Michigan State has a tenacious defense taking to the gridiron this fall. And the leader of that fearsome defense is OLB Max Bullough; who blood is as green and white as it gets. He’s a third-generation Spartan, following in the footsteps of his grandfather Hank (guard, 1952-54) and father Shane (linebacker, 1983-86) who played football at Michigan State.
Bullough has the word “SPARTAN” tattoed on one arm, “PRIDE” on the other. And having all that inks means he’ll fit in quite well in the NFL; where players really love themselves some tattoos. Max Bullough is rated as one of the top Outside Linebacker Prospects in next May’s NFL Draft class.
When I caught up to Bullough, it was at Big Ten Media Day. And I was in the midst of a discussion between Max Bullough and reporters about concussions, and concussion rules.
“I’m an old school football guy. Let the guys play, let the NFL guys play, everyone who’s played football their whole lives knows the risks, knows the rewards,” Bullough said.
“In a construction job, you can get hit in the head, it’s the same thing. It’s unfortunate the way it happens sometimes, but this is what we signed up for.”
So what does Bullough think about the future of college football? Will it go away, or be restored in some different form? How many changes will happen within the sport.
“I hope not a lot, I hope people will realize enough is enough. There’s only so much you can do. You still got to tackle, you still got to bring the guy down. They can make a couple more rules, but these hits are still going to happen,” he said.
Of course, I asked Max Bullough about his Spartan Pride tattoos.
“I just went and got ‘em after the Big Ten championship game against Penn State my freshman year,” he responded.
I asked Max Bullough if there’s anyone on this Earth who is indeed more Spartan than he is.
“I’m sure, I’m sure there are some fanatics out there who are more Spartan than I am.”
And what does it mean to be a Spartan?
“Being a man of character who does the right thing at the right time. In regards to football being an intense, tough, hard-nosed guy.”
Paul M. Banks is the owner of The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports. An analyst for 95.7 The Fan, he also writes on Chicago sports media for Chicago Now. President Obama follows him on Twitter (@paulmbanks)