Social Media Reacts to Former Spartan Star's Inspiring Coaching Message
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If there's one trait that stands above all with an ideal football coach, it's intensity.
That's a quality former Michigan State star linebacker Max Bullough certainly does not lack, and it's what makes him the perfect linebackers coach.
He holds that role at Notre Dame, last season's national title runner-up, and coached a room that was part of one of the best defenses in the country, led by one of the nation's top linebackers, Jack Kiser, who was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars this past spring.
A clip of Bullough, who enters his third season on Notre Dame's staff and second as its linebackers coach, generated a lot of buzz on social media on Sunday, as the former Spartan star gave a message that would make a player want to run through a wall.
Max Bullough: No nonsense, as always.
— Tyler Horka (@tbhorka) August 10, 2025
The Notre Dame linebackers coach is fired up for the next phase of camp. Miami is coming up quick.
“We need to have good knee bend and finish square on the tackle when we’re hot, when we’re tired. When the shit’s hard.”
Football guy. pic.twitter.com/7bLx9Tn4dO
"This big block, coach Freeze has emphasized ... this block three is really important, OK?" Bullough said. "It's hotter than it's been, we've been hitting each other for weeks. We said we went two blocks in camp, but we had OTAs before that, so we've been hitting each other -- and then summer before -- it's been a lot of ball that we've played. It's getting hot.
"We need to dig our cleats in the ground, and we need to finish plays, finish periods. Six-play drive, we need to have good knee bend and finish square on the tackle when we're hot, when we're tired, when the s---'s hard -- excuse my language. That's what we need to prove right now. And we need to prove we can do it together as a room."
Here's what some Michigan State faithful had to say:
— Bennie Fowler (@BennieFowler123) August 11, 2025
I want him back at MSU. https://t.co/CB0PnlJn81
— Joe Peiffer (@joben_peiffer) August 11, 2025
future MSU Head Football Coach https://t.co/ada9dSwmas
— sarge (@sarge____) August 11, 2025
Bring him home @MSU_Football what are we even doing here https://t.co/YPk9v3L1pi
— Cedar Village Bagel (@CVBagel) August 12, 2025
Future Spartan head coach in the making? 🤔 https://t.co/OODMmBP6jG
— Spartan18770 (@spartan18770) August 12, 2025
Bullough has a great room at his disposal once again -- one that can be elite. But as any great coach does, he makes sure his group is focused solely on themselves and not on where they stack up against other linebacker groups around the nation.
"We don't like to compare ourselves or look ahead or worry about what other people are doing," he said. "I think that's other people's jobs. Our job is to come to work every day and try to be the best version of myself, the linebackers and then the defense.
"And to me, if we worry about anything other than that, then we're cheating ourselves and we become average like everybody else. We need to worry about what's right in front of us -- what's right in front of us today, this evening and then tomorrow, and let the rest take care of itself."
Bullough was a three-time All-Big Ten honoree at Michigan State (he received first-team honors in his junior and senior campaigns) and was vital to the Spartans' elite 2013 defense.
His uncles, Chuck Bullough and Bobby Morse, also played at Michigan State.
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