BUILT TO LAST
Tucker is building a program that is more than a flash in the pan Tucker eager to share all the times Purdue upset ranked teams with MSU
EAST LANSING — He looked like the Invisible Man, lurking in the shadows.
Michigan State cornerback Charles Brantley crouched for a split second in a wide athletic stance at the 45-yard line, playing zone defense, seemingly out of the play.
Michigan quarterback Cade McNamara lofted a pass to Luke Schoonmaker, a 6foot-5 tight end.
Schoonmaker looked wide open near the sideline. There were less than 70 seconds left on Saturday afternoon, as the Wolverines tried to mount a comeback against MSU.
Then, Brantley burst into view. He streaked across the field in a flash, covering 12 yards while the ball was in the air. He lifted off like Superman, hanging in the air, and snagged an interception with one hand, sealing a 37-33 victory for MSU. A 165-pound freshman.
Making one of the biggest plays of the
EAST LANSING — weeks.
One month, one mission: Keep winning. Michigan State’s most immediate tasks are putting an emotional comeback victory over Michigan in the past and preparing to make a tough trip to Purdue. And the No. 6 Spartans hit the road after staying unbeaten and continuing to move up in the national rankings, with both Big Ten championships and the potential of a return to the College Football Playoff becoming more and more realistic.
“We put ourselves in a good position heading into the last month of the season,” Tucker said during his weekly news conference Monday. “Really, we need to start playing our best football down the stretch here in November. That’s what it’s really all about, November madness.”
MSU faces the Boilermakers on Saturday at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana.
Purdue won at Nebraska on Saturday, 28
Four games, four
game. At the most crucial time.
“He was right where he was supposed to be based on the call and the scheme,” MSU coach Mel Tucker said.
You wanna know why MSU made so many plays in this game? Because these players have been coached to make those plays. Tucker focuses on the details, as all great coaches do.
Brantley’s stunning interception was incredibly athletic, but it wasn’t a fluke.
“He used the technique that we work on every single day,” Tucker said. “He played from high to low … he was able to go out there and make a play.”
Now, something needs to be pointed out: Brantley was giving up five inches and 85 pounds to Schoonmaker. But Tucker and this coaching staff believed in Brantley. They were able to identify his potential and pull it out of him.
Tucker has an ability to find talent and get it on the field — no matter how old the player is, or where he came from — and that is something that can form the foundation of program and be sustained over time.
“We saw Chuck on film in high school,”
Tucker said. “He’s slight of build, but he will come up and strike you. He looks for contact.”
Michigan seemed to go after Brantley several times but he responded.
“Obviously, he’s got speed,” Tucker said. “He’s got some height and he’s got very good instincts. He’s a football player. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough.”
The Spartans won this game because they had grit, toughness and made plays.
Just as they have been coached.
Far from a fluke
Think of the thousands of decisions that Tucker has made since he arrived at MSU. How he built his coaching staff. How he coached his coaches. How he set a culture.
Chopping wood in the Woodshed? Yeah, it sounds ridiculous. But that culture, that grit, that mindset, is the reason why MSU fought back and beat Michigan.
Now, consider the decisions Tucker has made, putting this roster together. Bringing in transfers and recruits, while deciding what players to keep. Blending it all together.
Yes, Kenneth Walker III is an amazing talent. But it started with MSU identifying his “skill set” and how it might fit into their scheme.
Walker wasn’t a Heisman Trophy candidate at Wake Forest.
But now, he is. And now, Tucker has a team that is undefeated and has several huge games coming up. Will MSU have a letdown against Purdue? I don’t see it happening. Not with this coaching staff.
“This is going to be a week of very focused preparation,” Tucker said. “In order for us to be at our best against Purdue, we have to raise our game. Take everything that we do up a notch or two in our preparation.”
Tucker has experience in November at the highest level.
He coached Alabama’s defensive backs in its 2015 national championship season. And he spent three years at Georgia. He knows what it takes to win at this time of year.
“We put ourselves in a good position heading into the last month of the season,” Tucker said. “Really, we need to start playing our best football down the stretch here in November. That’s what it’s really all about, November madness.”
Honoring the past
After MSU’s win, former coach Mark Dantonio was spotted on the field during the celebration.
Josh Pate, who covers college football for 247Sports and the “Late Kick” podcast, took a video of Dantonio facing the crowd, with both hands in his pockets. He looked at the crowd for 25 seconds. At the program he helped build. It was incredibly touching.
A short time later, Tucker and Dantonio were photographed in the locker room, celebrating the win.
Why would Tucker embrace Dantonio’s presence?
“Cuz he’s a Spartan,” Tucker said. “I’ve worked with Coach D for five years and we won a national championship together. Anytime you spend that much time with the person side by side for five years ... obviously, you have a relationship. So I embrace his presence around our football team. It’s not something that bothers me at all. He’s a Spartan for life.”
You have to appreciate how Tucker is handling that situation.
It could be awkward, but it’s clearly not. There are just so many things to like about Tucker. How he has built this team. How he has prepared them. How he gets them to play. And even how he has embraced Dantonio.
It’s obvious Tucker is a fantastic coach. And he is building something special.
If the MSU administrators were smart, they’d extend his contract, just so they can make his buyout ridiculous and lock him up for years to come.