Eastern Michigan Football: Offense will be key to bowl game in 2021

Defense looks for big bounce back after falling apart in 2020

After having some of the best defenses in the MAC since Creighton was named head coach, EMU had the worst defense of his tenure and it really kept the team from being better. Eagles fans hope the defense can get back to normal and raise this team’s ceiling.

A good place would be to start up front at defensive end. Jose Ramirez and Turan Rush are a pair of solid pass rushers and are the most talented players on the defensive line. Alongside them in the interior will be Woo Scott and Alex Merritt. Scott brings a lot of size up front and that size will be needed to help fix the 119th ranked run defense. At linebacker, Terry Myrick is back after leading the team with 67 tackles last season. Tariq Speights is the other linebacker that should get the start beside Myrick.

The secondary is the spot of the defense that is probably the most concerning. Freddie McGee III is going to be the veteran of the group and he will be starting at one corner spot and freshman Kempton Shine will probably be on the other side.

Blake Bogan is moving to the rover spot and his experience is going to be much needed there. At safety, Alvinoski LaFleur and Mark Lee Jr are going to be the starters, with Alvinoski being the more experienced of the two. The defense is going to need to stop the run and create turnovers much better than they did last season if they want to see a big improvement and that is where the focus should lie.