Preseason Camp Update: Catching Up with Defensive Coordinator Joe Rossi

EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State third-year defensive coordinator Joe Rossi spoke with the media following Monday's practice, the fourth of preseason camp, to give an update on the Spartan defense.

The Spartans are led by senior linebacker Jordan Hall, who led the team with a career-high 88 tackles last year. Now in his fourth season in East Lansing, Hall heads into 2026 as a first-team preseason All-Big Ten selection by Phil Steele.

Jordan Hall – super smart player, said Rossi. It would never be on this staff, but over the years, Jordan (Hall) probably knows the scheme better than some guys from in the past years ago that were defensive coaches. That's how well he knows the defense.

Michigan State is also returning fifth-year safety Nikai Martinez, fifth-year defensive lineman Ben Roberts, and sixth-year edge Isaac Smith, who all started multiple games last season.

In addition, MSU added 15 experienced transfers on defense that have started a combined 181 games in their careers.

One of those newcomers is fifth-year edge Kenny Soares Jr., who was voted by his teammates to wear the No. 1 jersey for the 2026 season.

The Spartan. https://t.co/QsTKu0ecsY pic.twitter.com/6EGzhbu8HV
— Michigan State Football (@MSU_Football) August 7, 2026

Soares played for head coach Pat Fitzgerald at Northwestern during the 2022 season and spent three seasons overall (2022-24) with the Wildcats. After transferring to North Carolina State in 2025, Soares recorded a career-high 80 tackles, second most on the Wolfpack, and played in all 13 games, including starting assignments the last eight games in a row at middle linebacker. A native of Trumbull, Connecticut, Soares has played in 41 career games and is shifting back to rush end for the Spartans this season.

This guy competes and he's always going 1000 miles an hour, remarked Rossi on Soares. He's a good person and he's a leader for us. So, it was an honor, well deserved.

The Spartans will return to the practice field on Tuesday for the fifth practice of preseason camp.

Michigan State Defensive Coordinator Joe Rossi (Monday, Aug. 10)

On where he believes the defense is compared to the end of spring ball…
Yeah, I think you're further ahead. You come into beginning of spring practice, you've got a bunch of new people, get a new staff, right? Then we had a lot of new players. And so, everyone's kind of at that base stage with the exception a few. And I thought spring really ascended for our guys as they kind of went through the spring, got better and better and better. I thought we played our best ball at the end. And then you come into summer, and the thing is like, hey, they do a lot of stuff on their own during the summer, and the expectation is to start higher than where you end the spring. And I thought we've done that. The thing that stood out to me in the first four practices, is just, like, the effort to the ball, to swarm to the ball, the physicality. And that's always got to be your starting point, right? Beginning of camp is coaching fundamentals, coaching the details of the coverages and the fronts and all those things. But if guys have the effort and the swarm and the physicality, that's always a good start. So, we're much further along than we were at the beginning of spring, and we have a long way to go, too.

On how much of a mental retention the defense has from the end of last season…
I would say it probably shows most in the first and second down calls, and I would say it's across the board. D line, linebacker, secondary. I say that because in the spring, that's probably the situation we hit the most. So obviously that one's going to have the most retention. We get into training camp, we open up all the situations, some of the end of games, some of the last plays, things like that. So, guys will be hearing that stuff for the first time. So, first and second down stuff.

On what it's like not being tied to a specific position for the first time in his career…
No, I haven't (done that before). Yeah, I think it's good. I think it does two things. It connects the defense, and then I can inject the why. So, when we're in meetings, I just alternate from different positions. And so, I go in and, I want to hear the players. I want to be around the guys. When you're a coordinator and a position coach, you don't get around the guys as much. But then, say, hey, listen, this is why we call this. This is what the linebackers are doing when you're sitting in the secondary meeting. This is what the linebackers are doing when you're sitting in the D line meeting. It just kind of pulls everything together. So, I like it, because I feel like it can answer the why and connect the group.

On being an instrumental part to restoring the toughness in the program…
Yeah, I think I'm one of a bunch. I think it's a program thing, whether it's strength coach, whether it's just in terms of the day-to-day, whether it's the position coach, whether it's the coordinator, whether it's the head coach. So, yeah, I'm certainly part of that. And I think defensively the driving force needs to be physicality, toughness, hardness, but I'm one of the staff, but the staff is all on the same page with that mentality.

On Kenny Soares Jr. and what he has observed out him since he arrived at MSU…
Yeah, I mean, that's pretty cool, right? There's a vote, he got the most votes (to wear No. 1), and he was a guy that's been here as of recent, January, but the thing about him is he competes his butt off. I'll give you a story. So, in July, I had the defense over to my house for a little cookout, and I have a basketball hoop, and Kenny's out there playing some of the guys, and it's like the NBA finals, like watching them play, right? And then later on, he's over there playing bags or cornhole, depending on where you are in the country, but he's playing like, again, like it's ESPN, The Ocho, like cornhole championships, right? And Chuck (Charles Brantley) is standing next to me and Chuck goes, 'man, this is the most competitive dude I've ever seen.' And I said, you're right, because that's how he's on the football field, too. So, I think that just stands out to his teammates. Like, this guy competes and he's always going 1000 miles an hour. He's a good person and he's a leader for us. So, it was an honor, well deserved.

On how Kenny Soares Jr.'s competitive nature can translate to the pass rush…
I think on the D line, playing with a series of efforts, that's one of the things we talk about is critical because on D line, there's going to be a get off, there's going to be an engagement, there's going to be a separation and there's going to be a pursuit to the ball. A corner might pedal and back pedal the whole play, right? No disrespect. I certainly can't go out there and cover on the edge. But up front, it's a series of efforts. Pass rush, a lot of it is just being relentless, and just having a high motor. He is a high motor guy. There are times we have to like to pull him back. But as a defensive coach, that's what you love. You don't want to be pushing him forward. You want to be pulling them back. And he's a pull-back guy.

