East Lansing, Mich. - Every football team has one or two guys in “The Room” that everybody respects, reveres and honors, that everybody listens to no matter what side of the ball they play and practice on. Luke Campbell is one of those guys for Michigan State.

That guy that you know always makes it about the team and never about himself.

That’s why Campbell, despite what has become a series of lingering and sometimes debilitating injuries, bumps and bruises, decided to come back for one more ride with his brothers, his family.

There’s no doubt that Campbell, who was limited to just eight snaps in MSU’s bounce back win over Maryland last Saturday after making a surprise return to the playing in a more extensive role earlier this season, is a guy that you know has given and will give his all, on and off the field until he takes his last snaps as a Spartan.

That means the significance of Saturday’s matchup, where No. 7 MSU (9-1, 6-1 Big Ten) will travel to Columbus for a noon showdown (ABC) against No. 4 Ohio State (9-1, 7-0) is not lost on Campbell, who played his prep football at Olentangy High School in Lewis Center, Ohio - just minutes from the Buckeyes’ home turf.

“I’ve played them five times and I’ve lost every time and that’s my hometown, so it means a lot to me,’’ said Campbell, who took advantage of the NCAA’s COVID-19 waiver to come back for a sixth and final season. “We got a lot of dudes from Ohio on this team a lot of dudes from Columbus. So, it means lot to us.’’

After missing all of last season and most of the 2019 season, Campbell - who has 26 starts to his credit and was Honorable Mention All-Big Ten as a redshirt freshman way back in 2017 - made a surprise return to the playing group this year. He had strong showings in the first month of the season, and earned equal playing time with starting left tackle Jarrett Horst at times in September. However, Campbell's body has been wearing out as the season has continued. He tried to play against Michigan, but struggled. Last week, he got in a few digs against Maryland.

Meanwhile, Horst hasn't played since the Michigan game and isn't expected to be on the field this weekend. A.J. Arcuri has moved from right tackle to left tackle. Kevin Jarvis has moved from right guard to right tackle. Sophomore Spencer Brown emerged last week as a second-string right tackle, earning quality minutes for the first time in his career and played well against Maryland.

With Brown on the rise, Campbell suddenly isn’t the only reserve offense tackle on the team with playing experience. With Brown available, that could mean Jarvis could spend more time at his natural position of right guard on Saturday.

Campbell is supporting any and all able bodies that can help contribute against the Buckeyes. And with the sobering realization that this is his last run on the football field, Campbell, who grew up in the shadow of Ohio Stadium, doesn’t want to waste what will be the last three or four games of his football career.

He wants to cherish this last run and he is imploring his teammates to do the same.

“I came back to see to see if I could keep playing to go to the next level and my body’s telling me it’s probably not what’s going to happen with my career and God’s taking me to other paths,” he said. “He’s showing me the road I need to take. So this game to me, I won’t play for the scouts, I won’t play for anything, I will just play hard for my brothers. I’m going to go out there and give everything I got, every snap I get. No matter how many snaps I got, I’m going to just give it all that I got.’’

At stake for the Spartans, a chance to take the inside track toward winning the Big Ten’s East Division, thus getting to the Big Ten Championship and trying to earn the program’s second bid to the College Football Playoff.

Campbell made sure those goals weren’t lost on his brothers when he stood before them to talk about Saturday’s contest.

“I just talked about the importance of this game,” he said. “This game’s a determining factor for us. If we want to make it to the Big Ten Championship we’ve got to beat this team right ahead of us. So, I just kind of talked about the importance of this game and my belief in this team. I truly believe in this team. I think we’ve got what it takes.’’

The Spartans earned the program’s first bid to the College Football Playoff in 2015 after beating Iowa in the Big Ten Championship. But in order to get that repeat trip, Campbell knows that beating the Buckeyes is necessary.

And his teammates know his speech on Monday could serve as proper motivation

Senior safety Xavier Henderson, another Ohio native who played his high school ball for Pickerington Central in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, and like Campbell, grew up a Buckeyes fan, talked about Campbell’s influence when he got up and talked to the team on Monday.

“Luke Campbell brought us up (on Monday) and kind of had a discussion like that (about legacy),’’ Henderson said on Tuesday during MSU player interviews. “He was telling us we’ve got an opportunity to do something he hasn’t done before. When I was in high school, my high school coach always told us it’s about what the younger dudes can do for the seniors to help them win. Even though I’m a senior, Luke’s still got two years on me so I try to make it like, what I can do for him and dudes his age. It’s just cool to see all of the wisdom somebody like that has and what the years bring to a dude like that. It’s nice to see.’’

Henderson’s acknowledgement of Campbell’s speech to the team was just a further tribute to an upperclassman who has endured a lot of pain to be part of this MSU team and this program.

This season, Campbell, who has fought back from injuries, surgeries and the loss of a starting job at offensive tackle, has seen action in nine games and played 204 snaps. He was also named a game captain for MSU’s win over Rutgers, where he recovered a fumble.

But for the player who decided to come back for a sixth season, it’s not hard to understand why his presence on this team and in this program has been such a valuable asset And why this Saturday is so important to him.

“That’s why I stuck around for another year. I’ve battled some injuries, but I wanted to finish strong, I wanted to go out swinging and I marked this game on my calendar since last year’’ Campbell said. “I mark it on my calendar every year. This is an important game to me.’’

And you have to figure, if the Spartans can keep their Big Ten title and College Football Playoff hopes alive with an upset against the Buckeyes, his words will have made a difference.

“I know it’s a great competition but the great teams, they rise to the occasion so that’s what we’re trying to do,’’ Campbell said. “This year, I feel like we understand the challenge ahead of us. I think we got the dudes to do it.’’