The class of 2015 has reported to campus and, along the way from mom and dad's house to the dorm, each player underwent the magical process whereby their status as stud high school player was removed in place of becoming a scrub college freshman. Like a letter jacket, their stars were left at home in their bedroom closet.
At least that's how it works at Michigan State.
"The stars are gone when you hit our campus, and everyone starts from Square One, and that's the way coach (Mark) Dantonio always wants it,'' Michigan State defensive line coach Ron Burton told MLive.com.
Sparty signed a 20-member class in 2015, good for 22nd nationally according to Rivals, including three defensive linemen. Burton plans on throwing them into the fire when practice starts next month, hoping to find torchbearers for the likes of Shilique Calhoun and Malik McDowell.
"We're going to work our tails off,'' Burton said. "We tell them when they are tired, come to the sideline and sit down because we have other players.
"We just keep it as simple as possible, and we get that fast break going up the field on passes, and we attack the line every play regardless of if it is a run or a pass.''