Biggest advantage for Michigan State football's new linebackers coach? Recruiting
During a phone call with a high school coach from Columbus, Ohio, on Wednesday night, Ross Els realized the most impactful advantage he brings to Michigan State football.
The conversation was a stroll down memory lane, a product of connections he made spending 2011-14 as Nebraska's linebackers coach and the 2016 season as Purdue's defensive coordinator.
"That was one of the schools I stopped at all the time," said Els, who coaches linebackers and special teams, "and it was like the good old days. That's my biggest advantage because I've recruited this area before."
Els comes to MSU as an expert in building, sustaining and growing relationships. He's a crucial piece of head coach Mel Tucker's first coaching staff.
Frank Solich, who had Els on his staff at Ohio from 2005-10, was quick to note the invigorating skill set of his former assistant. Players trust him, Solich said.
"He relates really well to the players, which is huge in this business," Solich said. "If there's one thing that jumps out, it's how coaches relate to the players, other coaches on the staff and how well they fit.
[ MSU linebacker corps has one certainty, and a boatload of unknowns ]
"He develops relationships very quickly. That will certainly help Michigan State."
Bowling Green offensive coordinator Terry Malone describes Els as trustworthy but intense after working with him at Purdue in 2016.
"We had times on that practice field that Ross and I were in each other's faces," said Malone, who coached at Michigan from 1997-2005. "We both wanted to win.
"He's got his hands full, but he's going to be able to convince those kids of his knowledge because of his work ethic. He will give those kids confidence."
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Els has the most Big Ten experience and regional connections of the four assistants who left Colorado to join Tucker in February.
But he also has scars.
The most important conference game he has coached in still doesn't sit well.
The 2012 Big Ten championship, when the Cornhuskers lost, 70-31, to Wisconsin.
"God, that was awful," Els said last week in a teleconference call. "That was a rough, rough day, but we did make it. That's the goal. If you don't make it, that's not a good enough year."
Michigan State hasn't been to a Big Ten title game since 2015, when the Spartans beat Iowa en route to the College Football Playoff. Tucker brought Els with him from Colorado to help get MSU back there.
"I just know what the Big Ten delivers," Els said. "I mean, physical, smart football. That's what we play in this league. I'm glad to be back in it."
Els' first priority is sorting out the linebacker positions and fitting it to a new scheme. To do so, he must gain the trust of those he's mentoring. Senior Antjuan Simmons is the lone returning starter.
"It's different, but it's the same in many ways," Simmons said. "Football is football at the end of the day. Some people might be here, some people might be there."
Malone doesn't doubt his old partner in crime with the Boilermakers will prosper in his return to the Big Ten.
"He'll be able to make some observations," Malone said. "You don't really have an understanding of what the Big Ten is about until you go through a couple of seasons. It's a war every week inside the league. He will bring vast knowledge to that staff."
For the Spartans to be successful, all of the coaches need to be on the same page through the relationships they share between themselves, players and recruits.
And with the background Els obtains, he's positioned to lead them.
"That's what we are shooting for and beyond," Els said. "Why not win that thing? Why not get into the playoffs? Why not win a national championship?
"With the resources Michigan State is providing, with the reputation that Michigan State has, with the coaching staff that's here, with the athletes that are here, that's the way we are going to think."