Matt Van Dyk: The Value of Hard Work
12/18/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By Grace Wheeler, MSU Athletic Communications
Hard work, dedication, family, talent, the list can go on and on, but all of these words describe a small glimpse into what Michigan State men's basketball is all about. Redshirt senior forward Matt Van Dyk dabbles in all of these categories, but what defines him the most is his hardworking attitude in every facet of his life.
A native of a small-town in the heart of Michigan's thumb region, Imlay City, Van Dyk was born into the family business of farming, lettuce farming to be exact. The Van Dyk Farms family-business is in its fourth generation of farm owners, dating back to 1958.
"I'm a fourth generation so my great grandpa started it. My grandpa went off to war, and while he was gone my great grandpa sold the farm. My grandpa got back, and he was like ‘what the heck, you sold the farm?! I want to keep it going.' So of course he started it back up, then he passed it along to my dad, and hopefully some day he will pass it along to me," said Van Dyk.
Van Dyk Farms is a major local supplier of iceberg and romaine lettuce to fresh and processed markets in Michigan and other states along the East Coast. About four different types of lettuce are grown and marketed on over 600 acres of land. In order to meet the customers' needs, it's all hands on deck for the Van Dyk family.
"I have been helping before I can even remember. Ever since I could walk I would be out in the fields pulling weeds. I probably wasn't getting much done when I was younger, but I was still out there," laughed Van Dyk. "You start out with smaller jobs then you progress as you get older. I just knew I always wanted to be with my dad out on the farm."
So if it's all work and no play for the young Matt Van Dyk, when did time possibly come for sports, or more particularly, basketball? Well despite the long work hours, there's life outside of work, and him and his family still made it all possible.
"Basketball all started with my dad. He introduced me to basketball, and he got me going throughout my career. I have always liked sports, my family is athletic, and we have always enjoyed playing and watching them," said Van Dyk.
Despite being 6-5 in high school, basketball had its calling to the Van Dyk family for more reasons than height and athletic ability.
"The one thing about basketball is, farming is in the summer, basketball is in the winter. My dad wasn't able to do football, and he wasn't able to do the summer sports because he would always have to be in the field. It wasn't as much for me, but also still a similar situation," said Van Dyk. "The summer was for farming, and the winter was for basketball. So you kind of get the best of both worlds. When farmers are relaxing we are in basketball season. When basketball season is in its offseason, we are in farming season. So you don't have an offseason, but since that's the way it works, you get the opportunity to do both."
No offseason only means one thing, the grind is real.
"It's definitely been a grind," remarked Van Dyk. "It's just something that I have always been doing so I don't really know otherwise, and I am more than okay with that. It's a crazy dynamic, but I enjoy having both. I love basketball and I love farming. If I didn't love both it'd be tough, but it's what I love to do, so it works."
Attending Michigan State University for the agribusiness program has always been a thought in the back of Van Dyk's mind, but he never fathomed the idea of playing basketball at MSU under head coach Tom Izzo. After deciding to extend his basketball career at Hope College, he transferred to St. Clair County Community College to find himself a fresh start on and off the basketball court. Little did he know that transition would open up an entire new door for him.
"After my first year of junior college I found out I could play at a Division II school, and get some scholarship money to help pursue my degree, but then my counselor from high school, Mr. Paul Druker, a good friend with assistant coach Mike Garland, put the idea in to my head, ‘why not pursue Michigan State, see where it goes'. I remember going into his basement one night, he showed me what it would take to go to Michigan State, and we made a plan to at least try to pursue it," reminisced Van Dyk.
Van Dyke got his opportunity, and the second he stepped onto Michigan State's campus he realized he had found his home away from home.
"I came here and I fell in love with it. I decided coming here would be more important than saving money at a smaller school. I fell in love with the university when I walked in the door. I was just in awe with all of it, but also what I fell more in love with was how much people cared for each other here. At Michigan State it's just a big family. I'm a homebody kid, so having a family here was huge for me," said Van Dyk.
Van Dyk is in his third year at Michigan State, and despite his excitement to return home and begin work on the family farm at some point in his young career, he is currently soaking in every possible moment he can while at MSU.
"When I came here a few years ago, I remember people saying Spartan Family, and I was like ‘yeah sure I feel the Spartan Family', but until you really dive in and experience it you can't explain it. It's pretty indescribable, but it's knowing that a Spartan always has another Spartan's back," said Van Dyk.
Right now, Van Dyk has his Spartan Family and there is no other team or experiences he'd rather be a part of.
"Michigan State basketball definitely goes deeper than basketball," concluded Van Dyk. "The coaches always talk about how they aren't molding us into who we are going to be in one, two, four years from now, but who we are going to be in the next 40 years. That's what makes a family. That's what makes Michigan State."
