5 MSU Players To Watch in Battle vs. Northwestern

Michigan State head coach Pat Fitzgerald wants the attention to be on the players this weekend.

Fitzgerald's Spartans (2-4 overall, 0-3 Big Ten) have an interesting test on Saturday against No. 25 Northwestern (4-1 overall, 1-1 Big Ten), Fitzgerald's alma mater and the program he coached for 17 seasons. We'll grant Fitzgerald's wish here. These five MSU players are the ones to keep an eye on against the Wildcats:

RB Jaziun Patterson

Michigan State losing top running back Cam Edwards for the season was a massive blow, but the production from Jaziun Patterson at RB1 since has been a pleasant surprise. Patterson runs extremely hard any time he gets the ball, and he finally broke through last week against Illinois. He totaled a career-high 119 scrimmage yards (93 rushing, 26 receiving) and scored four total touchdowns to nearly bring MSU all the way back.

Patterson may only get more and more carries as the year goes on, as he continues to show he deserves a workload similar to what Edwards received while he was healthy. Northwestern's run defense also ranks 14th in the Big Ten at 147.2 yards allowed per game. Its 4.43 yards allowed per attempt is 15th. MSU needs a big game from someone on offense, and the most likely candidate is Patterson.

RT Robert Wright Jr.

Despite the Spartans' injury issues, the offensive line has stayed relatively healthy. Saturday will be the first time Michigan State has to change its starting combination up front, as starting left tackle Ben Murawski has been ruled out for this week's matchup. Murawski's absence likely means MSU will slide starting right tackle Rakeem Johnson over to the left side, and then start Robert Wright Jr. at right tackle.

Having Johnson on the left and Wright on the right won't be a new thing for Michigan State. The Spartans have rotated their tackles a fair bit this year. Wright is up to 164 offensive snaps this season, but Northwestern will be his first start at MSU. He was the starting right tackle all last season at Georgia Southern before transferring to East Lansing this offseason. Wright hasn't committed a penalty in 999 career offensive snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.

EDGE Kenny Soares Jr.

The two biggest storylines on Saturday will be Fitzgerald's game against his alma mater and the return of Aidan Chiles, but Michigan State does have a former Wildcat on its defensive line. That would be rush end Kenny Soares Jr., who played for Fitzgerald at Northwestern during his true freshman season and also stuck around for the first two years of the David Braun era.

Soares has been MSU's best player on the edges this season. He's recorded 18 tackles, 3.0 tackles for loss, 1.0 sack, and an interception. Soares has come painfully close to making some additional plays happen, though. He had Notre Dame QB CJ Carr wrapped up for a sack, but Carr managed to stay up and convert a fourth down. Other pressures from Soares have also gotten very close, and he's also been close to getting a hand on other passes when he's been used in coverage.

CBs Jeremiah Favorite/KJ Deriso

Injuries are also likely to force two true freshmen cornerbacks into action on Saturday as well. Corners Tre Bell, Charles Brantley, Tyran Chappell, and Keshawn Williams have all been ruled out for the Northwestern game. This means backup fifth-year senior NiJhay Burt will likely start, but the other two corners who will likely play are probably Jeremiah Favorite and KJ Deriso.

Favorite and Deriso were essentially Michigan State's starting corners at the end of the Illinois game, with Burt also unavailable at the time. That was the first time Deriso got substantial playing time on defense. Favorite has gotten double-digit snaps in the last two games, and he's actually played surprisingly well for a true freshman being thrust into action.

LB Dion Crawford

Injuries at linebacker also make the play from Dion Crawford extremely important. Star linebacker Jordan Hall, starter Brady Pretzlaff, and key contributor Caleb Wheatland are all out for Saturday's game. Crawford actually left the Illinois game with an injury of his own, but his name not being on the team's availability report indicates he'll play against Northwestern.

Behind him are likely Cam Stodghill and DiMari Malone. They got the bulk of the snaps late against Illinois, and they'll likely rotate in a fair amount this week against the Wildcats. Linebacker depth was a strength for Michigan State entering the season, but it's being seriously tested halfway through the fall.