3
TheMichiganDaily, www.michigandaily.com
Behind Enemy Lines: Chris Frey
Last season wasn’t a banner
year for Michigan State. Chris
Frey is well aware of that.
Frey, a senior linebacker, was
one of a few returning starters
for a team that went 3-9 as the
Spartans fell off
a
precipitous
cliff
only
one
year
removed
from a College
Football Playoff
appearance.
At
Big
Ten
Media Days in
July, Frey made
it clear that he
wants to put that
all behind him.
He wants to leave East Lansing
as he arrived — staring at a
championship banner.
“We want to be able to put a
Big Ten championship banner
on the wall,” Frey said in July.
“We want to take the last Big
Ten championship banner off
the wall and spray paint on
it. … We want to be a playoff
contender. We want to win the
East. And that’s the legacy we
want to leave behind as a senior
class.”
The Daily spoke with Frey at
Big Ten Media Days in July to
discuss his team’s turnaround,
the development of younger
players and whether there were
any structural changes made to
Michigan State’s defense.
TMD: Do you guys think
you’re closer to turning this
around than saying, ‘Oh, we’re
3-9, we have a way to go.’ Do you
think you’re closer than people
think from the outside?
CF: Like you said, going into
the season, we’re a 3-9 team.
It doesn’t matter. We’re here
to put that behind us. But last
year we were in a lot of close
games and we failed to contend
in the fourth quarter, and I
think that’s where a lot of our
downfall came, not being able
to finish games. I honestly don’t
know the stats of how close we
were and certain things last
year and I couldn’t tell you, but
I do think we have a really good
chance at turning this around.
Not even a chance — I think we
have a really good opportunity
to turn this around. We have a
lot of great guys on this team,
guys that know what it takes
and are going to give everything
that they have.
TMD: You mentioned before
the sophomores who had game
experience last year. What about
the freshmen and
sophomores
who
haven’t played in
games — how do
you
bring
them
along on that fast
track?
CF:
It
comes
down to reps in
practice, honestly.
During
camp,
they’ve got to step
up if they want to
play. They’ve got to step up and
make plays in practice. Getting
to know the guy that’s next to
you, learning a lot from him,
will help those guys be able to
become better players and learn
more on the field.
TMD: Without a bowl game
last year, did that place a
heightened emphasis on spring
practices this past year?
CF: We moved spring practice
up two or three weeks this year.
We finished last year at Penn
State on a Saturday and started
workouts on Monday. So it was
way, way fast-tracked and we
were able to put the past behind
us right there and start working
for
this
year.
We’ve
been
working for this year for eight,
nine months now, and we’re
ready to go. We’re just ready to
put the pads on and start hitting.
TMD: Is there any added
pressure on the linebacking corps
to be the lynchpin of the defense
considering the inexperience of
the line and secondary?
CF: I don’t think there’s any
pressure. I just think every
year that’s something that we
have to deal with. I think every
single year the linebackers are
the anchor of our defense, the
guys that have the most playing
time, the most reps and most
starts, so I don’t think it’s an
added pressure. I just think it’s
something we’ve gotten used to
over the years.
TMD: Last year, you guys
finished last in the Big Ten in
sacks. Is there more emphasis
this year on blitzing linebackers?
CF:
Definitely.
Not
just
blitzing linebackers, but more
of an emphasis on pass rush and
drills to better ourselves at that.
TMD:
(Michigan
State
Coach Mark) Dantonio talked
a
fair
amount
last year about
RPO (Run/Pass
option) and how
that
gave
you
trouble at times
as
a
defense.
Has that been
an
emphasis
this
offseason,
any
structural
changes,
anything
like
that to try to defend those?
CF: I don’t think it’s a
structural change. I just think
it’s trying to figure out the best
way to defend it. We’ve changed
a few things, but no matter what
defense you play, it’s going to
be hard to guard the RPO. You
always want to play the run
first, you can’t give up the run,
so the second you see that run,
you’re going after it, and when
they realize you’re biting on the
run, they’re passing the ball. It
doesn’t matter which defense
you’re playing in. You’ve just
got to recognize the flow and
trying to get a feel of if there’s
a giveaway to whether they’re
going to RPO or
not.
TMD: Is that the
toughest
scheme
for a young defense
to play against?
CF:
Oh
yeah,
definitely.
Especially
our
STAR, our outside
backers,
because
of trying to read
the tackle and the
guard and the running back and
the quarterback, you can’t tell if
they’re pass-setting or if they’re
handing the ball off because
the running back’s doing play
action. You can’t really tell. So
it’s really hard on our outside
backers to make our read and
then try to decide on what we
think it is.
ORION SANG
Daily Sports Editor
FILE PHOTO/Daily
Michigan State linebacker Chris Frey is leading Michigan State in sacks, contributing significantly to a defense that ranks 16th nationally in rushing defense.
The Daily sat down with the Spartans’ linebacker at Big Ten Media Days prior to the 2017 season
I think we have
a really good
opportunity to
turn this around.
We want to be a
playoff contender.
We want to win
the East.