A 'new chapter' at Michigan State was easy choice for transfer running back Jarek Broussard

EAST LANSING – It would have been easy for Jarek Broussard to return to Colorado. After leading the Buffaloes in rushing yards each of the past two seasons, and starting 15 of the team's 17 games in that span, Broussard would have been the presumptive lead running back again. But sitting down with his family after last season ended, Broussard realized taking the easy route wasn't his style.

He already had his degree in hand, after all.

"I just felt like it was time to open a new chapter in the book," he said.

That chapter will be written at Michigan State.

It's a reunion of sorts; it's also a chance to do something he never did with the Buffaloes.

In Mel Tucker's lone year as Colorado's head coach in 2019, Broussard suffered a season-ending knee injury before the Buffaloes even played a game. Tucker left for MSU after that season. Now, Broussard finally will have the opportunity to suit up for a Tucker-led team.

Upon entering the transfer portal, Broussard said his prior relationship with Tucker and his staff had a major role in picking the Spartans.

"When I got hurt during that time (in 2019), I went through a big mental phase of things," Broussard said. "But you have people like Coach Tuck and Jay Johnson in your corner, just continuing to tell you, 'It's all going to be OK. It's part of the game.' "

Since joining the Spartans, Broussard said he's been "a sponge," trying to soak up everything he can.

"These guys have got the recipe," he said. "They won 11 games last year, so coming from a different program, they already had their foundation laid. So you just take it day by day."

When he has questions, he looks to two of the team's leaders, quarterback Payton Thorne and safety Xavier Henderson, for guidance.

"All the guys on the team, they welcomed me with open arms," Brossard said, "so that made the transition really easy."

'I just like taking chances'

For all the talk of his shared background with Tucker, that wasn't the only thing that made MSU stand out while Broussard assessed his options. There was the not-so-small matter of Kenneth Walker, who was in the same position as Broussard at this time last year — a transfer, new to the program. All he went on to do was author one of the greatest individual seasons in Michigan State's history.

"Seeing a guy come in from a different program — kind of similar to where I am — and seeing him go crazy like that, it's very eye opening," Broussard said. "I'm kind of wanting to do the same."

When they break down film, Walker is featured prominently. Running backs coach Effrem Reed says Broussard is the most similar player in his room to Walker. While humbled, Broussard didn't necessarily embrace the comparison.

"Compliments and stuff like that are always good," he said. "Kenneth Walker is a hell of a player, so that's good company to have your name around. But ... Kenneth, he's one of a kind."

While unfair to expect any player to replicate Walker's stellar campaign, Tucker couldn't help but sing Broussard's praises.

"He's an explosive player. He's an explosive athlete," Tucker said. "You can see the way he's built. He runs with power. He's got quickness and he's got speed. He's got good burst through traffic. He's got really good awareness and instincts. He's an incredible receiver out of the backfield."

Offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic joked the 5-foot-9, 185-pound Broussard is so elusive, he's like a mouse that somehow finds a way to sneak under a door. Broussard said the comical assessment isn't far from the truth, though.

"I often make a play or slip through a hole and it's just like something you can't really teach," he said. "So I just use my vision, and whenever I see a hole, I just try to hit it no matter how narrow it is. I guess I just like taking chances."

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'That's what drives me'

Broussard struggled to describe what it's like playing for Tucker. It's something better experienced than explained.

"You've got to play for him to really feel it. You've got to sit in those meetings and soak in the things he tells you," Broussard said. "When it comes to Coach Tuck, it's way bigger than football. We're physically conditioned, but we're also mentally conditioned like,' Where's your mind?' And I feel like that's where one of the biggest aspects of the game is at."

In the 2 1/2 years that have passed since Tucker last tutored Broussard, the coach said he didn't detect much of a change in the player's personality. He's simply coming of age.

"Guys just grow up. ... And from a physical standpoint, he's just bigger than he used to be, because he's been lifting weights for a few years and doing a great job with that," Tucker said. "So he's more mature, he's more developed."

Part of that maturity stems from his injury history. Two years before he went down prior to Tucker's lone season at Colorado, Broussard suffered another gruesome injury in high school, tearing his ACL in the semifinals of the state playoffs in Texas.

"There's two ways you can go about it," he said. "You can look at it like, 'Oh, I hurt my knee. I can't do this. I can't do that.' Or you can go look at it, 'OK, so what?' ... As long as you keep a positive mindset and you continue to focus on your 'why' — like, 'Why am I doing this' and 'Why do I go so hard?' I feel like that will get you over those barriers and over those setbacks."

Tucker departing wasn't what Broussard or anyone around the Buffaloes' program wanted to see. But Brossard said in a sense, Tucker should be credited with the 4-1 season that followed.

"I hate to say this, but that 2020 CU team, that was Tuck's team," Broussard said. "It was just coached by a different coach with the foundation already laid."

Which is why Broussard jumped at the chance to reconnect with Tucker.

"Being back in those meeting rooms is just honestly and truly a blessing," Broussard said. "Coach Tuck, he's not going to hand you anything. He's going to make you compete for it all. Competition brings out the best."

Broussard giving it his all is the least of Tucker's worries. Of all the multi-talented Texas native's assorted attributes, Tucker said one that goes unnoticed is how much Broussard loves the game.

"But obviously, he's got to prove it just like everyone else, myself included, every single day," Tucker said, "and earn the right to get out there and get some touches and get some targets."

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Like any player, Broussard would love to be at the top of the depth chart at the end of preseason camp, to be on the field with the first-team offense in the opener versus Western Michigan. But it's not an all-consuming quest. Chalk it up to the injuries that sidelined him for the first two years of his college career.

That pain lends perspective.

"Just having the opportunity to be out there with the team, being able to contribute, that's what drives me the most," he said. "Being the guy who's hurt and on the sideline, your name is never gonna get called. ... We use this (phrase), 'Your best ability is availability.' So I kind of just stick with that now, to be as available as I can."

Contact Ryan Black at rblack@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @RyanABlack.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU football: Jarek Broussard ready for 'new chapter' as Spartan