Multiple MSU Defensive Linemen Making a Positive Early Impression

Michigan State continues to work hard this offseason. As the season draws near, Rush Ends Coach Chad Wilt praised a few of the team's defensive linemen.

Michigan State's Khris Bogle, right, runs a drill with rush ends coach Chad Wilt during the Spring Showcase on Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. / Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Michigan State was one of the teams most impacted by the transfer portal this offseason, both negatively and positively.

Initially, Coach Jonathan Smith and Michigan State experienced the downside of the transfer portal after losing multiple critical pieces of their roster. Michigan State lost over 15 scholarship players to the transfer portal earlier in the offseason before turning things around and securing one of the best transfer portal classes in the country. 

One position group most significantly impacted by the roster turnover was Michigan State’s defensive line. Michigan State lost defensive linemen Simeon Barrow Jr. and Derrick Harmon earlier in the offseason. Both were expected to be significant contributors to Michigan State this season.

However, Spartans rush ends coach Chad Wilt is confident in the defensive linemen on Michigan State’s roster.

"Certainly, I feel good right now, at this point, about three," Wilt said last week. "I think there's a couple other guys. You asked about Jordan Hall and some situational pass rush, which also allows us to take a play off here of a guy or take a play off there of a guy. I think there definitely are some guys really coming along."

Wilt noted several traits of defensive lineman Khris Bogle. This season, the sixth-year senior is one of Michigan State's most experienced defensive linemen. Wilt says Bogle’s comprehension of the game has continued to grow, which has allowed him to play at a faster pace.

"You can just see [Bogle’s] conceptual understanding," Wilt said. "Then, when you have that, now you start to play fast, because you're not thinking -- I know what I'm supposed to do, I know what these keys look like, I know what the reactions are, now I can go play fast, and I think that's where Khris is now. The processing is going down, so his speed is going up."

Wilt plans to keep working with the defensive line over the next few weeks before and during the season. However, he stresses that the best players will play, as that will put the team in the best position to win.

“They're gonna rotate. They're gonna roll,” Wilt said. “Obviously, the best players will play the most. The most productive players, most dependable, most trustworthy, will play the most."

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