On the recruitment process of defensive edge Kenny Soares Jr. …
Well, it was a couple things. Coach (Pat Fitzgerald) came to us and said, when he was in the portal, he was like, 'hey, I coached this guy.' But he was like, 'here's what I know about him. Evaluate him.' Because he wanted us to get an evaluation of him. And I'll be honest, it was a projection because at NC State, he went there to play Edge and then they had injuries and they moved him off the ball. And so, when we looked at him, we said we felt like he was best on the edge. Like he had the traits, he just needed to be developed a little bit and coached at rushing the passer. And so, then we got on the phone with him and we really, really liked him a lot in terms of his personality, his attitude, just his intelligence. So, then it just kind of came together. We came back to coach and were like, hey, we really like him. He's like, cool, I like him too. So, we went after him.

On the importance of having energy and passion while coaching…
Yeah, here's the one thing I'll say. I think one of the key things a coach can do is just be themselves, right? The players don't respond to phony. Because I've seen plenty of coaches who aren't super high energy, who are great coaches, right? And it's about being your true self. That being said, the guys want to feel passion. If that passion is like a vocal passion, cool. If it's not, some guys get really excited all the time. I'm not an excited guy all time, on game day sometimes, but usually during the week, I'm pretty like, 'err.' So, but my point is, you just got to be yourself. And so, I do think players feed off energy. I do think they feed off a passion, but I do know this. If you try to be phony, they're going to see right through it and they're not going to respond. So, we have a passionate and energetic defensive staff from the back end to the front end. And I think we've got a good group that'll bring energy and enthusiasm, starting with the head coach. So, it's a good group to be able to drive the team.

On what it's like working for a defensive minded head coach…
Yeah, I haven't done it since my first in coaching, Division III school, every other time I've worked for an offensive coach. But coach (Fitz) balances it really well. He goes in everyone's meetings. He sits in on everything, and he can provide input to offense, defense and special teams. And, I think the difference is, he just gets where it's coming from on defense. Sometimes if a guy played receiver or things like that or was a quarterback, they maybe don't have quite the same sense. I mean, he gets it. He's been on that side of the ball. So, I think it's appreciated by the guys, but there's a lot of great offensive guys who are head coaches who are able to do the same thing.

On what it's been like working with LeVar Woods and the special team's unit…
Number one, always thought he did a great job, competed against them for a lot of years. I mean, this is probably nine years. But a lot of respect for him, and then he's a very good teacher. And commands a room and has done it at a super high level for a really long time. So, it's been awesome to have him here. Plus, he's a cool dude. I like him off the field, too.

On the development of linebackers Adam Shaw and Brady Pretzlaff…
Starting with Pretzlaff, I don't think he's missed a beat, if anything. He's further ahead than when he was injured. The cool thing was, even though he was non-contact all spring, he did everything that was non-contact, so now he's getting some contact under his boat. Like, we're ready to turn him loose. Like, he's going to play a lot of ball for us, where or what position on the depth chart, that'll get sorted out through the rest of camp, but he's going to play a lot of ball for us, and he can be a really good player for us. Adam Shaw has put on a lot of weight. As is the case when freshman linebackers get here, they're usually 210 pounds and don't look like linebackers and then all of a sudden, they start eating and lifting and training and then they start to fill out, and he's starting to fill out. I would say he's a really good athlete. He's a physical kid and he's got a high aptitude. So, you get guys that are athletic, who are smart and can run. Those are the great foundations to play really, really good linebacker and he has it.

On the vibes and atmosphere of the program and community this coming season…
Yeah, I mean, and just speaking to this year, right? Because I don't like to compare anything, but just speaking to this year, like, I'll give you an example. We're at the golf outing, and there's a part of the golf outing before they tee off and a lot of bad golf gets played. Coach Fitz kind of addressed the alums and I could see within 15 seconds, like, they like this guy. They like his energy. And Coach Fitz just brings it. It's not fake. Again, it's who he is, right? So, like, I felt like it resonated really well with the alums, and I've kind of just felt that in the community too. Now, we've got to get the team ready to go play football and go out there to win football games. But I'm feeling an energy and an attention to detail and a physicality, an edge, and that kind of stems from coach.

On players that are standing out…
Nikai Martinez, super smart player. Jordan Hall, super smart player. It would never be on this staff, but over the years, like Jordan (Hall) probably knows the scheme better than some guys from in the past years ago that were defensive coaches. That's how well he knows the defense. Chuck (Charles) Brantley, Chuck knows football. He's a really smart player, and then you get up the up front, Ben Roberts, he knows ball. So, we've got him, and just so you know, we'd like to collect as many of those people as possible. The way football gets played in 2026 and then you see what gets asked of guys in the NFL. See ball get ball doesn't work really well. You've got to have guys that have high aptitude and can learn and that was something that we intentionally went after. Devin Vaught, Michael Richard, it was intentional and how we went to go recruit those guys. So, we got a bunch of guys like Brady Pretzlaff are a super smart football IQ guy.

On the hopes out of Charles 'Chuck' Brantley this season…
I'm hoping to get his best year. Chuck's a really good football player. Chuck and I, I've always felt kind of had a cool relationship, and I like him a lot as a football player, and I think Spartan Nation does too, because of how he plays, right? But I also like him as a person. And he's had a lot of personal growth since I first met him, from the first time I met him till now, and I'm proud of him. So, I want him to get back and he's working and he's practicing, he'll be taking the restrictors off here in a little bit, but he's going. And I'm excited and I want him to have a freaking great year for him because, because like I said, I love the kid.