Published Aug 10, 2022
Camp Update: Kapilovic says O-line outlook more challenging than past years
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Jim Comparoni  •  Spartans Illustrated
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East Lansing, Mich. - Heading into his third season as offensive coach at Michigan State, Chris Kapilovic has had three unique undertakings.

In his first two seasons, Kapilovic had a decent smattering of proven and semi-proven players, many of whom had a history of injuries. He had to cobble together a unit from puzzle pieces that had each shown functionality in flashes, on an individual basis, but had never come together as a unit.

In 2020, with no spring practice, no off-season strength training, and limited time with the coaching staff, the Spartans soldiered through a 2-5 season.

Then in 2021, with a deep cast of experienced players who had gained a better handle on the Mel Tucker program’s process, the Spartans added a transfer at left tackle in Jarrett Horst, and developed productive play at left guard (J.D. Duplain), center (Matt Allen and Nick Samac), right guard (Kevin Jarvis) and right tackle (A.J. Arcuri).

The o-line did its part in giving Payton Thorne time to throw throughout the season and helped Kenneth Walker III emerge as arguably the best running back in the country.

To be sure, Walker often turned in dazzling runs when there was little or no hole. He had the talent to make something out of nothing.

But there were plenty of other times when the line gave Walker a crack of daylight, and K-9 capitalized.

The marriage helped Michigan State go 11-2, with a New Years Six bowl game and finish the season ranked No. 8 in the country in the Coaches Poll.

The line peaked during the 37-33 victory over Michigan on Oct. 30, as the Spartans improved to 8-0 on the season. On that day, Michigan State tailbacks rushed for 205 yards on 26 carries (7.8 per attempt) against a Wolverine defense that deployed a Bear front on most first- and second-down situations, stacked heavily to stop the run.

Horst didn’t play the rest of the year, after the Michigan game. Arcuri had to move from right tackle to left tackle. And Jarvis had to move from right guard to right tackle.

The line was pretty good for most of the rest of the season, but never quite as good as it was in the Michigan game.

Now, Kapilovic’s group has fewer experienced players, and the back-ups are mostly rookies. He’s assembled offensive line puzzles in the past, with August camp being a key juncture.

This time, he’s doing it for a team that is ranked in the Top 20 in the preseason, with new national expectations, but similar internal tasks.

“I wouldn’t say (camp) is more important (this year), but I would say more challenging,” Kapilovic said. “So if we see each other again in about three weeks, you might see me age more than normal.”

Last year, he began the season with four players on the second string who had starting experience: Samac, Blake Bueter, Matt Carrick and Luke Campbell. None were superstars, but they were capable.

This year, Horst is back as a returning starter at left tackle, despite missing the last five games of 2021 with an undisclosed ailment.

Washington State transfer Brian Greene is competing with Samac at center and Carrick at right guard, with Carrick steadily but methodically coming back from a knee injury which sidelined him for the last half of the 2021 season.

Duplain (6-4, 305, Sr.) is a stalwart at left guard.

“So far, things have kind of been what I expected from the older guys,” Kapilovic said. “IQ is growing. Good effort. We had some guys who didn’t go through spring, so there is a little rust. You are seeing a little progression from each day, which I expected.”

Spencer Brown (6-6, 320, R-Jr., Commerce Township, Mich./Walled Lake Western) is the new starter at right tackle. He was a bit player most of last season, and then was thrust into a starting role in the Peach Bowl due to an injury to Jarvis, and Brown performed surprisingly well.

“At the tackles, Horst and Spencer have been very solid. Spencer continues to mature.”

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THE SPENCER BROWN PROJECT

Brown came to Michigan State as a Rivals.com four-star prospect, ranked No. 241 in the country. SpartanMag graded him as a three-star project, a guy with a good frame and straight-line speed but questionable lateral movement.

Brown redshirted in 2019, played six snaps in 2020, and then saw action in eight games last year, slowing gaining traction as a prospect and earning trust.

In what areas has Brown matured?

“Really, in everything he does,’ Kapilovic said. “He is the first guy in the building. He is getting extra work in. He is taking care of his body. He’s in better shape. His football IQ has grown. His effort, his leadership, all of those things have taken a turn.

“I think back to my first day, my first meeting and he was sitting in the back with his head down, pouting, saying, ‘You didn’t even know who I was.’

“I was like, ‘Man, that guy is going to be a problem.’

“And then he has come 180, 360, whatever you want to say. He has matured and I’m proud of him. I’m excited to see what he can do.”

THE LATEST ON HORST

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Jarrett Horst (6-6, 305, R-Sr., Middleton, Wis.) played eight games last year, logged 317 total snaps and earned honorable mention All-Big Ten honors from coaches and media.

