McDowell seeing double teams as Michigan State eyes better pass rush
EAST LANSING – Malik McDowell started to see double-team blocks against him more often as a sophomore last season.
That was when Michigan State’s star defensive tackle had Shilique Calhoun, Lawrence Thomas, Joel Heath and others surrounding him.
And now that they’re gone, much of the opposing offenses’ focus is firmly on stopping McDowell.
“Oh, it’s a lot more,” McDowell said of the double-teams he’s faced through three games. “It’s been every play now.”
McDowell has eight tackles, 1.5 of them for a loss, but no sacks. Wisconsin limited him to just one assist while putting multiple blockers on him throughout Saturday’s 30-6 MSU loss in its Big Ten opener.
“I mean, he’s the best player on the field. Of course he’s gonna get doubled,” fellow defensive tackle Raequan Williams said of McDowell. “There’s nothing we can do about that. Everybody just has to attack their gaps. It’s just about freeing up the linebackers.”
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The Spartans have 3.5 sacks from its other defensive linemen, two of them from redshirt freshman Williams. Coaches opted to play true freshmen defensive ends Josh King and Auston Robertson at the end of the Wisconsin game in an attempt to generate more of a pass rush, and they’ll be counted on to play more this week against the breakneck offense of Indiana (8 p.m. Sat./BTN).
“How you generate pressure is continue to beat one-on-ones,” defensive line coach Ron Burton said. “That is the key to the game and that opportunity presents all of the defensive linemen as well as the linebackers.”
McDowell easily has the most experience among a group of young or new arrivals on MSU’s front four. Tackle Kevin Williams and end Gabe Sherrod have added depth but not much production. True freshman Mike Panasiuk has seen limited snaps next to McDowell, while starting defensive ends Demetrius Cooper and Evan Jones haven’t been able to consistently get after opposing quarterbacks.
Which leaves opponents to game plan for McDowell.
“When you’re a good player, you’re going to attract attention,” MSU coach Mark Dantonio said of McDowell. “Just got to stay the course. He’s playing extremely hard. He plays extremely hard on the field. Just keep making plays, keep playing.
“When you’re a good football player, that happens. I would think that’s a natural process to where he’s at in his football career.”
ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr. has McDowell as his No. 3 overall player on his Big Board for the 2017 draft, should the junior declare early. Sports Illustrated has McDowell going 10th to the Washington Redskins. He is a candidate for the Bednarik Award, the Lombardi Award, the Nagurski Trophy and the Outland Trophy, as well as a first-team preseason All-American by a number of outlets.
Kiper believes McDowell has No. 1 overall pick talent thanks to his hybrid skills as either defensive tackle or end.
“I want to see his production this season, but he’s a fantastic athlete with a huge frame (6-feet-6, 290 pounds), and he can overwhelm blockers one-on-one,” Kiper wrote. “What happens when it’s all double-teams is a question.”
Last season playing almost exclusively on the interior, McDowell made 41 tackles and had 4.5 sacks with a veteran group around him.
This season, MSU has tried lining up the Detroit native at all four spots along the defensive line, including on the edge in both three- and four-man fronts, to free him up in more one-on-one situations. Opposing offenses often have either gone away from him or used two blockers on McDowell to challenge the other Spartans to make plays.
“Last year, I got a lot of double-teams, so it made it kind of hard for me to get to plays, so I kind of got used to it,” McDowell said. “I don’t really get frustrated. I get more frustrated with refs being a little picky about me and not picky about offensive linemen.”
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Like most defensive linemen, McDowell said he believes he is “being held every play.”
“I haven’t got one holding call this year, and you can literally just throw the penalty for holding every play,” he said. “And I ain’t got one call this year. It’s just — hey, that’s football. … But in our defensive line room, I don’t mention holding. I’ve been held my whole life.”
The Spartans moved two offensive players over to help increase depth against Notre Dame, with Jamal Lyles getting snaps at defensive end and Brandon Clemons at defensive tackle. Newcomers King and Robertson now join the rotation against an Indiana team that Dantonio said likes to snap the ball just 12 seconds after the previous play ends.
McDowell has tried to tell them what to expect, but realizes they will only learn from being on the field.
Whether they bring the added quarterback pressure needed to free McDowell up remains to be seen.
“Gotta work harder to get to the quarterback and get the job done. There’s nothing else to it,” McDowell said. “We feel like we’re right there, we just need that extra push. We need to figure that out as a team and do what we’ve gotta do.
“Everybody’s gotta do their job. We need pressure from all four of the D-linemen. We all four gotta bring pressure, and whatever blitzing linebackers that are coming. We all truthfully need to be there.”
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter@chrissolari. Download our Spartans Xtra app for free on Apple and Android devices!
Up next: Hoosiers
Matchup: No. 16 Michigan State (2-1, 0-1 Big Ten) at Indiana (2-1, 0-0).
Kickoff: 8 p.m. Saturday, Memorial Stadium, Bloomington, Ind.
TV/radio: Big Ten Network; WJR-AM (760).
Line: Spartans by 8.