Spartans especially salty at linebacker spots

Michigan State middle linebacker Greg Jones has become a tackle machine in three years as a starter. The Big Ten has figured that out firsthand.

Jones, the nation's leading tackler, got the attention of Iowa's players and coaches this week. Center Rafael Eubanks, who will see plenty of Jones in running situations, had nothing but superlatives to say about Jones.

“He's around the ball almost every play,” Eubanks said. “He sheds blocks well, he's athletic, he's strong. He's an all-around middle linebacker, and he's going to come to play. He's one of those guys where it doesn't matter what's going on, he's going to get around the ball.”

Jones, who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 228 pounds, averages 12.1 tackles a game. He was first-team all-Big Ten last year and likely will etch that honor in his biography again this year.

“He's very, very instinctive,” Michigan State Coach Mark Dantonio said. “He's got the ability to get off the blocks and move. He makes you miss in the hole and then makes the tackle. He does some things very, very well that I haven't seen in many linebackers.”

Jones and fellow linebackers Eric Gordon and Brandon Denson comprise perhaps the Big Ten's best linebacking corps. Jones has 85 tackles and 8.5 tackles for loss this year. Gordon, a junior outside linebacker, compiled a career-best 14 tackles last week against Wisconsin.

Gordon and Jones have played alongside one another for three seasons and have developed a rapport. Often one will correct the other in situations when confusion might have reigned a year ago.

“Greg has a lot on his plate and sometimes he'll forget that in this situation we need to call this,” Gordon said. “We just have great communication. We just kind of feed off each other. We're both competitive people, and we both like making plays.”

Gordon admitted he was somewhat lost two years ago as a red-shirt freshman. He made 62 tackles that season, including 7.5 for loss, but he lacked confidence.

“I went into each game throwing my body in gaps,” he said. “I was more into ‘what do I have to do on this play' and fill this gap here.

“Last year I was able to read offenses better. This year I feel 10 times more confident than I have in the past. I'm able to look at a formation and stuff would come to my head - they could be running this, they could be running that.”

Dantonio touted Gordon's leadership ability and considers him an unsung player.

“He's very, very explosive,” Dantonio said. “He's doing a great job in terms of reacting to what he sees. He's been very active from the get-go.

“He's been a little bit overshadowed because of what Greg does, but he's always been extremely active and always been very, very productive for us.”

Gordon and Jones are good friends and room together on road trips. Gordon said Jones is much less intense than his on-field demeanor suggests.

“He's a goofy guy,” Gordon said. “Every night before the games we room together, and I always joke about ‘Ferris Bueller's Day Off.' He watches it constantly. It's his favorite movie.”