Michigan State Football: 5 most irreplaceable defensive players for 2017
Last, but obviously not least, is Chris Frey. The most important defender for the Spartans has to be at the linebacker position, right? Over the years, that has been the case. If the linebackers are playing at a high level, the rest of the defense seems to feed off them.
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Sure, the offensive line needs to have success to take some pressure off the linebackers and secondary in the pass, and run, game, but these guys need to square up to Michigan State’s aggressive units of the past.
While there are plenty of important linebackers who could have easily been named here as well, such as Joe Bachie, Andrew Dowell, Shane Jones, Byron Bullough and Tyriq Thompson, the Spartans need a senior leader in the mix — as mentioned earlier.
Frey is that guy and he has the potential to be an All-Big Ten outside linebacker. He happens to be the best returning player on the defensive side of the ball and he is a serious captain candidate. Actually, it’d be a shock to see him not named a captain.
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The younger guys look up to him and he provides valuable insight both on and off the field. He needs to lead by example and have another season like he did in 2016, recording 96 tackles and four for loss. He’s the Spartans’ most irreplaceable defender in 2017.