPA on the team as a unit,” Hevesy said. “That's the biggest thing I look for at the end of the semester is where are we, on the team, as a unit. I don't want to be second.”
Then comes the football part for Hevesy. Whether it's pushing a talented player to his goal of reaching the NFL, or just getting the most out of a guy whose football career will end with MSU, Hevesy is always demanding more from his players, regardless of whether or not they like it.
“It's my job to push them,” Hevesy said. “Is it going to be fun all the time? Absolutely not. I'm going to push them beyond anything they've ever been pushed before in terms of the detail of things. They might not like what I say all the time. I'm sure under their breath, they've said a few things, but in the long run, it becomes respect and love.
“I tell them all the time, ‘Do you like your parents all the time? No. Do you love your parents? Yes.' It's the same thing. They're not going to like me all the time, which I'm fine with. In the end though, you're going to respect what I'm going to do for you and the love is going to be mutual because of what you're putting in for me.”
Hevesy's results speak for themselves. MSU's top seven single-season total offensive yard marks have been set in Hevesy's tenure on Mullen's staff. Since the 2013 season, five of Hevesy's players have reached the NFL.
If that isn't indicative enough of Hevesy's impact, his connection with his former guys might be. Many of Hevesy's players stay in contact with their former coach. That includes guys still playing and guys who have long since moved on from football.
“The one thing they all say is it wasn't easy (playing for me), but when you walk out this door, as everyone knows, it's not easy either," Hevesy said. "Whether it's paying mortgages or having a wife and kids or all those things, it's not easy.”
As Hevesy freely admits his style is challenging, it does always come with the perks. It toughens guys. It makes them better players and men.
Oh, and it might even lead to Hevesy giving a toast or dancing at your wedding.
“The biggest thing for me is I want them all, when they're here and then when they leave here, to be successful,” Hevesy said. “To me, this is the greatest gig in the world.”