Michigan State football: Aisea Moa making more noise with the staff

Following a long bye week, Jonathan Smith returned to the Spartan Stadium Media Center on Monday to discuss Michigan State football. In their last outing, against USC, the Spartans faced adversity. By halftime of the game, MSU was down five starting defenders, alongside their first linebacker substitution.

In case you missed the second half, or completely slept through it, the Spartans struggled to stop the run both with and without their starters. That said, the lack of starting linebackers allowed juniors Marcellius Pulliam and Aisea Moa to receive major reps, and both ranked among the top three in defensive grades for MSU’s game against USC.

Moa, in particular, was impressive, ranking highest among all defensive players with a 77.4 grade on the day. He recorded a pair of tackles and quarterback pressures in his 43 snaps.

On Monday, Smith had high praise for the BYU transfer. He praised Moa’s recent progression, especially in the face of losing Jordan Hall to a questionable targeting call and Wayne Matthews to injury before the USC game hit halftime. Smith went as far as to tease the linebacker getting an expanded role.

“He’s come along well, we did ask him to work inside. He’s gotten some more turns, especially the other night when Jordan (Hall) leaves in the first half, then Wayne (Matthews III) goes down,” Smith said. “We call on Icy (his nickname) to do some plays on third down, and I can see his role continue to expand on the inside back to play.”

Smith also praised Moa’s ability on special teams. Moa’s 27 special teams snaps currently rank among the top five in the linebacker room for Michigan State football.

“We like that he’s here. He’s been a contributor on special teams, too,” Smith pointed out. “We got him on most phases here. He’s what you expect out of your linebacker crew, but he’s probably one of the leader ones on the special teams’ side, and there’s more time at inside backer.”

Not the first praise for the junior

This is not the first time the team has praised Moa, either, as Jordan Hall had high praise for his fellow junior when previewing the Boston College matchup earlier in the month.

“He is great in the room, he is a guy that joined us in the beginning of this year. He’s a great dude that we love having in the room,” Hall said that day. “Good energy, always flying around, coming from BYU, he had some experience pass rushing. He’s been a great addition on third down, being able to get to the quarterback and change the picture for him.”

Overall, Moa is a player that brings energy and “juice” to the linebacking unit, and the hope is that more experience will continue to improve the amount of plays that wow his teammates and excite the fans.