3 Defensive X-Factors for Michigan State Football This Season

Finishing outside the top 100 in the FBS in scoring defense cannot happen again in 2026.

Michigan State allowed 29.9 points per game last season. It improved towards the end of the year, which helped lead to the retention of defensive coordinator Joe Rossi by new head coach Pat Fitzgerald.

Michigan State's defensive coordinator Joe Rossi talks with staff during the football Spring Showcase on Saturday, April 18, 2026, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. | Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The offseason has brought in plenty of new faces, with 14 incoming transfers on the defensive side alone. A real chunk of those new players will take on starting roles immediately.

These three defensive players have particularly important roles. Their performances will have a particularly large impact on the defense as a whole.

DL Derrick Simmons

Redshirt freshman Derrick Simmons is ready to step into a sizable role in 2026. He was the Spartans' lone 4-star recruit in their 2025 recruiting class and took a redshirt last season coming out of Frankenmuth.

Defensive line depth is a serious question for MSU this season. Ben Roberts and Eli Coenen are probably the two top players at defensive tackle, but teams need to rotate. Simmons is the likely third option, and it thins out a lot after him. He's still a young guy, but how he does with his snaps will have a profound impact on the rest of the defense.

S Devin Vaught

Incoming Maine transfer Devin Vaught is also at a pressure point. He's probably the favorite to become Michigan State's strong safety, though there could also be snaps at nickel for Vaught.

Vaught is also at a point where depth seems a little thin. He and Simmons will both be asked to make a jump. Simmons must do so as a redshirt freshman; Vaught must do so as somebody jumping up from the FCS level. Vaught will have help from free safety Nikai Martinez, who is one of the Spartans' most reliable defenders when he's on the field.

EDGE Kenny Soares Jr.

N.C. State transfer Kenny Soares Jr. is also one of the most interesting parts of the next defense. He's the only player on the roster to have played for Fitzgerald before, beginning at Northwestern. Soares has also played linebacker his entire career. MSU is ready to use him at rush end.

That is the hybrid position the Spartans have, a blend of linebacker and defensive end. Soares will be responsible for both helping set the edge in the run game, which he should be effective at, and getting to the quarterback in the pass game when there is a huge offensive tackle in front of him.

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