MSU's Keshawn Martin Has an Abundance of Talent: Still Room to Grow

Keshawn Martin has already talked to Spartan Nation concerning his desire to have a great senior season (http://spartannation.com/?p=17237), but even he admits

Keshawn Martin has already talked to Spartan Nation concerning his desire to have a great senior season (http://spartannation.com/?p=17237), but even he admits he still has room for improvement.

Martin, the versatile playmaker who can change games with his shifts in speed and quickness, has taken on a leadership role in spring practice. He is mentoring the young receivers on the team, such as Bennie Fowler and Tony Lippett, while still trying to make adjustments to his own game. He seems to be taking it all in stride.

“I think I’m farther along in my experience and just knowing what to do, and kind of being a leader out there,” Martin said. “Not really vocally, but by my actions.

“I would say (I have to improve) my deep balls, getting down the field and catching those balls. The punt return and kick return, those things come. But in order to get to the next level you are going to have to make some of those catches, and I think that’s something that I can do,” the player known as K-Mart said.

Martin has been used to playing under former offensive coordinator Don Treadwell, but now he is getting taught by Terrence Samuel. Samuel coached at Michigan State under Dantonio for four years before following Dan Enos to Central Michigan in 2010. Samuel is back in green and white, though, and it has been a seemingly easy transition for his receivers.

“(The transition has been) kind of easy,” Martin said. “I mean, Coach Samuel is a guy you can have fun with. Him and (Coach) Tread have different styles; Tread is more of a serious-type guy and Samuel has more of that fun side to him. I think it’s adjusted well and (Samuel) knows what he’s talking about, so the guys just listen to him.”

Martin also talked about his injury last year, joking that as a smaller guy he doesn’t try to run through guys; he runs around them. He said he was at or near 100 percent during the Capital One Bowl against Alabama.

Martin is now an elder statesman on the team, so his saying the young guys on the team are playing well is a good sign for an offense predicated on putting plenty of points on the board – not to mention having an experienced senior quarterback in Kirk Cousins.

Guys like Lippett and Fowler and Keith Mumphery are making good impressions, and as Martin said, once the team gets B.J. Cunningham back the core should be pretty strong. That bodes well for the intended vertical passing game of new offensive coordinator, Dan Roushar.

“I don’t feel like it’s a big difference (between Treadwell and Roushar) because we’ve got the same offense,” Martin said. “Roushar is trying to get more of those down-the-field throws, and Tread … we had those down-the-field throws but didn’t throw them as often as I feel we could do this year.”