Michigan State offensive tackle Spencer Brown is now in his redshirt senior season, and is using the spring to improve his game.
Last year, Brown started all 12 of MSU’s games at right tackle, and logged 783 snaps, which was the second-most on the Spartans’ offense.
As one of the few healthy offensive linemen able to participate in last year’s spring practice, Brown used that opportunity to his advantage and went into the fall of 2022 – his first year as a full-time starter – with more confidence and reps under his belt.
The “night and day” difference on the offensive line in the spring of 2023 versus the spring of 2022 has been talked about ad nauseam over the past month or so, but having more bodies along the offensive line this time around has made things easier on the unit and the team overall.
Last year, Michigan State had roughly seven offensive linemen fully healthy by the time the spring "game" took place. This spring, the Spartans started with 19 players available in the offensive trenches. MSU is now down to at least 18 players, as redshirt freshman Gavin Broscious recently posted on social media that he suffered a serious injury to his leg/knee, but plenty of depth remains for the Spartans.
Thinking back to this time last year, Brown remembers how difficult it was for the offensive line to practice last spring, noting that this year has been much better on that front.
“It’s definitely different,” Brown said about this spring versus last spring. “We’ve got 19 guys instead of seven guys. There’s no more huffing and puffing … now it’s more efficient work, guys getting less reps because there’s a lot more dudes and a lot more opportunities. So, it gives us a better chance to give us better reps, quality reps and technique. Everything is just more efficient.”
Brown recalled how tiring it was last year due to lack of breaks and constant reps. The available players – even on the rare occasions when they got a rep off – had to constantly be ready.
“There was no breaks,” Brown said about the spring of 2022. “I mean, it's just that simple, man, there was no breaks, so there was no subs. You’re out there with only five dudes, and then two other dudes rotating in with you. And them other two dudes just can’t be standing there, too, because we were all in there gassed."
The added depth and bolstering of the offensive line room has Brown looking forward to what this team can do in the spring and into the fall. He somewhat compares this year’s group to the 2021 team that rotated in nine or 10 guys on the offensive line each game.
“I’m excited for a lot of the depth we’ve got,” Brown said about the offensive line. “Just a couple years ago back in 2021, it was good because we had 1A and 1B with a lot of depth back there. So now, with a lot more guys and a lot of new guys with fresh legs, I think we could be more efficient.”
Still, Brown is grateful for the experience and work he got in during the spring of 2022 because it made him a better player and prepared him for his role as a starter.
“Absolutely (it was beneficial),” Brown said about being one of the few offensive linemen to get reps last spring. “It’s more reps and more opportunity. I feel like every time you’re out there, it’s another day to get better every time you step out on the field. You can’t take for granted any rep.”
Individually, Brown feels that he has improved tremendously since last spring, and has even gotten better since the fall. Brown feels that his game has taken a step up, and under the tutelage of assistant head coach/offensive line coach/run game Chris Kapilovic, he believes he will only get better from here.
Brown also thinks the Spartans will have a much more successful year as a team in 2023, following the disappointment of a 5-7 record and missed bowl game in 2022.
“I feel like I’m lightyears ahead (from where I was last year),” Brown said. “I’m definitely better. I’ve got a remarkable coach, remarkable staff. (With) Coach Kap, I’m just trying to absorb everything and learn as much as I can because I know he’s sent a lot of pros in.
“It’s still a lot of self-improvement I gotta work on as far as just consistency, but I feel like I had a good year (in 2022). What I’m excited to do is what I’m gonna do in the future. With the team that we’ve got and the guys around me and the coaching staff, I’m excited.”
When pressed about what areas he felt has improve in, Brown noted several things, both on and off the field.
“I’m getting better,” Brown said. “Leadership, technique, conditioning, my body, everything’s just getting better. And my IQ, awareness for the game – instead of me (just) knowing the play, I know what everybody else is doing. I’m seeing the defenses break down … I’m just looking all over the field. Instead of just worrying about my job, I’m looking at the guys next to me, which is just ultimately gonna make me a better football player.”
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READ: Michigan State Scheme Standouts Film Room: Offensive Tackle Spencer Brown
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Brown was also asked about the running game, and he gushed about the Spartans’ strong stable of running backs: redshirt senior Jaren Mangham, redshirt sophomore Nathan Carter, redshirt junior Jalen Berger, senior Jordan Simmons and redshirt sophomore Davion Primm.
While Brown noted that each running back brings something different to the table, he mentioned that success on the ground ultimately starts with the offensive line. He expects to be able to move the ball better with the rushing attack in 2023.
“I’m excited for the running back room,” Brown said. “My guy Jaren Mangham, I’m excited for him. He's a Swiss army knife. My boy Nate Carter, he's gonna be a guy. Then we've still got (Jalen) Berger. He’s gonna be a guy. I like (Davion) Primm. I like (Jordan) Simmons.
“I feel like our backs definitely got something different that they bring to the table, but they’re all explosive in their own ways. I'm excited for what we can do (in the run game), but I feel like it's still on the O-line. It don't matter who runs the ball. This year we gotta put it on us.”
Michigan State struggled to run the football last season, averaging 113 rushing yards per game (12th in the Big Ten) and a meager 3.8 yards per carry (eighth in the Big Ten).
Brown said that the struggles in the run game in 2022 weren’t due to play-calling and weren’t necessarily for any one particular reason, but small breakdowns on each play ultimately led to failure.
“I wouldn't say it was hard (to run the football last year),” Brown said. “I would just say it just comes down to execution. Just guys doing their one-eleventh, guys just doing their job. It wasn't the play calls, it wasn't on the coaches, everything's just on the players. How the offense works, if 10 guys do their job and one guy don't do it, then the play don't work. So it just comes down to execution – everybody just doing their job at a high level.”
Brown’s first ever start was in Michigan State’s 2021 Peach Bowl victory against Pittsburgh. He held up pretty well against a team known for having a good pass rush, and said it gave him “confidence through the roof.”
Despite starting 13 consecutive games at right tackle, Brown knows that the job is not guaranteed to him. There is much more competition on the offensive line this season, and throughout the roster as a whole. The best players will play, and Brown will do what he can to earn his role every day.
For Brown, though, he isn’t competing against everybody else, he’s competing against himself to be the best player he can be.
“I feel like even now, I'm fighting for a spot,” Brown said. “I'm not competing with nobody, I'm competing for myself. I’m not looking at the other guys in the room, but I feel as if the day that you feel like you’ve got it is the day you lose. You just always gotta keep improving and keep striving. Nobody’s perfect – we all try to be perfectionists, but all we can do is take one day at a time. So, I feel like my best football is yet to come. I don't know how good I'm gonna be. I'm excited just to see what I can do in the future.”
One thing that Brown does not lack is confidence. He knows he still has work to do, and knows last year wasn’t quite good enough, but he believes in himself no matter the situation.
“My self-belief is always up,” Brown said. “I always think I’m the best, regardless of if I lose a rep or win a rep.”
Michigan State will host its "Spartan Football Kickoff" event on Saturday.
