Hall, Matthews III, and Snow expected to lead this group
We’ll move from the defensive line to the linebackers in the second of our season preview series articles. This is an area where the Spartans lost some key players from last year’s team and weren’t very active in the transfer portal after last season. They do, however, bring back some promising players that can hopefully continue to develop.
Defensive coordinator Joe Rossi coaches this group and is assisted by Andrew Bindelgrass. Both are in their second seasons with the Spartans.
Let’s take a look at the returning and departed players from last year’s roster.
Departed Players:
- Cal Haladay (12 games/12 starts, 58 tackles, 4.5 TFLs, 1 sack, 1 PBU, 1 FF)
- Jordan Turner (12 games/11 starts, 66 tackles, 10.5 TFLs, 3 sacks, 2 INTs, 1 PBU)
- Aaron Alexander (12 games, 3 tackles)
Returning Players:
From a year ago, there are 9 members of the LB room coming back. Of them,
- #23 Darius Snow (Gr.-6, 6-1, 230; 2024: 12 games/2 starts, 29 tackles, 1 TFL)
- #5 Jordan Hall (Jr., 6-3, 238; 2024: 11 games/1 start, 24 tackles, 1 TFL, 2 PBUs)
- #10 Wayne Matthews III (R-Sr., 6-2, 230; 2024: 9 games, 33 tackles, 1 FR)
- #35 Sam Edwards (Gr.-6, 6-1, 227; 2024: 12 games, 4 tackles)
- #7 Semaj Bridgeman (R-So., 6-2, 231; 2024: 3 games)
- #4 Marcellius Pulliam (Jr., 6-2, 239; 2024: 12 games, 4 tackles)
- #45 Brady Pretzlaff (R-Fr., 6-3, 237; 2024: 4 games, 7 tackles, 1 TFL)
- #42 David Millikin (R-Jr., 5-11, 213; 2024: 1 game)
- #56 Chris Piwowarczyk (R-Fr., 6-0, 238, Fenton, Mich./Fenton)
New Players:
MSU only brought in one linebacker via the transfer portal.
- #8 Aisea Moa (R-Jr., 6-2, 235; 2024 (BYU): 12 games/1 start, 16 tackles, 0.5 TFLs, 1 FF)
Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
Meanwhile, three players have been added from the high school ranks:
- #36 Leonard Ah You (6-3, 230; 3-star, ESPN Grade = 76)
- #33 DiMari Malone (6-1, 235; 3-star, ESPN Grade = 77, #32 ILB) *early enrollee
- #40 DeJae White (6-2, 219; 3-star, ESPN Grade = 77, #65 OLB)
Malone was an early enrollee and went through spring practice. While the recruits are college ready, at least from a size perspective when compared to the returning players, they likely won’t see much playing time this year unless it’s on special teams. Most of the nine returners plus Moa, should remain ahead of the freshmen on the depth chart.
2025 Lineup
Given the experience and production from last year, Hall, Matthews III, and Snow appear to be the likely starters, depending on the formation. In a 4-3 package, all three will be on the field, but in the 4-2-5 we expect Snow to sub out for an extra defensive back.
Hall enters his third season, all with the Spartans, and has so far recorded 91 tackles, including 8.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks in his first two years. However, much of that production, including all of Hall’s sacks and 67 of his tackles, came in 2023. He will likely need a bounce back year to help anchor the Spartan D if the team is going to be successful this year. Hall, along with Nick Marsh and Stanton Ramil, represented MSU at Big Ten media days so he is likely viewed as a team leader by the coaching staff. This may also indicate that they believe in his ability to build off of his 2023 season.
Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Matthews is beginning his second year at MSU after transferring from Old Dominion where he recorded 135 tackles in 2023. He saw regular playing time last year before missing the last three games of the season due to injury.
Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Darius Snow returned to the field last year after missing almost all of the previous two seasons with a serious knee injury. His leadership, toughness, and veteran presence should all aid the Spartans this year.
Expected Starters:
4-3: Jordan Hall (MLB), Wayne Matthews III (OLB), and Darius Snow (OLB)
4-2-5: Jordan Hall (MLB), Wayne Matthews III (OLB)
Likely Contributors: Marcellius Pulliam (MLB), Brady Pretzlaff (OLB), Semaj Bridgeman (OLB), Aisea Moa (OLB)