EAST LANSING, Mich. — If this was the NFL, perhaps Kenneth Walker III would fitting his offensive line with something fancy, perhaps $26,000 watches like former Spartan Le'Veon Bell did a few years ago when he was leading the league in rushing for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Maybe Walker gets there someday, and if the way he's played this season for No. 3 Michigan State is any indicator, then he'll be picking up a hefty bill in the future.
For now, though, the nation's leader in rushing yards per game and one of a handful of players in the mix to win the Heisman Trophy is doing what he can for his offensive linemen.
"He's just very complimentary with everything we do," offensive line coach and run-game coordinator Chris Kapilovic said of Walker. "We open a practice and we do a little group pro period and he comes over and he daps up, or touches hands, with every O-lineman, and he does it in the games. He got an NIL deal and he wanted to share that with our offensive line, which he did.
"So just little things like that. He's just a great kid to be around and the guys love him. When he came in here and you just saw how hard he worked from Day 1, there was an immediate respect level for him. So he's always looking out for his teammates. That's just who he is."
And in turn, his teammates are looking out for him, in a way.
For the Michigan State offensive line, that means paving the way, like they did last week as Walker ran for 197 yards and five touchdowns in the victory over Michigan, the same way they have all season, one highlighted by big runs and even bigger games.
"It's just awesome blocking for Kenneth Walker," sixth-year tackle A.J. Arcuri said. "Obviously, he's very talented. He's a very talented back, so I'm just very honored to be in that situation where I'm able to block for him and have him run behind us. That gives us all the motivation. In practice he's always motivating us and he brings all the energy and keeps us going. It's just awesome blocking for him."
Heading into Saturday's matchup with Purdue, Walker has garnered most of the attention this season for the Spartans, and deservedly so. Through eight games, he's averaging 149.2 yards a game and has a total of 1,194, which is 73 yards behind Syracuse's Sean Tucker, who leads the nation but has played one more game than Walker.
Walker, who transferred to Michigan State from Wake Forest in the offseason, is also tied for third in the nation in rushing touchdowns with 14 and is ninth in yards per carry at 6.82.
And any chance Walker gets, he's usually deflecting the attention from himself, last week dismissing any talk of him having a "Heisman moment" and instead talking about how well the entire team played.
"He's such a humble kid and there's no animosity about the attention he's getting," Kapilovic said. "It's like it's everybody's attention, and he's humble. When you listen to him, he is always complimenting everyone else and giving them credit. So it's a great combination and our guys understand that we've got somebody special back there. We've got other backs that are special as well, so we've got to do our job to get those guys going."
Having that special back has been the spark the offensive line needed for a dramatic turnaround this season.
The Spartans (8-0, 5-0 Big Ten) had struggled the past few seasons running the ball, and in 2020, they were among the worst in the nation, averaging just 91.4 yards a game with only two rushing touchdowns.
Things have flipped this season as Kapilovic is rotating up to nine offensive linemen each game and the unit has taken off. Behind veterans like Arcuri, center Matt Allen and guard Kevin Jarvis, as well as transfer tackle Jarrett Horst and junior guard J.D. Duplain, the first team has been only slightly better than those just behind. Included in that group is junior center Nick Samac, as well as seniors Luke Campbell, Matt Carrick and Blake Bueter.
It's not the typical setup, but it's working for a team that is averaging just more than 200 yards a game on the ground.
"It's a great position to be in and we've worked hard to earn that," Kapilovic said. "But I don't want to feel like I've accomplished anything yet, and the same thing with our guys. You can't get yourself caught up in everything that is going on. We focus on what's next because if you start getting caught up in everything that is going on, you are going to get lost in your way.
"We still have stuff we can work on, and so we've really got to strain to get better as an offensive line, as an offense, and as a team."
And as the offensive line has gotten better, so, too, has Walker.
"Early in the season he'd bounce a lot of these runs, and you'd go, 'No, don't bounce it, and then he pops it for 56 or whatever it is," Kapilovic said. "But he is really maturing as a back. Just looking at his last touchdown (against Michigan) where he hit the 'A' gap on an inside zone versus a bear front. Early in the year he would have been looking to bounce it, but he really stayed true to his track, trusting those guys up front to get it done. He was able to slip through untouched on a big run."
Walker is learning each week, and so are the guys up front. They understand no play is over until the whistle blows and they better keep working. After all, you never know what direction Walker might be coming next.
"We learned early on in the season that you've got to stay on blocks," Arcuri said. "Just his ability to see holes and see opportunities. He's very good at taking those."
The Spartans hope he keeps taking them, and the offensive line will keep doing its best to provide them.
"When you have a back like Ken Walker, if that doesn't motivate you, I don't know what does," Kapilovic said. "You give him a little bit of daylight, you get him to the second or third level, then you know big plays are coming."
