Michigan State Football Making "Tremendous" Sacrifices
East Lansing, MI – Thanksgiving isn't going to change much for the Michigan State football program.
Mel Tucker plans on having a typical week leading up to kickoff and noted it's not a normal holiday for anyone due to the coronavirus pandemic.
He acknowledged everything he, his staff, and players have gone through for months now but challenged those same people to view it in a different light.
"The sacrifices our players and staff have made throughout this time have been tremendous," said Tucker. "I talked to them in the summer about it not being a sacrifice, but it being an investment in our team and in yourself … our players and staff have done a formidable job leaning into the new normal with what we've had to deal with."
Redshirt senior Naquan Jones bought-in to Tucker's line of thinking, coming to grips with being away from his family for an extended period.
"I haven't seen my family since I reported back to school. So, it's been a few months, but it's a commitment," Jones said. "Obviously, you go away to school – this is a full-time thing. You aren't going to have weekends to go see your family … especially when you have to play."
Jones admitted it's been stressful but added he prioritizes calling his grandmother and sisters every day, making it easier to focus on football.
"I don't plan my weekends based on going to see my family; I plan my weekends on getting better … my family knows that," said Jones.
The 6-foot-4, 340-pound lineman, exudes a culture Tucker lives and breathes, but most importantly, expects MSU to believe in.
"There's been tremendous investment in this football team from our players and from our staff," Tucker said.
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