It was hard to tell if the tears in Josh Shaw’s eyes were of pain or joy after Saturday’s 26-24 win over No. 12 Michigan.

As one of MSU’s most experienced players, the senior defensive tackle was obviously happy that the Spartans squeaked out a win over their intrastate rivals.

Why shouldn’t he be? He’s one of the foundations of this team that has played a key role in major upsets in the past.

But at the same time, it was Shaw - on crutches after tearing his medial collateral ligament in his right knee in the game’s first quarter - who realized his Spartan playing days are over.

“It’s so hard to take right now,” said Shaw, who rallied fellow teammates on the sidelines after the injury. “During the game I really wasn’t thinking about it, I was just trying to get my teammates motivated.”

For a team that has had five devastating injuries in more than a month, Shaw’s actions still proved a point - that despite all of MSU’s personnel ailments, the team’s spirit is still in tact.

With every injury, it seems as if this team rallies harder. And Shaw was a prime example of that.

On the sidelines with his crutches in hand, Shaw counseled others and made sure they realized that the game wasn’t over.

It’s just his nature as a competitor to make sure MSU can find a way to put up a fight, regardless of the situation, score or outcome.

In a way that’s what leadership is all about.

Shaw wasn’t afraid to come down on players, especially the inexperienced ones who might have been a little nervous after his injury.

“I told the young guys that they had to grow up right on the spot,” Shaw said. “There’s wasn’t a week to prepare for this, they had to do it right now.”

Sounds like a future coach in the making.

It’s his competitive fire, along with his improved ability to wreak havoc on opposing offenses, that could make Shaw an NFL player next year.

He is ranked one of the top 20 seniors for the 2002 NFL Draft, according to Blesto, a national scouting service, and had 54 tackles and two interceptions in seven games this year.

Granted, the idea of making a lot of money at the next level is real nice, and I’m sure Shaw knows that, but it won’t replace the fact that he will never play in college again.

It’s sad too, because MSU head coach Bobby Williams has praised his efforts on and off the field.

And this abrupt end just doesn’t seem right.

“I was just peaking right now and I knew I was going to have a great game,” Shaw said. “I didn’t think anyone was going to block me. But the game we play is football and there’s plenty of injuries. You just have to accept that.”

The loss of Shaw won’t be easy for MSU, by any means.

But the players have had a tremendous amount of support from each other and in no way will that change now.

“We have team unity and that’s what keeps us together,” sophomore linebacker Mike Labinjo said. “There’s just a lot of leaders on this team that won’t let us cave in.”

As a reporter covering this team, I’ve talked to Josh Shaw a couple of times for stories and have a sense of what kind of guy he is.

He’s respectful, humorous, enthusiastic and a great quote.

The guy seems to actually enjoy talking to the media, unlike other athletes I’ve encountered.

Shaw tells it like it is and isn’t afraid to rip into teammates if they are dogging it on the field.

And its a shame he had to go out like this.

But with four games remaining on the schedule, don’t think anyone has heard that last of Shaw or injured players Ryan Van Dyke, DeMario Suggs, Jason Harmon and Tyrell Dortch, for that matter.

The group could form the greatest band of assistant coaches MSU has ever seen.

Their experiences and how they have responded to them say more about this program than any dramatic last-second wins.

Ironically, in this home stretch of the season, it could be MSU’s injured players who serve as a motivating crutch for others.

Because all the active players have to do is look to the sidelines for their ailing teammates, who will in a way live through them during this next month.

Despite MSU’s key losses, its leadership is as strong as ever.

Eric Lacy is a State News football reporter. He can be reached at lacyeric@msu.edu.