Michigan State football wants more from OTs Cole Chewins, Luke Campbell

EAST LANSING — It was an on-the-job learning curve for Luke Campbell and Cole Chewins last year.

Michigan State football needs both offensive tackles to make big leaps this fall, both in the run game and in protecting quarterback Brian Lewerke.

“It’s not high school football – it’s Big Ten football, it’s college football,” sophomore right tackle Campbell said last week at media day. “So you’re going against the best of the best. And I like to challenge myself with that.”

While No. 12 MSU loses only center Brian Allen from last year’s offense, it also wants to see more from its bookends on the edge of the line. That was most evident against eventual Big Ten champion Ohio State and its dominating defensive line, which totaled six sacks and held the Spartans to a season-low 64 rushing yards.

“We’re always striving to be better,” junior Chewins said. “Coach (Mark Dantonio) always says, ‘Find the inches.’ And whether that inch is pulling off a block for one more second to get that extra first down or to put you in scoring position or the red zone, or capitalizing on a red-zone chance, we’re always striving to do that.

“We do to the best of our abilities to try and help the other guys make their plays. It definitely has a big impact on how we play, and we know that. A lot of time, it starts in the trenches, and we’re trying to take a physical mindset to the game.”

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Former walk-on Chewins took a path similar to Jack Conklin’s the past two years, earning a scholarship after his first semester and then emerging as a starter at left tackle for the last three games of 2016 as a redshirt freshman. At 6-foot-8 and 290 pounds, Chewins still needs to add bulk and strength from his days as a tight end at Clarkston High but started all 13 games last season.

Chewins finished second on MSU’s line with 50.5 knockdowns last season in 897 snaps. That included six “dominators,” which similar to a pancake block. Allen led the Spartans with 98 knockdowns and 23 “dominators,” which leaves a long way for Chewins – a first-team Academic All America selection with a 3.91 grade-point average in finance – to reach Allen’s All-Big Ten level of production on the field.

“You look at somebody like Cole Chewins, and you see the extra weight on him. And he’s using it," MSU offensive line coach Mark Staten said. "He’s using his punch better. Things that negatively affected him, he spent the offseason correcting. Those are exciting things going forward, because we got a lot of room to improve.”

Campbell started 12 of 13 games as a redshirt freshman at right tackle while also spelling Chewins on the left side occasionally. He received honorable mention All-Big Ten honors from both the coaches and media and earned a spot on the BTN All-Freshman team. The 6-5, 290-pounder was behind Chewins with 37.5 knockdowns and finished fourth with 7.5 “dominator” blocks.

But Campbell also knows “you can’t make excuses” for mistakes, and he considers himself good at self-scouting his weaknesses.

“I gotta stay composed, that’s my thing,” Campbell said. “When you play defense, you can be as mad as you want and it helps you. But when you play offensive line, it’s different because you still gotta be composed and know what you’re doing. If I I get too mad, I might miss my step and then miss a block.

“It’s just all about not letting mistakes affect you.”

MSU has seven of its top nine offensive linemen back from last year’s group that averaged just 381.3 yards, the third-fewest per game under Dantonio. But only one of them, returning starting left guard David Beedle, is a senior this fall – meaning it remains a young group with its best football likely ahead.

“It’s definitely nice coming back and seeing familiar faces, especially when you’re in your 3-point stance and you look to your left and look to your right and see some guys. That’s definitely a good feeling,” Chewins said. “Every day, we’re gonna try to come out and be physical and try to run the ball like Michigan State football likes to do. It’s just a matter of finishing blocks, knowing our assignments and just growing as a unit and continuing to grow.

“Those are our goals, and that’s what we’re striving to do.”

Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Download our Spartans Xtra app for free on Apple and Android devices!