Jonathan Spain is confident when it comes to sports.
He’s racked up 279 tackles as a three-year starter on the Elon University football team, recently moving up to No. 8 on the all-time tackles list.
Still, Spain couldn’t have imagined being in this position five years ago.
“I always wanted to think I was going to have a successful career,” Spain said. “I wouldn’t call myself a cocky guy, but I’m pretty confident when it comes to sports. So if you were to ask me, ‘Are you going to be one of the best ever?’ I would probably say, ‘I don’t know, man, that’s crazy.’”
A fifth-year senior linebacker, Spain has cemented himself in the record books during his career as a Phoenix. His 10-tackle performance against Coastal Carolina University on Sept. 27 moved him into eighth place in program history.
Spain has started every game for the Phoenix over the past two years, garnering a second-team All-Southern Conference award in 2012 and the team’s Most Outstanding Linebacker award last year.
Elon head coach Rich Skrosky got to know Spain and his family well during the recruiting process in 2009, when Skrosky served as Elon’s offensive coordinator.
Skrosky was one of the lead recruiters whose assigned recruiting area encompassed Greensboro, Spain’s hometown. Prior to Spain’s freshman year, Skrosky left Elon for Ball State University.
“He’s just a character guy,” Skrosky said. “His work ethic is unquestioned, he’s a highly moral character guy, and that shows up on the field in his leadership role.”
Spain, along with senior Odell Benton and sophomore John Silas, is part of a core of linebackers that has been positive for the Elon defense in recent years.
“We lean on [Spain, Benton and Silas] to set the right example for the rest of the team, and [Spain’s] at the forefront of that,” Skrosky said. “He means a ton to our defense, he’s a talented kid, he’s played a lot of football and he’s definitely a great asset to what we’re trying to build here.”
But Spain’s career at Elon hasn’t come without challenges. In his five years at Elon, he has played under four different defensive coordinators.
As a freshman, he was tutored by defensive coordinator Jay Bateman, only to be thrust into a new system the next year after Bateman left for Ball State. Ed Pinkham followed, serving as Elon’s defensive coordinator from 2011-2012. Brad Sherrod took over defensive coordinator duties for Elon last year, but was ousted after one year along with head coach Jason Swepson. Now, Jerry Petercuskie is in his first year as defensive coordinator.
“You have to stay in the [playbook],” Spain said of the key to being consistent in many different systems. “It’s pretty hard when you have different verbiage. Kind of the same things are going on — defense is defense — but it’s different words you have to get used to, so that’s pretty difficult.”
Despite this, Spain has been the definition of consistency for Elon, leading the Phoenix in tackles the past two seasons, as well as through four games this season.
“It’s special to get recognized,” Spain said. “It’s special to have a successful career at a school like this. It’s also humbling at the same time because guys I’ve played with — Josh Jones and Brandon Wiggins — are up there too [in tackles] and still ahead of me.”
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Spain said it’s still a goal of his to pass his former teammates Jones and Wiggins on the all-time tackles list. That mentality is what was taught to him by his father, Steven Spain, who played football for two years at Iowa State University.
“He always said, ‘Spains don’t quit,’” Spain said of his father. “That’s what he instilled in me as a young guy. Even when I played basketball and baseball, I remember he used to get mad at me if I were to back down or quit at something. When I started playing football in high school and became more mature and aggressive, that kind of flourished.”
Spain’s relentless attitude is something his friend and teammate senior Mike Quinn is used to seeing. Quinn, a quarterback for the Phoenix, has lived with Spain for years.
“[Spain] is an up-tempo dude that just has a high-intensity motor that keeps going and going,” Quinn said. “He’s that type of guy you can put anywhere, and he’ll probably be one of the best players on the defense wherever you put him.”
As freshmen, Skrosky lined up Spain and Quinn as roommates.
“That was a good call by him,” Quinn said, with a laugh.
Now that Spain is in his last year at Elon, his role has changed. Next year, he will have to pass the torch on to the next wave of Elon players that will lead the program in the future.
“I’m trying to show every day how it’s done,” Spain said. “I’ve been through it. I had guys ahead of me like Jones and Wiggins that showed me how it was done, and I really look up to those guys.”
Spain is taking advantage of the time he has left in an Elon uniform, doing all he can to leave his mark on a program to which he has meant so much.
“I hope when I’m done they’ll always remember Spain [as a guy who] did everything right, balled out on the field, always had fun doing what he did and didn’t complain a lot,” Spain said. “I want to be known as someone that enjoyed the process and did things right.”