Michigan State's Defensive Line Comes with Intrigue

The Michigan State Spartans had to re-tool their defensive line this season, but it still features some potentially interesting contributors.

Michigan State defensive lineman Maverick Hansen runs a drill during football practice on Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2023, in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Michigan State Spartans’ defensive line is one of the team's biggest question marks heading into the 2024 season under the program's first-year Head Coach Jonathan Smith. 

After losing star defensive tackles Derrick Harmon and Simeon Barrow Jr., Smith and Defensive Line Coach Legi Suiaunoa had to work to find replacements for those players and the depth behind them. 

Smith and Suiaunoa did an impressive job of bolstering the defensive line's depth. The Spartans should reap the benefits now. 

Headlined by sixth-year defensive tackle Maverick Hansen, the Spartans should not be as concerned about stopping the run up the middle or creating interior pressure. Beyond Hansen, several talented players on the defensive line are also on the roster. 

In the winter transfer window, the Spartans added D’Quan Douse and Quindarius Dunningan. Douse is an intriguing, experienced interior lineman with some pass-rush juice. Dunningan is a versatile inside-outside rusher with experience as well. 

Those three should be the most productive players on the defensive line, but there is some intriguing depth that could surprise Spartan fans. 

Michigan State added Nebraska’s Ru’Quan Buckley, Old Dominion’s Jalen Satchell, Oregon’s Ben “Big Worm” Roberts, Indiana’s Anthony Jones, and Cincinnati’s Tyler Gillison through the transfer portal in the spring. They also added Mikeshun Beeler through the recruiting class. 

Buckley is an excellent athlete with great size who should put pressure on the interior. Satchell should eat up space in the middle. Roberts was a top-tier high school prospect who did not get the chance to see the field at Oregon but should at MSU. Jones should be a good run-stopper. 

Gillison is an edge rusher who is also a good athlete and should stop the run at a high level. Beeler is a versatile player who has a chance to be a good player if he develops well.

One polarizing defensive lineman on the Spartans’ roster is Alex VanSumeren. The former four-star has all the talent in the world but has dealt with injuries and has seen the field very little in his first couple of seasons in East Lansing. Could he stay healthy and put it all together this year? Is he still the same player he was before the injuries?

Michigan State should be able to throw lots of bodies at offensive lines this season, which should prove valuable, as they have dealt with injuries that have hammered their depth in the past. 

If the depth they added can help them in the trenches, they will give themselves a better shot at winning more games.

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