Only 3 more days until the second game of the Spartan’s 2012 football campaign, and that team will be Central Michigan. Now, considering that the talent level between MSU and Central Michigan is significant, a lot of player’s that won’t necessarily make a huge impact until later in the season may be able to shine in this game (what I mean: MSU will play some back ups more frequently than in tougher games). That begs the question: What Spartan player should fans be watching for to do well in the Central Michigan game?

LB Taiwan Jones

Taiwan Jones is a backup STAR position linebacker to linebacker Chris Norman. Yes, Chris Norman is great, but he can’t play literally EVERY snap, and most likely later in the game this weekend the Spartans will bench him to preserve him. This will be Taiwan Jones’ time to shine, and I believe he’ll take advantage of it.

Here at BOTRC, we did an interview with Taiwan Jones about a month ago that you can check out here. We talked about expectations, work ethic, and the Spartan atmosphere. In the interview, I mentioned the hype going into this season. He actually seemed to be dealing with it pretty well, and that gives me confidence that in a situation where he’ll need to do well, he’ll thrive.

With all of the talent at the linebacker position, it’s hard for a Spartan linebacker to set themselves away from the pack, but this will be Jones’ chance to shine, and if not show the coaches that he’s ready for significant playing time, show the coaches that he’ll be ready to start next year after Chris Norman leaves.