He was in uniform for the bowl game, but didn’t play. He wasn’t on the field for the spring scrimmage. Michigan State fans haven’t seen him on the field since the Michigan game. He wasn’t available for interviews on Monday, but all things seem to be pointing positively for the Arkansas State transfer.

“He’s been great,” Kapilovic said. “I don’t know if any of you guys have seen his before-and-after picture on social media, but he is in great shape physically and ready to go.

“He had some clean-up surgeries and stuff like that in the off-season and he feels good.

“He actually, for the first time, is starting to speak up and accept some leadership on this offensive line, which is important.

“He is a big part of what we do and I like where he’s at right now.”

Kapilovic said he would like to have a playing group of seven or eight players. The top six are clear, when including Greene and Carrick.

Kapilovic needs a third offensive tackle to come along, and junior Brandon Baldwin (6-7, 315, R-Soph., Detroit/Southfield A&T/Independence CC) is the top candidate in that category.

Guard/center Dallas Fincher (6-4, 300, R-Soph., East Kentwood, Mich.) received a lot of repetitions and coaching in the spring, with Carrick and Duplain sitting out March and April.

It’s unclear where Fincher ranks in relation to redshirt freshman guards Kevin Wigenton (6-5, 330, R-Fr., Colts Neck, NJ) and Geno VanDeMark (6-5, 325, R-Fr., Lodi, NJ), but August camp will go a long way toward determining that.

“Every rep we get, from walk-throughs on up, is critical for these guys, especially the young guys,” Kapilovic said.

RUN GAME UPDATE

Kapilovic also serves as MSU’s run game coordinator and assistant head coach.

Michigan State tied for No. 3 in the Big Ten in yards per carry in 2021, at 4.8, with Wisconsin. Michigan State trailed only Ohio State (5.5) and Michigan (5.2).

The Spartans will try to emulate that success without Walker. Jarek Broussard (from Colorado) and Jared Berger (from Wisconsin) have transferred in, hoping to become the man.

Kapilovic, Tucker and offensive coordinator Jay Johnson coached Broussard for a short time at Colorado. They inherited him from the previous staff after he had been redshirted in 2018.

Broussard practiced under Tucker and Kapilovic in the spring of 2019, but then missed Tucker’s lone season in Boulder due to a knee injury sustained at the end of spring practice.

Broussard transferred to Michigan State after spring semester in 2022. He just finished his first week of practice as a Spartan.

“He is not a kid anymore, right?” Kapilovic said, when asked how he compares to the Broussard he knew at Colorado. “We had him that whole winter and in the spring (at Colorado) and then he got hurt toward the end of spring. He practiced with us that spring and showed some really good things.”

Broussard (5-9, 185, R-Sr., Dallas, Texas) rushed for 661 yards last year at Colorado (4.7 per carry, and was honorable mention All-Pac 12 by the coaches.

In 2020, Broussard was Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Year after leading the league in rushing with 895 yards in six games.

“He can find a hole,” Kapilovic said. “If you’ve ever seen a mouse and they go under a door, and you’re like how in the heck did they get through that? Sometimes I see that from Broussard, like how did he find that and get there?

“His demeanor is very good. He picks up things really well.

“You see some flashes of some of the things he can do.”

“He has done some really good things this camp. He’s shown good hands. We’re really happy to have him here with us.”

Michigan State is expected to receive better blocking from the tight end position in 2022 than in the previous two seasons.

Illinois transfer Daniel Barker is a proven, all-around commodity. Sixth-year senior Tyler Hunt is methodically improving as a blocker. And Maliq Carr is a blossoming downfield threat who needs to improve as a blocker in order to reach his high ceiling of potential at the position.

“We’re still figuring that out but I know Ted (Gilmore) feels real good about the group and we feel better about the group,” Kapilovic said.

Last year, Connor Heyward moved from running back to tight end and became an impact player as a receiver. His blocking ran hot and cold at his new position.

Tyler Hunt (6-3, 240, 6-Sr., Gobles, Mich.) started four games last year, but missed the final two games of the season with an injury. He had 14 catches.

The former punter missed the spring due to injury recovery and grew to close to 250 pounds. Hunt said he wanted to add mass in order to have a better chance to move defensive ends as a blocker.

Gilmore said Hunt lost some mobility due to the bad weight and is in the process of tightening back in weight.

Hunt said on Monday that he feels his weight is stabilized and he’s expecting to pack a little more blocking strength as a senior.

When it comes to first-year players, true freshman Michael Masunas (6-4, 240, Tucson, Ariz.) has a strength edge over classmate Jack Nickel (6-4, 235, Milton, Ga.), according to Gilmore. Gilmore says he’s hoping to redshirt both.

Kapilovic feels the position is on an uptick, due to progress toward establishing dual-role tight ends.

“We have guys in there who can do everything now,” Kapilovic said. “It’s not just one guy. So we feel pretty good about where that group can take us.”

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