“They’re good football players. They’re active. They’re very talented. They’re very athletic,” Dantonio said. “What’s exciting to me right now is they’re bringing that competitive mindset, that toughness aspect. That confident aspect is very apparent in their play.”

The young successors to Adams, a longtime staple in the defensive backfield, and Gholston, an athletic specimen that opted to go pro after his junior season, are far from inexperienced. Both entered spring practice listed as starters on the depth chart.

Waynes made an impression on the coaching staff last spring before playing an extensive portion of the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl. He notched three of his five tackles last season in that game filling in for an injured Adams.

The experience from that game helped position him to compete for the starting spot vacated by Adams this spring, he said. With senior Darqueze Dennard, the No. 1 corner, sidelined this spring with an injury, he’s taken advantage of even more repetitions with the first-team defense.

“I came into spring ball knowing I had a lot of competition against me and stuff like that,” Waynes said. “For (Dantonio) to say something like that, it feels good, but I know I’ve got to keep working because I know someone’s still coming for the spot.”

Calhoun, listed at 6-foot-4 and 248 pounds, put his own personal stamp on the bowl game with a punishing sack of Texas Christian University quarterback Trevone Boykin. He appeared in every game last season, registering six tackles and five quarterback hurries, while being used primarily as a third-down pass rusher.

Despite having what defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi called “a great spring,” the coaching staff’s expectations still haven’t been met by Calhoun.

“He’s got ability to make more plays, so to me he’s just been average,” Narduzzi said. “He’s still a starter, but he’s been average. He’s got the ability to make big plays, and we’ve got to make big plays, not just plays.”

The rangy defensive end from Middletown, N.J., emerged from a deep and talented defensive line group that includes senior Denzel Drone, redshirt freshman Jamal Lyles and sophomore Joel Heath vying for playing time.

Calhoun called it “a thrill” to play with the starting group and acknowledged the pressure of the reserves will force him to get better, all while having some fun with Narduzzi’s expectations.

“They kind of want you to be perfect, always. They want you to be gods on the field,” Calhoun joked.

“… Even if I was perfect on the field, (Narduzzi) would always find a new reason to tell me I’m doing something wrong like, ‘Hey, your shoelaces are untied!’ Or, ‘I don’t like the color of your shoelaces.’ It’s fun though. I love the competition between seeing who can yell the loudest between me and Coach Narduzzi.”