Michigan State Football: Top 10 prospects for 2020 NFL Draft

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TEMPE, AZ – SEPTEMBER 08: Running back Eno Benjamin #3 of the Arizona State Sun Devils rushes the football under pressure from linebacker Joe Bachie #35 of the Michigan State Spartans during the first half of the college football game at Sun Devil Stadium on September 8, 2018 in Tempe, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /

When Joe Bachie announced he’d be returning for his senior year, you could almost hear a collective sigh of relief from the fan base.

Bachie was coming off a career year with 102 total tackles — his second straight season with over 100 tackles — and he earned first-team All-Big Ten honors. He and Devin Bush were the two best linebackers in the Big Ten and happened to play for each other’s top rival, which made for interesting trash talk all season between fans.

The soon-to-be senior watched as Bush went No. 10 in the 2019 NFL Draft to the Pittsburgh Steelers to play with his former teammate Justin Layne and while he may not be quite the same level of prospect, there’s a decent chance he could go early on Day 2.

Bachie isn’t an overly athletic middle linebacker, but he’s tough, has a high football IQ and is in on essentially every play. He’s a tackling machine and it takes a ton to keep him away from ball-carriers as he just has that knack for finding the ball.

As a junior, he showed better pass coverage with an interception and six pass breakups, but he was aggressive when he needed to be, recording a sack with 8.5 tackles for loss and three forced fumbled.

Bachie is a traditional middle linebacker who will make one NFL team very happy next spring.

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