Sixth-year cornerback Joshua Eaton has taken a long route to Michigan State. The former four-star recruit began his career with the Oklahoma Sooners before transferring down to the Sun Belt and Texas State.
Now, on his last year of eligibility, Eaton has made it back to a power conference program — this time being in the Big Ten with MSU.
“I was looking for an opportunity to display my talents on a bigger level for my senior season, and I felt like Michigan State was the place for me when I went through the (transfer portal) recruiting process,” Eaton said Thursday.
Spring time has been different for Eaton: new school, new coaching staff and — for probably the worse — different weather.
“Being up north, it's been a hassle,” the Houston, Texas native said. “I had to adapt to the snow every day — the first two to three months, you know, we had a lot of snow. Everybody's been very welcoming, though. Everybody's been taking me under their wings. Any questions, anything I have, helping to get around, this place is very loving and caring.”
Coming out of the transfer portal, there had to have been a reason for Eaton to willingly sacrifice the warmer weather of Oklahoma or Texas.
“Coach Blue Adams (with the secondary), Coach (Jonathan) Smith (as head coach), those guys were straightforward to me,” Eaton said about why he chose Michigan State, “They had a couple of older guys in the room this past season that dispersed after the season and they were looking for a guy to come in to play right now to fill that gap and I felt like I was the best person for that this spring.”
It makes sense as to why MSU’s staff wanted Eaton — while at Texas State last year, according to Pro Football Focus, he only allowed 15 catches on 36 targets for 226 yards and one touchdown.
Eaton is also a fan of defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Joe Rossi’s scheme as well, since it often gives him a task he likes: man coverage.
“I feel like my game is very based on man coverage,” Eaton said. “I feel like I'm good at the line of scrimmage, and they do a lot of that in this defense — a lot of man-behind, match zones and things like that. I feel like coming here, playing man, and the Big Ten is a better opportunity for me to get to the next level.”
So far, things have gone well for Eaton. He says he’s running with the first-stringers and is getting more comfortable practice by practice.
“Coming into this spring, of course, learning a new system, it took me a little while,” Eaton said about the first batch of practices he has gone through at Michigan State. “But I picked it up pretty fast as we got on the grass. After one or two days, I feel like it was home. I feel comfortable. Just had to get my feet together, get my footing. And I feel like the system has been great for me since I got here.”
What has also helped Eaton has been him going up against MSU’s deep wide receivers room.
“We come out here to compete every day,” Eaton said about the wideouts. “Omari Kelly, you got Nick Marsh, you got Alante Brown — those guys are guys. Nick Marsh, Alante Brown, they welcomed me with open arms … Those guys are who I compete with each and every day, so those guys are helping me get better, and (I’m) helping them get better.”
