EAST LANSING - This is the first in a series of articles analyzing Michigan State’s football program on a position-by-position basis in advance of 2019 August camp. Today, SpartanMag takes a look at the state of the program at the linebacker position:

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Returning Starters: Mike LB Joe Bachie, money LB Tyriq Thompson.

Returning Regulars: star LB Antjuan Simmons, money LB Brandon Bouyer-Randle.

Who’s Gone: star LB Andrew Dowell.

What’s New: Antjuan Simmons is primed to step in as the new starter at star linebacker.

Who’s New: Luke Fulton (6-2, 218, Poland, Ohio/Youngstown Cardinal Mooney), Marcel Lewis (6-0, 208, East Pointe, Mich./Chippewa Valley High).

“Luke is a great combination of size, speed and football IQ,” said defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Mike Tressel. “Marcel plays the game like a ‘Spartan Dawg’ on defense: fast, physical and aggressive.”

What’s Next: Michigan State must find a back-up to MLB Joe Bachie. His 2018 back-up, Byron Bullough, graduated. Mark Dantonio does not like to use seniors in second-string roles, and the lack of prospects in Bullough’s wake is an example why. Bullough was a first-string level player and deserved his spot in the rotation last year but Michigan State returns no other players in the program with Mike linebacker game reps. Chase Kline, Noah Harvey and Ed Warinner are among the candidates for second-string duty at Mike linebacker this fall. Kline has the least experience, but had the loudest spring game, albeit at money LB rather than Mike LB.

Second String Projections: Star LB: Jeslord Boateng, Money LB: Brandon Bouyer-Randle; Mike LB: Chase Kline.

On The Rise: Jeslord Boateng, the second-string money linebacker, impressed coaches and teammates in the spring with his work off the edge. In the lone public practice of the year (also known as the Green-White Game), Boateng went down midway through the scrimmage with a knee injury, which Dantonio said wasn’t serious.

On The Spot: It’s early in his career to put Edward Warinner, a redshirt freshman Mike linebacker, in this category, but the time is now to earn trust as a back-up Mike, simply because there is a job opening and he has as much or more experience than the other candidates. If he doesn’t grab that job now, he could be repping behind someone for quite awhile, as was the case with Bullough behind Bachie. Warinner missed the spring with an injury. August camp is an important chance for him to make a move toward a second-string job.

State Of The Linebacker Program: Michigan State has a championship-level player at Mike linebacker in Joe Bachie and SpartanMag.com projects that Antjuan Simmons will play at a championship level at star linebacker this season. Tyriq Thompson played at a winning level last year at money, and he will likely remain at that level as a senior.

This trio should give Michigan State one of the top linebacking units in the Big Ten.

Michigan State has a functional back-up at money linebacker in Bouyer-Randle, although coaches are still waiting for him to make a splash as a third-down pass rusher. His terrific athleticism has often been negated by problems defeating blocks. He needs to improve in that capacity this year-.

A back-up needs to be found for Bachie, as well as successor. There is no clear leader in sight for the job, but an heir needs to emerge this fall.

* Tyriq Thompson (6-1, 239, Sr., Detroit) started 12 games at money linebacker last year. He was a reliable, gap-sound player, posting 31 tackles and two tackles for loss.

Thompson erased any concern about his foot speed last year with a productive season. Now he wants to ramp up the intangibles.

“Being a little more vocal, talking to the secondary, talking to the d-ends,” Thompson said, when asked what he would like to improve upon in 2019. “Try not to miss any tackles, and make the plays I’m supposed to make.”

* Joe Bachie (6-2, 238, Sr., Brook Park, Ohio) is one of the top returning defenders in the Big Ten. Athlon’s listed him first-team preseason All-America. He was first-team All-Big Ten last year, and returns as a second-year captain with expanding voice.

“It’s second nature,” Bachie said of playing Mike linebacker in the Michigan State defense. “It’s good that I don’t have to think about things anymore. The guys feel comfortable with any calls that I make out there. So it’s good that we’ve been together for three or four years now, and that trust factor.

“That’s a great thing about being a leader, a Mike linebacker, to be able to get everyone else set and also do your job.”

Bachie was a cornerstone for a defense that ranked No. 10 in the nation in total defense and No. 1 in rushing defense.

“We can’t have any dip from last year,” Bachie said.

What’s Bachie’s message to teammates as a second-year captain?

“Who’s going to step up?” he said. “We need more guys to step up. We need more guys to lead. We need more guys to make plays on the field. So who’s next? Who is going to be the next guy who makes a play who makes their name?”

* Antjuan Simmons (6-0, 225, Jr., Ann Arbor) has been an explosive, hard-hitting, back-up for two years. He has All-Big Ten potential as a first-year starter in 2019.

* Brandon Bouyer-Randle has been contributing in the playing group for two seasons, as a star linebacker, a third-down defensive end and - last season - as a back-up money linebacker.

Bouyer-Randle is likely slated to back-up Thompson again at money ‘backer this year, and there is hope that his athleticism will finally translate into productivity as a third-down edge rusher. He’s been in the developmental stages long enough.

Antjuan Simmons is replacing Andrew Dowell, who was honorable mention All-Big Ten in 2018 and signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent.

Dowell was only slightly better than Simmons over the past two seasons. Dowell had to improve his physicality and accountability in order to hold off Simmons and remain a starter.

