Star 2014 LB Melvin Keihn Talks Michigan State, Recruiting and More!

Star 2014 LB Melvin Keihn Talks Michigan State, Recruiting and More! Big Ten quarterbacks might want to take cover. A man of steel could be coming to one of

Star 2014 LB Melvin Keihn Talks Michigan State, Recruiting and More!

Big Ten quarterbacks might want to take cover. A man of steel could be coming to one of the best defenses in the conference. Super linebacker recruit Melvin Keihn, mulling over offers from countless colleges, is seriously considering Michigan State.

The defensive end and outside linebacker positions have become closely related as football has evolved in recent years. Defensive ends must be quick and agile, with the ability to cover the flat. Outside linebackers must be able to not only drop back into coverage, but attack the quarterback. Melvin Keihn is one such hybrid defensive end/linebacker with the ability to do it all.

While Keihn has primarily played defensive end at Gilman School (located in Baltimore), his size and speed will most likely place him at outside linebacker at the college level. Standing at 6’3, 225 pounds, Keihn is a menace to opposing offenses. He can bull rush through the lineman standing across from him, use a swim move to deftly escape his attackers, or use his hands to bypass the lineman’s block altogether. Keihn blows up run plays in the backfield and tracks down quarterbacks like a heat-seeking missile. With a non-stop motor, the Baltimore native is relentless in pursuit of the opposing ball carrier, be it a running back or quarterback.

Though seemingly made of steel, Keihn can fly. He swoops into the backfield like a bird to catch quarterbacks napping, and flies downfield to tackle ball carriers from behind. And just like Bo Jackson, Keihn has done it all. “I played basketball when I was in the 3rd grade…until the 10th grade when I decided to just focus on football. So basketball’s actually one of the sports that I played,” Keihn said. “I can play soccer, which is what I played before we moved here, and then I decided to do football as well. And I do run track.”

Thanks to his work in other sports, Keihn has become a machine, and a speedy one at that. His quickness sets him apart from many other players of his size, drawing attention from flocks of scouts and coaches.

The class of 2014 recruit with a myriad of scholarship offers recently joined Hondo S. Carpenter, Sr. on Spartan Nation Radio to talk about Michigan State and his recruitment.

What football coach doesn’t want a swift, tough outside linebacker on his squad? MSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Virginia, Boston College and Maryland are among the schools who clearly desire such a player, as all have heavily pursued Keihn. Due to the wide range of programs showing interest, the youngster has decided to take his time in choosing a college.

“I’m actually going through the process really slowly and just enjoying every bit of it. Usually [with] kids in the recruiting process, you just stress them out,” Keihn stated. “But I have coaches in my life [who] all know what they’re doing. They’ve been doing this for a long time, so they all give me advice. I also have brothers who have been through it. I just want to take it one day at a time and not let it stress me out. Just have fun with it.”

Right in the mix with the other schools Keihn is considering, Michigan State offers the young defensive end a terrific environment to learn and grow, and possibly even develop into an NFL caliber player. “Right now I’m considering every single school because like I said, I’m wide open. I haven’t decided. I haven’t chosen a school yet, I’m looking at what’s around. So yes, I am interested in Michigan State as far as getting up there,” Keihn said. “I’m not sure when yet. It will most likely be the end of the summer or maybe next year so I can check it out.”

One of the men critical to cultivating that environment in East Lansing, defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi, recently visited Keihn. “Coach Pat came to my school...I said hi to him, but that’s about it because he wasn’t allowed to talk to me yet,” Keihn explained. “That night when I went home, I knew how to call him, so I called him up and he and I were talking. He told me Michigan State offered me.” In their conversation, Narduzzi did not brag about his school, as many other college coaches do. Instead, the two talked “mostly just about me as a person,” Keihn said. “I actually know most of that [selling point] stuff. I actually followed Michigan State football last year...I thought the defensive ends really stepped up and they really impressed me the way they played. They played really hard and sharp.”

Though Keihn has not narrowed down his choices yet, he can imagine himself wearing the Green and White on Saturdays in Spartan Stadium. The highly sought-after recruit likes the defensive scheme that Michigan State runs. “What I usually do is I am a defensive end. I’m mostly on the line. But I do come back outside [to] outside linebacker and drop that pass coverage. Coach Pat was telling me that’s what they do with their defensive end,” Keihn said. “If I can do that at a high speed, I can definitely do it in college if I work hard. So yes, I can definitely see myself in that green jersey and I can definitely see myself wearing a Spartan helmet.”

This man of steel, in addition to his athletic prowess, is quite a student. As for his future major, Keihn is currently “looking at Engineering. Civil engineer or mechanical engineer or electrical engineer.” Keihn elaborated, “Being an engineer will give me more to depend upon and more to explore.”

When Keihn is not on the football field or in the classroom, the senior at Gilman School enjoys performing community service. A kind young man with a good heart, Keihn loves to make others happy. “I like helping out kids…I’m really interested in helping other people and helping those who are in need,” Keihn said. “I like going and helping with people down at the [Ronald] McDonald house, where you just help kids who are disabled and just work with them. I like to help out after school and relax my mind and take my mind off everything.”

Keihn is the complete package. A phenomenal football player with quickness and heart on the field, as well as a brilliant student and a caring young man off it, Keihn is a player every coach wants on his team. Thus, the all-important question lingers: when will the youngster make up his mind?

“I’m trying to get around to a couple of schools this summer,” Keihn began. “Right now I’m making decisions. At first I thought I would go before the season starts, maybe around August-ish…Right now I’m not sure that’s going to happen. Might go into later August, we’ll see what happens. I’m not sure yet.”

Hopefully for the Spartan Nation, Keihn picks Michigan State. The Spartans could certainly use the man of steel as an anchor for the team’s front seven in the future.