Michigan State DL Alex VanSumeren Reflects on Season Opener, Looks Ahead to Maryland

Michigan State defensive lineman Alex VanSumeren has had a long road back to full health. He got his first career start against Florida Atlantic on Friday.

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EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Alex VanSumeren had a tough start to his career in East Lansing.

After playing just four games in his first season with the program, VanSumeren missed all of last season with an injury.

Last Friday, his impact was finally felt, though, as VanSumeren got his first collegiate start, ultimately recording three tackles and a sack in the Spartans' 16-10 win over Florida Atlnatic.

VanSumeren addressed the media on Wednesday, discussing his road to recovery, getting the start against FAU and the Spartans' upcoming matchup with Maryland.

You can watch his presser below:

Below is a partial transcript from VanSumeren's presser:

Q: When did you find out you were going to be starting?

VanSumeren: "We found out at the end of fall camp. It was a long recovery process, and that was great news to hear, but we've got to keep working. We still got a lot of room to improve."

Q: What was your process going from injury to starting?

VanSumeren: "Well, it was a grind. That whole year. Just sitting out and having to watch my teammates last year was really tough on me, but I had a lot of people in my corner. I'm super thankful for Rod Scott -- he's our head athletic trainer -- and everyone here that helped me get back healthy, all the strength coaches and all of them. So, I mean, it was great to hear [to get the start], but we got still room to improve."

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