Visiting your alma mater can be a beautifully nostalgic experience. That’s just how 14 former Michigan State football players felt when they revisited MSU in order to help out with Michigan State’s annual one-day camp for high school seniors. These former Spartans are all currently NFL players, and they enjoyed going back to their alma mater to reminisce and to see how the school has changed.
Former Michigan State quarterback Drew Stanton was in awe of the Spartan Stadium’s recently renovated north end complex. Stanton is set to begin his 10th NFL season, so he has been away from his Spartan playing days for quite a while. He even had to introduce himself to some of the younger alums at a donor golf outing, which was arranged by men’s golf head coach Casey Lubahn. The event took place the Country Club of Lansing, and the benefits went to Lubahn’s program.
Drew Stanton, who is now an Arizona Cardinals backup, departed from Michigan State football in 2007, the same year that Mark Dantonio became the head coach. Stanton attributes the upgrades of the facilities largely to the success of the team. The Michigan State Spartans are currently coming off of their second Big Ten championship in three seasons. Stanton emphasized that while he loves the new facilities, what he enjoyed most was the environment at Michigan State.
This is the second year that head coach Mark Dantonio has invited former MSU players who have professional experience to his camp. The players all had positive things to say about the camp and how the campus has changed. Cornerback Trae Waynes was lightly recruited in high school, but thanks to his performance at the senior camp, he was able to move to the top of Michigan State’s wish list. In 2015, Waynes was the No. 1 draft choice of the Minnesota Vikings. The camp is important to Waynes because he didn’t have many offers when he was coming out of high school, and through the camp, Waynes earned his scholarship. Waynes says that alumni coming back to the program is a representation of how much the program meant to them. Dantonio is grateful for this team of ambassadors for his program.
Dantonio expressed his admiration for the success of these former Spartans in the NFL. He was very excited to have them participating in the camp. Dantonio is very proud of their athletic accomplishments, but he is especially proud of the people they are.
Second-year NFL linebacker Taiwan Jones told the young people that MSU prepared him to compete for an NFL roster spot despite being an undrafted free agent. The result? He joined the New York Jets. Jones came back to the camp because he wanted to have a positive impact on the lives of the children.
Tight end Garrett Celek also came back to inspire the high school seniors. Celek has just finished his best NFL season since joining the San Francisco 49ers in 2012 as an undrafted free agent. The message that he wanted to convey to the youth is not the incredible talent that Michigan State is able to attract, but rather what the Spartan coaches can do with the talent that they have on hand.
The experience was beneficial for both the alumni and the high school seniors. The NFL players were able to experience nostalgia at their alma mater while passing life lessons onto young people who look up to them.