Michigan State Football: Demetrius Cooper earning his way back

Demetrius Cooper has had some issues, but he’s earning his way back onto the Michigan State football team, slowly but surely.

Entering his final collegiate season, Michigan State football’s Demetrius Cooper has an uphill battle that he still needs to win. The senior defensive end is still not out of the doghouse and is working his way back to joining the Spartans this fall.

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After some off-field issues in 2016, the crucial piece to the defensive line puzzle was never really where he wanted to be last year and there were rumors that he was getting booted from the team in the offseason.

While that didn’t officially happen, Mark Dantonio said at Big Ten media days that he still has to earn his scholarship back. It’s much like the Delton Williams situation where he has to earn his way fully back onto the team.

Right now, Cooper is in “step two” of the process to get back onto the team fully.

It’s been an up-and-down career for the defensive end. As a freshman in 2014, he played minimally and recorded 10 total tackles. He showed plenty of promise as a sophomore, finishing with 22 tackles, 7.5 for loss and five sacks while backing up Shilique Calhoun.

Expectations may have been slightly unfair heading into his junior year as many, including myself, predicted Cooper would be the next Calhoun-type of player for the Spartans. However, he couldn’t live up to the hype and the off-field issues coupled with that on-field struggle. It was truly a year to forget.

In fact, he finished with just 23 tackles, six for loss and 2.5 sacks in 12 games. The Spartans expected much more.

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If he can work his way back onto the team this fall, Cooper looks to be a sure candidate to help the defensive line, putting the previous season’s struggles behind him.