Friday was a special day for nine former Michigan State student-athletes and their families. Friday was the MSU Athletics Hall of Fame induction ceremony, headlined by former Spartan football running back Javon Ringer.
In his four seasons at Michigan State, Ringer ran for 4,398 yards and 34 touchdowns. He finished 10th in Heisman Trophy voting in 2008 and was a fifth-round NFL draft pick by the Tennessee Titans in 2009.
After unveiling his plaque in the Clara Bell Smith Student-Athlete Academic Center, Ringer spoke about what it meant to get inducted alongside some of the biggest names in Michigan State Athletics history.
“It’s really not something that I can truly put into words,” Ringer said. “It’s a blessing. It’s an honor. It’s a beautiful gift that I personally don’t think I truly deserved … When I left Michigan State, I always felt that I left some things on the table. That I truly didn’t accomplish all that I wanted to. I didn’t. That’s how I felt.
"And then, to have gotten that call that I was actually getting inducted into the Hall of Fame, to say it was a shock would be an understatement. The flood of emotions, it’s truly, truly a blessing for me.”
Ringer played at Michigan State from 2005 until 2008. The first two years he played under head coach John L. Smith and his final two years were the first two seasons of the Mark Dantonio era in East Lansing. Ringer helped lay the foundation of some of Dantonio’s best teams at Michigan State.
“That’s cool, but honestly, I would really trade a lot of my individual accomplishments to have been a part of those (successful Michigan State) teams,” Ringer said. “But, God has a plan for everybody and the plan he had for me was to help lay the foundation. I’m proud of what I was able to do, what I did. And like I said, it’s truly an honor.”
Dantonio was a special coach for Ringer. It’s a point of pride for Ringer to say that he played under Dantonio at MSU.
“First off, it’s always, always great seeing Coach D,” Ringer said about Dantonio. “He is one of the best people in the world to me. Because of that man, I was able to have the success that I was able to have here. Because of that man, I was able to have put my name down now of legit, in the record books, and to accomplish what I have accomplished. Because of that man, I was able to have so many beautiful memories to look back on and accomplishments to look back on. Because of that man and he trusting me and giving me the ball … I was able to achieve going to the NFL. I owe a lot to that guy. Coach D will forever be a special person to me and I’m honored and proud to be able to say, ‘I played for the winningest coach in Michigan State history.’”
Dantonio was there to support Ringer for his induction on Friday, before joining Michigan State on the sideline against Washington on Saturday as the Spartans' associate coach.
Ringer’s family accompanied him while he unveiled his plaque. His wife, daughter, son, mother, aunt, uncle, sister, brother and cousin were all there supporting him.
There was a moment when Ringer held up his two-year-old daughter and soaked up the moment with his daughter in his arms.
“That’s honestly what I was probably most excited about," Ringer said about having his daughter there. And I say that because, it’s wild, God knows with a passion how much I did not want a daughter. But then having her has been the best thing in the world. Even when I used to have my little depressing moments, now having her, it helps level things out for me mentally.
"Being able to point out different things around here in Michigan State, whether it being the locker room or the pictures around and now here on the wall, just to be able to point that out and say, ‘Hey, that’s daddy.’ And like I said, having her and sharing this moment with her, that’s what I’ve been most excited about throughout this entire process."
Ringer remains involved in the Michigan State football program as a recruiting intern.
“I still try to help out in recruiting,” Ringer said about his current role. “I feel like the number one, the most important thing in college football is recruiting. You gotta get the players. Having dope players can make everything else pretty easy.”
For more information on all nine inductees into the MSU Athletics Hall of Fame, click here.
- QB
- TE
- OT
- TE
