On the same day that the Big Ten announced its revised schedule for 2020, senior MSU defensive end Jacub Panasiuk announced he isn’t going to be a part of it.
Panasiuk has 24 career starts and posted five sacks last year among 11 tackles for loss.
“After careful consideration with my family and coaches, I have decided to redshirt this upcoming season,” Panasiuk said via Twitter on Wednesday afternoon. “It is my intention to come back and finish my senior year at Michigan State University.
“Our country is facing difficult times with many unanswered questions regarding Covid-19. Unfortunately, with the uncertainty of the effects of Covid-19, I cannot risk my health and safety in order to play football this season. During these tough times, I will support my teammates in any way I can. #GoGreen.”
THE IMPACT
Panasiuk is ranked tied for No. 4 in the country in quarterback hits (24) according to College Football Rankings. He is undoubtedly the best pass rusher in a program that is low on edge rush threats.
If the 2020 season takes place, the Spartans will miss Panasiuk greatly, but MSU could benefit in the future by having him around for 2021. An underlying question for program growth is how difficult it will be for the program to gain a spark of momentum in 2020, heading into the 2021 recruiting cycle, if a season takes place and an underdog Spartan team struggles against a tough, conference-only schedule. MSU could fall into damage-control mode if a season is played, and that task becomes tougher without Panasiuk.
Through no fault of his own, MSU’s new head coach Mel Tucker has yet to hold a practice with his new players and footballs on the same field. Most of the rest of the conference teams held enhanced summer workouts for the 14 days, which included one hour a day with footballs in play. The two weeks of enhanced practices were granted by the NCAA as a substitute for missing spring practice. MSU, with its players having been in quarantine for two weeks after an outbreak of positive COVID-19 tests during the week of July 22, hasn't been able to participate in enhanced practices.
MSU missed its entire spring practice season and the entire allotment of enhanced summer workouts - a terrible formula for a first-year coach attempting to implement new offensive and defensive schemes and find a new starting quarterback. All of this and MSU is supposed to be ready for Minnesota and its eight returning starters, including second-team All-Big Ten quarterback Tanner Morgan, in just four weeks?
