East Lansing, Mich. – No nonsense, hardworking, blue collar, focused.

All great descriptions of the play of Michigan State redshirt sophomore linebacker Cal Haladay.

So, it was no surprise that when Haladay, a native of Pennsylvania, was asked if he would be playing with a little more juice because he would be facing his homestate team Penn State on Saturday, that he declined to put any more significance on the matchup.

“It's (just) a football game and I just got to treat like that. I mean, you just gotta go prepare, like it's every single game. I mean, it's just football, and you're trying to find a way to block out that stuff. You just got to try and go out and play well every single week and play like it's your last game and that's all I'm gonna do,’’ Haladay said. “I'm just going to go out and play to my best as I can and do the best that I can.

“I guess it's my home state but, I play for Michigan State. So, I'm gonna be doing what I can to help the team win and that's what it comes down to.’’

Haladay grew up about 70 miles from the Nittany Lions’ campus in Elysburg, Pa.

Penn State was the school that he knew well as he grew up in rural Pennsylvania, working on the family farm, where he was usually up before 5 a.m. doing chores before school.

And with siblings and a father - his brother and two sisters both went to school at Penn State, while his father, Greg, was an All-American wrestler for PSU from 1986-90 – Haladay might be battling some in-home allegiances.

But that doesn’t mean, in his return to his home state, that he’s going to allow any added emotions to color the task at hand.

That task, helping his team pull off an upset win over the No. 11 Nittany Lions.

A Spartan victory would secure the Spartans a second straight bowl bid but that’s not at the forefront of Haladay’s mind, despite his stellar and consistent play all season.

“We just got to focus on this week. We got to go take care of business and that's what we've been talking about, stay focused on Penn State, that's all’’ Haladay said. “That's all that really matters right now on Saturday. So, we just gotta go out and do our jobs on every single play. That's all we're focused on. Just make sure you do your job on every single play.’’

He enters Saturday’s 4 p.m. contest (FS1) at Beaver Stadium as the Spartans’ leading tackler and is tied for first in the Big Ten, and No. 13 in the FBS in tackles made at 109.

Haladay, who also earned Defensive MVP honors after last season’s Peach Bowl performance, where he finished with a team-high 11 tackles, is also tied for the team lead in tackles for loss this season with 10.5 and is credited with one forced fumble and one fumble recovery through 11 games.

That’s production and what MSU (5-6, 3-5 Big Ten) will need more of when they try and get a second-straight win over the Lions (9-2, 6-2) after a 30-27 triumph last season.

And if that happens, you can bet that Haladay’s play on defense will have a huge hand in the upset in a place where MSU has only won seven times in 19 trips to University Park, Pa.

Haladay, who originally had former Spartan position coach Dave Warner as his primary recruiter, didn’t receive much recruiting love from Penn State. Turns out that was a mistake because since his arrival in East Lansing, the 6-foot-1, 230-pound defender has done nothing but continuously trend up in the Spartans’ defensive scheme.

Since becoming the full-time starter in the middle of MSU’s defense as a redshirt freshman, Haladay has become a playmaker with two pick 6’s to his credit – one against Indiana and a pivotal one against Pittsburgh in last season’s Peach Bowl.

Better known for his reputation as a throwback-style player because he doesn’t don any extra pads or wear gloves, Haladay has gained more attention for what he takes from the opponent’s offense.

In his second season with the team last year, he finished his redshirt freshman campaign with 96 tackles and freshman All-American accolades. And he’s only gotten better, earning back-to-back Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors in MSU’s wins over then-No. 14 Illinois and Rutgers.

He has double digit tackles in six appearances this season and will probably need a seventh outing of 10 or more stops if the Spartans are hoping for the upset.

Don’t bet against him,

Spartan head coach Mel Tucker and his teammates learned that soon after his arrival in 2020.

“He’s just old school, out there finding the ball,” Tucker said. “He’s a rugged cat in there. He plays the game the way it’s meant to be played.”

Added team captain and fifth-year senior safety Xavier Henderson: “He just shows up and gets the job done.”