Podcast: Does it Really Matter Who Wins MSU’s RB Battle?
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Michigan State has a running back battle on its hands, and fans and media seem to be viewing it as the most important position battle of fall camp.
It's an intriguing battle, that's for certain. It's a room full of unproven players, plus transfer veteran Elijah Tau-Tolliver, who is proven but not at a Power Four level.
As far as how much of a difference it makes who wins it, though? That's up for debate.
How successful Michigan State is going to be on the ground this season doesn't primarily ride on who is in the backfield, as odd as that may sound. And whoever gets the starting nod may not see a significant difference in carries from the backups.
Our Aidan Champion explains more on this latest episode of the Michigan State Spartans Insider Podcast.
You can watch the episode below:
Michigan State running backs coach Keith Bhonapha addressed the media on Thursday. Below is a partial transcript:
Keith Bhonapha
Q: How do you keep passion all the time?
Bhonapha: "That's a great question. I think for me, I enjoy coaching football. I was fortunate enough to do a couple of other things in life, with criminal justice and things like that. And I really feel like me being able to influence, develop and just kind of teach some life values is really important to me.
"And I've kind of found my groove in college football and with these players being able to do that with these players (on the) day-to-day. And I think about the guys that have influenced me, it's been coaches. So, I really feel fortunate to be in this position."
Q: How different of a fall is it when you have running backs who haven't been proven yet at the Big Ten level?
Bhonapha: "It's huge. I think you hit a couple things. I think guys that are unproven -- I think right now, if we talk about the right guys in the room, we got 14 reps of offense between all eight for Michigan State. And it just puts a higher level of urgency on the detail. I say higher level of urgency, but at the same time, having to scale back for some of it to level 1, level 2. And then, some of these guys haven't experienced a fall camp -- I think about Makhi (Frazier) and Brandon (Tullis) -- experienced a fall camp where it's a true competition where I'm trying to take the next step.
"I think about Jace Clarizio, where this is his first college fall camp, and just like Zion Gist. So, these guys are kind of learning, but at the same time, they're in the middle of it, so we need them to learn at an urgent pace as well."
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