Simmons was a starter on the nickel defense at slot linebacker, subbing in for Dowell in passing situations. Simmons had 32 tackles in 284 snaps last year, most of which came on third down.

Simmons sat out the spring game, but displayed his versatility in making noise in MSU’s most recent game, the Redbox Bowl. SpartanMag’s scorecard for Simmons in the Redbox Bowl:

+ Simmons made a good hit on RB C.J. Verdell on a third down pass play in the first half. Simmons dropped into zone, read the play, covered the RB on a short underneath route, made a quick break to the ball and delivered a heavy hit in stopping Verdell short of the line of gain.

++ On third-and-eight with 7:17 to play, Simmons lined up on the edge as a stand-up OLB, played his responsibilities and keys in quick succession and jack-knifed the QB, Justin Herbert, with a hard tackle on a keeper (forcing a field goal, which resulted in a botched fake).

On the third-and-eight stoppage, Simmons squeezed in from the short side, didn’t over-pursue, stayed home while reading the wham tight end. Meanwhile, he also read the quarterback keeper, took a good lateral step, stayed low, converged on the QB and folded him up.

That’s the type of play that makes the opposing coaches look at the film and say, “THAT GUY is a second-stringer? That’s why they are a Top 10 defense right there. They have guys that are that good who aren’t starting.”

Well, now Simmons is on the first string.

“Antjuan has great football instincts, great football intelligence,” Tressel said. “He plays with a natural knee bend where he can change positions like a cat. And he seldom gets himself out of position. And when you’re playing that space linebacker, those are great characteristics.

“Antjuan Simmons rotated with Dowell (last year). Now it’s just a question of whether they can have that intensity every single snap. That’s always a challenge.”

With Byron Bullough having graduated, the back-up job behind Bachie is the most wide-open race on the roster, heading into fall camp.

Tyriq Thompson, MSU’s starter at money linebacker, repped at Mike linebacker for the last one-third of the spring. Coaches worked him there to manufacture some emergency experience behind Bachie.

“One of our goals for the spring,” Thompson said, “was to cross-train a lot of guys, getting some guys playing different positions, getting some guys playing safety, getting some guys playing corner. At linebacker, me playing money and getting some experience at Mike as well. We had a lot of guys playing more than one position.”

Thompson’s audition at Mike could make him a better money ‘backer in the fall.

“I really like playing Mike,” Thompson said. “The whole defense is looking at you. You’re controlling the defense, communicating with everybody. You really have to lock in and be expecting certain plays. That’s where it’s important to have an idea of where the play is going, and you get that through film. This year at money, I want to get even better at knowing where the play is going.”

“He’s our starter at our money position, 100 percent,” Bachie said of Thompson. “In practice 10 or 11 of the spring, he started repping Mike a little bit, just to get comfortable there with the calls. He is not going to miss a beat at money. He’s our guy there but we also need that second Mike, so it’s going to be a battle in the fall for that second position.”

Sophomore Noah Harvey and junior walk-on Dante Razzano worked at Mike linebacker in the spring. Razzano went down with a broken arm in the spring game. Warriner has a lot of knowledge at the position, but missed most of the spring with an undisclosed ailment.

Freshman Chase Kline wasn’t mentioned at mid-spring as a guy who had repped at the Mike, but he came on strong in the spring game and has the knack and body type to earn consideration at the position.

Jeslord Boateng is the linebacker from the 2018 freshman class who received the most compliments from coaches and players during the spring. But classmate Chase Kline headed into the summer with major momentum after a standout day in the Green-White Game, posting a game-high eight tackles.

Racking up good stats in the spring game isn’t necessarily a predictor of success in the fall. But Kline was as good as his stats on that day, showing knack, instincts, quickness and physicality that should make him a contender for playing group status at either inside linebacker position in the near future.

SpartanMag’s notebook on Kline from the spring game:

+ 1-10 at the +11, midway through the third quarter: Showed good instincts, sifting through the fog as the backside linebacker without hesitation, getting to the ball carrier (Weston Bridges) and finishing with a good wrap, for a gain of three.

+ Hard hit on Max Rosenthal to help break-up a short pass with 3:09 left in the third quarter.

+ Good tackle vs RB Anthony Williams with 1:55 to play. On this play, the right guard, Dan VanOpstall, pulled. That was Kline’s gap. Kline correctly moved with the gap, got to the ball carrier, applied a good two-handed wrap, roll tackle. Clean, excellent. He looked like a veteran on that play.

+ Kline showed good quickness as a pass rusher, drawing a holding penalty on Matt Carrick. Kline came fast, bending the corner to the inside.

**

Kline began the spring game as a member of the second-string nickel defense. He was a third-string money linebacker, behind Bouyer-Randle and Harvey (and a fourth-stringer overall when including Thompson). Kline has some solid people in front of him, so he may have to wait his turn to crack the playing group, but he had the look of a quality candidate for the future during the only public practice of the year. He seems to have the versatility to change positions in order to move up on the depth chart.

“I was excited to see a lot of young guys making plays at the end of the spring,” Bachie said. “A lot of young guys stepped up. Chase Kline made some good plays, a lot of young guys that we haven’t seen a lot of have matured and made big strides in their games.”

Warriner and Harvey are sure to get a look at the second-string Mike linebacker job in the fall but Kline showed the tools to butt into the conversation. He was frankly better than Harvey on this day, while going against the same blockers. Warriner didn’t play, but he will be back on the practice field when August camp starts.