EAST LANSING — Jalen Hunt’s emotions reached a crescendo as he finally stepped onto the field at Kinnick Stadium last fall.
His journey from Belleville to Iowa City took an abrupt detour a year earlier when he failed to qualify academically. He never became a Hawkeye, getting released from his scholarship before returning to his home state to play for Mark Dantonio and Michigan State football in August 2019.
After redshirting and going through a change in coaching staffs, Hunt emerged from the sideline when his team played Iowa Nov. 7. A smattering of family members watched from the stands instead of a capacity crowd, but that did not diminish the butterflies in the big defensive tackle’s stomach.