How Michigan State football's Connor Heyward finally found a home to show his skills

EAST LANSING — Connor Heyward is a pure football player from a football family.

His father, Craig “Ironhead” Heyward, was a star running back at Pitt and in the NFL. His brother, Cam, is a defensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers who shined at Ohio State.

There have been a number of flashes over the years for the younger Heyward for Michigan State football. Powerful kickoff returns and long touchdown runs. Yet Mark Dantonio and his staff rarely maximized his diverse skills and nearly lost him to transfer.

Then Mel Tucker arrived.

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After spending 2020 at running back, Heyward started at tight end/H-back for the Spartans during last Friday’s 38-21 win over Northwestern. And the fifth-year senior appears to be blossoming in his new role, delivering critical blocks and making tough catches while looking as comfortable as he has in green and white with Youngstown State visiting Saturday (noon/BTN).

“The move to put him at the tight end spot has been great for our offense,” sophomore receiver Tre Mosley said Wednesday. “Connor is so versatile in the pass game and the run game. He's physical, he runs the routes, he has a high IQ. So just having his IQ and his level of confidence on the field just brings us all together.”

Entering this season, the bulk of Heyward’s 36 career appearances came at running back, including six starts in 2020, one in 2019 and eight in 2018. He ran for 818 yards on 210 carries and five touchdowns.

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But even out of the backfield, he was often flanked out or used in passing situations — see his 61 catches for 385 receiving yards and four touchdown catches since 2017. He also owns 33 kickoff returns for 723 yards, another reason why he was named to the preseason watch list for the Paul Hornung Award that goes to “the most versatile player in major college football.”

Yet the move to tight end — though he is a bit undersized by traditional standards at 6-feet and 230 pounds — only came about last month during camp.

“It's something that I've always wanted to do, because in high school, I was more of a receiver. I was never really a running back, except for in little league (football),” said Heyward, who remains listed at running back on MSU’s roster. “I was always like a wildcat quarterback, stuff like that. But I was more of a natural pass catcher, so I felt more comfortable with doing that. And I just know that I would be on the field possibly longer and help my stock and help the team.”

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One thing he showed during his time in the backfield was his blocking ability, among one of the best in pass protection during Dantonio’s era and by far the best of the bunch in 2020 — hence starting six of the seven games during Tucker’s 2-5 debut. This after he entered the NCAA transfer portal after four games in 2019 before opting to return to MSU following Tucker’s hire.

“Sometimes, I feel I could run the ball and stuff, but it wasn't my natural thing,” Heyward said. “I felt like I was good at it sometimes, but a little inconsistent. But I feel like with this, I can be extremely consistent at this position. You're blocking this guy, depending on what the O-line and center sees and points, stuff like that. So it's pretty straightforward. And I feel like my size and just everything goes along with this position. …

“I honestly think (playing running back) helped me to get to the point I'm at right now, because I kind of know what they're thinking. Especially in past pro, when me and the running backs have to work together. I know what their responsibilities are and what my responsibilities are, so I can look back and I can give him the sign or communicate with him so that we're on the same page.”

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On the first play of this season, from that new spot, Heyward delivered a critical block to help spring his replacement at running back, Kenneth Walker III, for a 75-yard touchdown to jumpstart the season. He also had a critical seal on Walker’s second of four touchdowns and played a pivotal role in helping the Wake Forest transfer run for 264 yards.

And not just by knocking opposing defenders backward 5 yards a pop with some crunching blocks.

“He's so unselfish,” Walker said of Heyward after the win. “He's still talking to me and giving me key points on how to run it, where to hit it. He's an expert at this.”

At the same time, Heyward also flashed the sure-handed catching ability he displayed over the years with three grabs for 28 yards.

Two of those came on MSU’s second possession — the first a diving grab off a Payton Thorne play-action, and a second-effort show of strength and second effort to pick up a critical third-down conversion.

“Playing receiver was something I've always done, and just being able to catch the ball, God has always blessed me with that ability,” Heyward said, particularly of the first reception. “So when it happened, I was kind of just like, 'Thank you, this is what I'm good at and something that I'm comfortable with doing.'”

On his final catch, Heyward flashed his athleticism with a toe-tapping grab in front of the Wildcats’ bench after seeing his quarterback under duress, following his footsteps toward the sideline. He didn’t realize he caught the ball inbounds initially until it was ruled a completion, and he saw when he rewatched the game film he made the play to turn a second-and-7 breakout into a third-and-2 conversion attempt.

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“We work that all the time in pre-practice, just the quarterback scramble rules, and Payton was able to squeeze it in right there,” Heyward said. “I think we made it to third-and-short. (Offensive coordinator Jay Johnson) always talks about getting to third-and-short and second-and-short so it's easier from him to call plays and just being in front of sticks.”

Tight end has been a position of need for MSU in recent years, so much so that Tucker moved two kickers — Tyler Hunt and Evan Morris — to the position in 2020. Hunt played a significant amount Saturday, while Trenton Gillison served as the third tight end.

But Heyward showed he can be an accelerant to the Spartans’ offensive octane and should continue to get snaps in his new position. That very well could put him more solidly onto NFL scouts’ radar as well, given the pedigree of his family and the fact that he’s simply an old-school player who has longed for a spot to maximize his skills.

And now appears to have finally found the right fit.

“I think as the season goes on, we'll show more and more,” Heyward said. “But right now, H-back, tight end, slot, wideout — just wherever. Wherever the play is called, I'm gonna line up and try to execute to the best of my ability and just put my best foot forward to help the team.”

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State football's Connor Heyward finds his home at TE