Saint-Dic and SirDarean to Chiefs

Jonal Saint-Dic will get his NFL shot with the Kansas City Chiefs.

    He'll be joined there by former MSU teammate SirDarean Adams. Also, Jehuu Caulcrick has signed a free agent deal with the New York Jets, and Nehemiah Warrick went with the other N.Y. team, the Giants. They join Pete Clifford (Arizona), Travis Key (Minnesota) and Ogemdi Nwagbuo (Giants) as MSU guys who have confirmed deals.
    Along with draftees Devin Thomas, Kellen Davis and Ervin Baldwin, they give MSU the potential for 10 more pros when the '08 NFL season opens, a good number for this program. Still no word at this point on other hopefuls such as Kenny Shane, Eric Andino and Terry Love.
    All these guys, by the way, were recruited to MSU by John L. Smith (and half of them, by the way, were JUCO recruits). Which reminds me, there has been a lot of response today on the story of John L. and/or his former MSU staff having some negative things to say about Davis. Most of the response has been venom for John L.
    This is a strange story because it involves what is usually confidential information. We don't have any explanation from the former staff on these supposedly confidential conversations -- but we do have the Bears volunteering the fact that the former coaches were critical of Davis.
    Here's the thing to remember: If you were in the position of those coaches and were asked by NFL execs to evaluate a player, you would say what you really felt. If someone in your field asks for an honest evaluation of someone you work with or used to work with, you'd better tell what you believe is the truth. Otherwise, it could come back to bite you.
    But then, you should also expect that your evaluation won't be made public.

Comments

[spartan fan]

Agree, Joe...100%

As for John L., he's gone...kaput. Fans should chaulk that episode up to bad decision-making at the top. It happens! John L. took Louisville to the top over and over. MSU needed a change from Bobby W. At the time, didn't we all agree that anyone would have been better than Bobby? Williams lost control of the team...top to bottom. There was no discipline, and that is from one former player and his family. The program and the kids were running wild. In comes John L., and we had high hopes. Too bad it didn't work out.

Now it's MD's turn and based upon last year...a year when I certainly had my doubts...he's done fine. Better than what was expected, and not with "his" kids.

The future looks bright for MSU football. It will take time and fan support. MD may be another Izzo in the making.

Let's hope so.....

[stone]

of course you should be honest if you were asked. but the clowns left in a bitter fashion, were bitter when here, threw kids under the bus, etc.

isn't it true that JLS told the kid directly who got beat up in the fight Davis was a part of to press charges to the fullest extent?

that could be right or wrong, but here there is a lot of smoke around the bad energy of the JLS era.

come on joe, he wont even talk to you now on the record to reflect on his msu days, will he?

[Psyc]

I'm glad I can type without looking, as I am now blind from reading a Spartan blog that mentions both John L and B Williams. Gonna need a couple more therapy sessions real soon!!!

It's great that so many Spart Dogs are getting a chance at the next level!! Good luck fellas!

[David]

Psyc: Maybe this will help you out. According to RIVALS.com, MSU has already landed 5 four-star players for the season-after-next. The only one unrated (at this time) is the QB they recruited, but word has it that he's the #1 HS senior QB in MI going into the Fall. As I live in BC, I plan to go see Larry Capers play in the Fall. All I can say is.....WOW!!!

Now, not all 4 Star recruits pan out. I understand that, but it's not my point. Typically, more prized recruits ARE worthy of their accolades than not.

Moreover, there's no reason to believe with the strong start that the 4 Star players won't multiply. I don't want to continually obsess over U-M, but no way Michigan fans can look @ that spread and feel good about themselves.

After all, MSU typically gets mostly 3 Star players with a couple 2 Stars and 2-3 4 Stars mixed in. U-M typically gets mostly 4 Star players w/a couple 3 & 5 Stars mixed in. So far, the 2009 recruiting class looks like a typical U-M class, not a typical MSU class (going by Stars alone). Think of it: despite being grossly out-recruited, MSU has come within a TD of beating U-M 4 of the last 5 games. With better players....... If Dantonio continues at this pace, 2009 could be the greatest recruiting class MSU has had since the 1960s. Boy I'm glad my season tickets have already been renewed!

DSR

[Mike]

Good point Joe. I agree with you but JL is still a dick...

[Joe Rexrode]

It's true, stone, JLS wouldn't respond in any way to me after about the second game of the 2006 season. That childishness aside, I'm just saying that he and his staff should be expected say what they really think about guys when asked by NFL people, and I assume that's what they did -- not knowing it would become public. Now, if they went out of their way to rip Davis as he seems to think, that's a different, much uglier story.

