These 2022 Spartan Seniors Are Unique, And Deserve To Be Celebrated

Michigan State football will host its ‘Senior Day’ this Saturday against Indiana. This senior class has been through a lot, seeing some of the program's biggest moments, and low moments.

With the pandemic granting an extra year of eligibility, this may be the oldest batch of seniors in school history. Offensive lineman Matt Carrick was from the 2017 recruiting class, and the majority of the other seniors were from the 2018 class, including afety Xavier Henderson, defensive tackle Dashaun Mallory, tight end Tyler Hunt and defensive tackle Jacob Slade all coming in ‘18.

These players stayed with the program after two 7-6 seasons in 2018 and 2019. Then, former head coach Mark Dantonio abruptly announced his retirement in February of 2020, and they still stuck with the program.

Players like tailback Elijah Collins, Henderson and Slade were rising stars, playing key roles under Dantonio. They would’ve had their choice of schools had they decided to transfer, but they stayed when Mel Tucker was hired, and have all contributed to this program's success in the years since.

These seniors have a 2-1 bowl record currently, with a New Year's Six bowl win and a 2-3 record against in-state rival Michigan (Carrick is 3-1 in bowls and 3-3 against Michigan). The 2020 season was the only year in which these seniors didn’t make a bowl game, as the Spartans went 2-5 in Tucker’s debut season.

But in 2021, Michigan State bounced back, going 11-2 and winning one of the most exciting games of all-time, beating Michigan in a Top 10 matchup.

The evolution of this program since 2018 has been unthinkable, for better or worse. The graduating players all witnessed it first hand, and have been leaders throughout the program's transition.

While his production was never again what it was in 2019, Collins was still a leader and represented the program as well as anyone has. Likewise, Henderson has been the leader of the defense and he was missed dearly in each game he missed this season.

Dantonio still lingers around the program, as you will see him at games and other events. I’m sure he is proud to see how these senior players have grown and that they stuck with the Spartans until the end.

In addition to those guys, there are seven other transfers graduating that weren’t recruited by Dantonio, four of which that transferred here this season – linebacker Aaron Brule, tailback Jarek Broussard, cornerback Ameer Speed and tight end Daniel Barker.

The other three – linebacker Ben VanSumeren, safety Kendall Brooks and punter Bryce Baringer – have all played a larger role this season. Each has started multiple games thus far, and contributed greatly for Michigan State.

Players like Speed and Broussard may not have met fan expectations, but both have played better of late. VanSumeren was a surprise at the beginning of the season, then struggled through some injuries midway through the year. He came back in recent weeks and is a key part of this team's current winning streak.

These seniors have an opportunity to finish what they started, with a win in their final home game. Indiana has already been eliminated from bowl contention, and hasn’t won a game since September. The Spartans can’t overlook them, but are clearly the better team.

Given the way this season has played out, there would be no better way for these seniors to go out than clinching one final bowl berth in their final game at Spartan Stadium.