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Mark Dantonio and MSU football add a LB!

Don’t bother nicknaming him “Neon Dion;” Michigan State’s newest recruiting victory would rather you think of him as a humble young man just making his way toward football stardom. At 6’4” and 222 pounds, it is easy to see why Dion Guy is becoming a rising star among Washington DC football prospects. Dion Guy loves football, he loves his family, he loves his teammates and he loves Michigan State and Harlon Barnett. Throw out the trivial STAR rankings that are reported by various recruiting services. This kid is an all around athlete and football player.

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When I watched Dion last Friday night at Anacostia Stadium, it was easy to see how he will fit into Narduzzi’s defensive scheme. His rangy body and long arms made me think of Ike Reese and Julian Peterson as I watched him patrol the flat for oncoming ball carriers. He gets to the ball in a hurry and isn’t afraid to initiate contact. On one particular play, outside contain broke down with HD Woodson’s defensive end and it looked like the running back was heading down the sideline for a big play. Dion rolled nicely off the right guard that had him engaged and preceded to hammer the tailback before he could take it the distance. What was an 11-yard gain proved to be a better tackle in space.

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Dion’s father is one proud papa. Kerry Wilson is reliving his high school days as a city champion through his son. Kerry will tell you he was never as good as Dion. He smiles a lot when he speaks about his son. “I don’t know where he learned how to do math… you know, he does real well in Trigonometry and is taking a lot of college prep courses.” I could see the pride truly shine as he talked more about his son’s humble attitude and willingness to be a good teammate. “Dion just loves football and his teammates, they (Coach Dantonio and his staff) have been recruiting him since before he got to DC. They were recruiting him when he first moved to DC way back in the tenth grade. He doesn’t let it go to his head, he is real humble and he makes us proud.”Â

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I got a chance to meet both Dion and his grandfather that evening after the game. The more senior Mr. Wilson (Dion’s grandfather) was just beaming when I asked him about his grandson. Mr. Wilson walks the HD Woodson sideline serving as a pseudo coach. He is known as the team’s spiritual leader and looks after Woodson’s young men on the sideline. Sunday morning we met him at his home along with Kerry and Dion to formally interview the family and Dion’s good friend and teammate Craig Wilkins.Â

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Craig has been flying below the radar, but things have begun to change quickly. Craig is listed by most recruiting services as 5’11” and 185 pounds. The Craig Wilkins that greeted us at the Wilson home was all of 6’2” and 205 pounds. He looks like a Big Ten safety right now. Wilkins caught a Ballou receiver in Friday night’s game completely exposed. He did what comes naturally to most strong safeties and slammed the door on him. Both Craig and Dion are playmakers and have indicated that they’d like to play together. Hopefully Coach Barnett likes what he sees from Wilkins’ film because he looks like the real deal. Washington DC is fertile recruiting ground and MSU is stompin’ around the district these days with a presence. Hopefully our nation’s capital sends us more players and young men like Dion Guy.