[stone]

you make a good point Joe. and i guess we should presume they spoke honestly to the nfl coaches. but something stinks here. nfl coaches don't have a history of gossiping to anyone, let alone players and other coaches, as to what other college coaches have said. and there did seem to be more than a little bitterness flying around in different directions from the jls era staff. davis' incident was ugly on its face, but there seems to be possibly more here.

it's still too bad that even today, jls isn't willing to speak yet openly about his msu days. i'd like to hear his views on what went wrong, what went right, etc. the perceptive members of the fan base realize HOW close he came to getting over the hump, more than once, and then how difficult it became to get back up after falling so hard (um '04, um '05, osu '05 (the killer), nd '06, etc.). you've summarized as much in the past.

[nadbadman]

coach d will make us all forget about the past and jlosersmith...go green

[jimb]

Thanks for the update Joe...wondered what happened to Saint-Dic, Key, Jehuu and Warrick.
I believe that Key was a 'walk on', so much for 4 stars! Hope they all make it at the next level.

[vnflcards]

Isn't John L. a scout for the Rams now? Maybe this is just some normal NFL draft subterfuge where a team talks a player down because they want to draft him later in the draft.

[Steigenga]

Just forget about JLS, leave him buried. If he steps out of bounds or has stepped out, them smash him. It's classless if he leaked anything and JLS clearly showed he has issues with boundaries. Nothing good can come from interviewing him on what went right and what went wrong. As it turned out, he was way over his head in BT football land and he cracked under both the pressure of it as well as the having to deal with the schizo personality of MSU football on and off the field. Everyone who has followed MSU football for the last 30 years knows the multiple skeleton in the closet issues. There's no reason to give a loose canon like JLS any audience to cause trouble because we all known that anything good will be overshadowed 10X by anything bad. What good can this guy do for MSU at his point. Leave him dead and buried. MD is totally the right guy and everyone should be looking forward and stop managing the past.

[The Dude]

I found it surprising that the Bears organization let that info slip. I don't see how any credible employer (in any field) can expect honest evaulations on future employees, if they are not going to keep that info confidential. I think this hurts the Bears more than it hurts JLS.

[sparty fan]

Ya know...Kellen Davis was a dog freshman through junior year. For his size and capabilities, he did underachieve for 3 years. I may believe John L. and his supposed comments. It really wasn't until this year that he started to perform. I was in State College for the PSU game in 2006...he must have dropped 5 or 6 easy passes during that game. Truth may hurt! He should thank MD and staff for bring out his best!

[spartan fan]

Steigenga:

RIGHT ON, BRO'

...and let's add a few feet of dirt on the grave for good measure.

Dead is dead. Buried is buried!

Go Spartans! Go MD!

[Spartan Legacy]

Think of hatin' on JLS as good therapy. I was instantly annoyed by his doggone ways and faux cowboy swagger. The image I have of him is getting left in the dust and throwing his cowboy hat to the ground as the latest debacle unfolded around him. He was an embarrasment to the school and football program. From MD's first year its apparent he's everything JLS wasn't. He's substance, not style. He's composed, not a loose cannon. He demands respect, rather than slap himself during press conferences. A major upgrade.

[dave]

Correction.
Caulcrick was recruited by Bobby Williams.

[spartanforever]

Terry Love was @ MSU because of HS mate Shanno Brown>D.Thomas and K.Davis were at MSU despite jls being hired-they are locals who wanted to be here:jls gets credit but they were gifts.Nwagbua,Adams,Baldwin and some others were definitely his recruits,not a great haul,and I mean no disrespect to these fine young men.

jls should have been paid $175.000 and sent on his way,all that other cash should have been in incentives.Some people want pro athletes to have incentive clauses-I don't totally disagree,but coach's should also be held accountable.Lets see how the money managers at MSU fared with jls:THE WORST COACH IN THE BIG TEN GOT MORE $$$$$ THAN CARR,ALVAREZ,ANY COACH.Did Mason even imagine covering his decision???in any way?People in positions like that never come forward and acknowledge their horrendous mistakes and other officials cover for them...This is what is destroying America just as swiftly as other problems.Such a hard headed narrow decision made by one AD when he had this great brain trust of former players, and others to advise him-And he is the hockey coach-we got what we deserve-we would have done no worst by having Izzo run both basketball and football.

[Joe Rexrode]

Actually, Caulcrick was a member of John L.'s first recruiting class. But dave is right that he originally committed to Bobby. So John L. should probably get half credit at best for him.

[wth8251]

Maybe the comments made by JLS staff about Davis are a result of their own inability to motivate, mentor and coach players. If you had to play for them how hard would you work?

This story just proves how incredibly horrible his staff was at doing what all coaches should do - GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR PLAYERS!

[DeadHeadSpartan]

Sparty Fan is right on-

I can't stand JLS as much as the next guy- But the real story here is how much Kellen Davis sucked as a Spartan. HUGE underachiever, and gets in a brawl to boot.

Sure, he looks great in a uniform, but as a TE if the ball didn't hit him right on the numbers he could never adjust and make a catch- he will never be an NFL tight end. I bet he gets moved to guard by the Bears.