Michigan State Football: Report card for win over Indiana in Week 8

The starting linebackers were strong all day long for the Spartans. Although there were some lapses in coverage, the unit held its ground and made sure the Hoosiers didn’t cross the goal line for a touchdown.

Although the linebackers could improve some against the pass, they did get some blitz pressure on Peyton Ramsey and it resulted in eight quarterback hurries, as mentioned earlier. Two of those were from Chris Frey who finished with five total tackles and he was all over the field. He seems to have a helping hand in just about every defensive play.

Joe Bachie led the way again for the defense, though. He had 13 total tackles and added 0.5 for loss. He looks the part of an All-Big Ten linebacker each week and it’d be a surprise to see him go without some type of honor before the season is up. He’s as consistent as they come.

Andrew Dowell was close behind with 10 total tackles and he added 0.5 for loss. He’s athletic, moves well for a strong, physical linebacker and is a solid blitzer as well. He rounds out a formidable starting trio.

Tyriq Thompson had three tackles off the bench and Shane Jones and Byron Bullough each added one. There was virtually no running room all day for the Hoosiers — outside of some quarterback scrambles.