Cal Haladay
_(cropped).jpg) Haladay in 2021 | |
| Michigan State Spartans – No. 27 | |
|---|---|
| Position | Linebacker |
| Class |  |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | December 16, 2001 Elysburg, Pennsylvania |
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight | 235 lb (107 kg) |
| Career history | |
| College |
|
| High school | Southern Columbia Area High School |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Cal Haladay (born December 16, 2000) is an American football linebacker for the Michigan State Spartans.
Early life
[edit]Haladay attended Southern Columbia Area High School in Elysburg, Pennsylvania. In his high school career he notched 334 tackles with 34 going for a loss, 14 sacks, two pass deflections, four interceptions, two fumble recoveries, and two forced fumbles.[1] Haladay committed to play college football at Michigan State over other schools such as Michigan, Nebraska, and Pittsburgh.[2]
College career
[edit]As a freshman in 2020, Haladay redshirted and appeared in four games, recording no statistics.[3] In week five of the 2021 season, he had a breakout game tallying ten tackles with one going for a loss, a fumble recovery, and a forced fumble, as he helped Michigan State beat Western Kentucky 48–31.[4] In week seven, Haladay intercepted a pass thrown by Jack Tuttle and returned it 30 yards for a clutch touchdown, as helped the Spartans beat Indiana 20–15.[5] In the Spartans season finale, Haladay racked up 11 tackles with 2.5 being for a loss, 0.5 sack, and a forced fumble, as helped Michigan State survive Penn State 30–27.[6] Haladay was named the defensive MVP of the 2021 Peach Bowl after recording a team-high 11 tackles and a 78-yard interception return for a touchdown to secure the Spartans' 31–21 victory.[7] Haladay finished the 2021 season with 96 tackles with five going for a loss, 0.5 sack, a pass deflection, two interceptions, a fumble recovery, two forced fumbles, and two touchdowns, earning Freshman All-American honors.[8][9]
In the 2022 season opener, Haladay recorded a strip sack fumble and an interception in a 52–0 victory over Akron.[10] In week ten he totaled nine tackles with 3.5 being for a loss, as he helped Michigan State beat Illinois.[11] For his performance, Haladay was named the Big Ten defensive player of the week.[12] The following week, he notched 19 tackles with one going for a loss, as helped the Spartans beat Rutgers 27–21.[13] Haladay was named the Big Ten defensive player of the week for the second straight week.[14] He finished the 2022 season with 120 tackles with 11 going for a loss, 1.5 sacks, a fumble recovery, and a forced fumble.
In[15] Haladay was named to the Second Team All-Big Ten by both the coaches and by the media.[16][17] Ahead of the 2023 season, he was named to watch lists of multiple awards, such as the Butkus Award, the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, and the Chuck Bednarik Award.[18][19][20]
References
[edit]- ^ "Cal Haladay Football Stats". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Wenzel, Matt. "3-star LB Cal Haladay commits to Michigan State". MLive.com. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ "Cal Haladay". Michigan State University Athletics. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ "Western Kentucky 31-48 Michigan State (Oct 2, 2021) Box Score". ESPN. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Friend, Phil. "Replay: No. 9 Michigan State football moves to 7-0 with 20-15 win over Indiana". Lansing State Journal. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ "Penn State 27-30 Michigan State (Nov 27, 2021) Box Score". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Wenzel, Matt. "Michigan State's Cal Haladay caps breakout season as Peach Bowl defensive MVP". MLive.com. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ "Cal Haladay 2021 Game Logs". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Wenzel, Matt. "Michigan State LB Cal Haladay named Freshman All-American". MLive.com. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Ramsey, Jared. "Recap: Michigan State football pummels Akron, 52-0". The Detroit News. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Wenzel, Matt. "Takeaways, observations from Michigan State's upset win at Illinois". MLive.com. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Wenzel, Matt. "Michigan State LB Cal Haladay named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week". MLive.com. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ "Michigan State holds on for 27-21 victory over Rutgers". CBS Sports. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Lounsberry, Matthew. "MSU linebacker named Big Ten 'Defensive Player of the Week' in back-to-back weeks". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ "Cal Haladay 2022 Game Logs". Sports Reference. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Brewster, Andrew. "Michigan State football LB Cal Haladay named second team All-Big Ten by the Associated Press". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Garcia, Tony. "Michigan football's Jim Harbaugh: Big Ten Coach of the Year". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Moore, Brendan. "Michigan State Award Watch: Seven Spartans named to Senior Bowl Watch List". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Lounsberry, Matthew. "MSU's Cal Haladay Named To Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
- ^ Brooks, Stephen. "Michigan State LB Cal Haladay chosen for Chuck Bednarik Award watch list". 247Sports. Retrieved August 24, 2023.