Why Michigan State football has secret weapon in QB battle: 'Eye in the sky does not lie'

EAST LANSING — Cameras can be found everywhere around Michigan State football’s practice field.

On the ground. In the tower. In each end zone.

Those give Mel Tucker and his staff plenty of angles to decide which Spartans are shining and who needs to improve.

“The eye in the sky does not lie. And we get a chance to run it frame by frame,” Tucker said after practice Tuesday. “We get it, we see it, we can grade it, and then we get a chance as a teaching tool to be able to show the players, 'OK, this is what you did, this what was on tape. This actually happened. It's not a video game, it's happening.'”

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There was plenty of footage for Tucker to digest from Saturday’s first scrimmage, less than three weeks ahead of MSU’s opener at Northwestern. Because ultimately, while the coaches determine who starts and who gets reps, those calls are based on the video from preseason practices and what each player leaves the biggest digital impression.

Quarterback remains among the most-watched positions, with Tucker terming the performances of Payton Thorne and Anthony Russo “a mixed bag” coming off Saturday’s scrimmage (the first of two this fall). Though no details were released — other than a few highlights from inside Spartan Stadium and some enjoyment of shaved ice post-practice — offensive coordinator Jay Johnson called it “a competitive battle” between Russo, a graduate transfer, and Thorne, a sophomore.

“We are monitoring about everything they do to a tee,” Johnson said with a laugh. “And they've done well. They've been very, very competitive. It kind of vacillates a little bit each and every day. I guess the thing where I'm at on it is, we've just really only kind of had the one live scrimmage, so there's a bunch more work to get in this week and then another good scrimmage coming up on Saturday. And so then I think once we get that, things will start to maybe unfold.”

Johnson said the two quarterbacks have been getting nearly equal chances directing the first-team offense, “within two or three reps, and we’re monitoring every rep they take,” he added. Junior wide receiver Jalen Nailor, who a month ago at Big Ten media day called the competition “neck and neck,” said it remains that close as the month-long camp enters its third week.

“I would say it's still in the same spot. I mean, the guys are battling,” said Nailor, MSU’s leading returning receiver with 515 yards and four touchdown catches in 2020. “They're making great plays throughout each practice, and especially in the scrimmage. They're making the right calls, making the right making the right reads within the offense. And I think it's really a competitive room.”

Northwestern announced Tuesday it would start Hunter Johnson at quarterback over South Carolina transfer Ryan Hilinski for the Sept. 3 game in Evanston, Illinois. While Tucker previously said he wants to find a starter before the first game, Johnson is not ruling out the possibility of playing both Russo and Thorne in the opener.

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“At some point, we'll make a decision,” Tucker said. “We don't need to make that decision right now.”

Senior Tyler Hunt said the battle at quarterback has enhanced the other position races on offense. That includes his tight end room, which has added transfer Maliq Carr and freshman Kam Allen, and the third wide receiver spot, behind Nailor and Jayden Reed.

“They know that there's only a limited amount of time, and they have to take every opportunity they get, every play they get and you know get everything out of it,” said Hunt, the returning starter at tight end. “So I think (that) not only ups their competition level, but they get other guys coming along with them.”

Tucker rattled off a bunch of names of players fighting for starting jobs and increased roles. He liked what running backs Kenneth Walker III and Harold Joiner III did in the scrimmage, as well as seeing Connor Heyward transitioning to an H-back/tight end role. He mentioned newcomers, in receiver Keon Coleman and transfer linebackers Itayvion "Tank" Brown, Quavaris Crouch and Ben VanSumeren. Coleman is in the mix as the No. 3 wideout along with a deep group which includes Montorie Foster, Terry Lockett Jr., Tre Mosley, Christian Fitzpatrick and C.J. Hayes.

And though he has seen improvement each practice, Tucker said he still sees “some things that we need to work on, obviously, and we're taking this week to get those things done, and then looking forward to having a better scrimmage this weekend.”

The first thing Tucker asked his players Monday after watching Saturday’s scrimmage footage was if they wanted the good news or the bad news. They sought the positive, but the coach immediately started stressing what he felt went wrong.

“We need more extreme effort from more guys,” he said. “And we need better technique and fundamentals from more guys. We need to be more physical on a consistent basis with more guys. We need more guys that know what to do. We need to build depth in our offense, defense and special teams.

“The good news is I feel like we have enough good players out there to be able to do what we need to do.”

Tucker said he planned to leave the podium and get back to one of his passions, watching all of the footage those cameras collect daily. Tuesday afternoon’s focus: rewatching the morning practice and preparing for Wednesday’s work.

“The players, they have iPads. So a lot of times, they've watched it and have seen it before the next time we meet,” he said. “And they already know what they need to work on, they already have questions waiting for us and things like that.

“But I love to watch a lot of tape. That's kind of like a pacifier — that's my binkie. I grab my remote and go, 'Ahhh, let's watch some tape.'”

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: QBs judged by 'the eye in the sky'