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MSU's 5 most important defensive players for 2015

Michael Bonner
The Clarion-Ledger
Mississippi State senior Ryan Brown will be asked to fill the vacancy left by Preston Smith.

STARKVILLE – Mississippi State owned one of the best run defenses in the country last year. It also tallied 10 wins despite the worst pass defense in the Southeastern Conference in terms of yards per game.

Seven starters are gone from that squad. In order to keep the same level of play up front as well as improve the secondary, players will have to emerge as stars like Benardrick McKinney and Preston Smith did.

Here is a look at the five most important defensive players for the Bulldogs in 2015.

Ryan Brown

Ryan Brown called Preston Smith "Big Brother." This season presents Brown a chance to become the eldest sibling on Mississippi State's defense.

Chris Jones owns the most talent on the defensive line, but often gets forgotten among the double teams inside. Brown can relieve some of the pressure with a breakout season – like Smith did last year.

Brown boasts similar numbers that Smith put up as a junior. Brown recorded 39 tackles, seven for loss and 3.5 sacks last year. In comparison, Smith had44 tackles, 6.5 for loss and 2.5 sacks.

Smith's NFL draft stock skyrocketed as a senior after he led MSU with 15 tackles for loss and nine sacks.

Brown begins the season like Smith did as a little-known defensive end. He hopes to end it as one of the best in the SEC.

Chris Jones owns the most raw talent within Mississippi State’s defense and he looks to put it to use in 2015.

C hris Jones

Preston Smith wreaked the most havoc of any defender on opposing offenses last year. It's Chris Jones' turn to take the baton. The junior has already been named a preseason All-American. Many expect the former five-star recruit to live up to that potential.

Jones burst onto the scene with 32 tackles, including seven for loss, to go with three sacks as a freshman. His numbers dropped to 26 tackles, 3.5 for loss and three sacks last year. A number of factors contributed to that, including double teams and playing time.

Jones technically wasn't a starter last year. He moves into that role this year. He has the talent to put up Smith-like numbers and influence just as many games.

A Safety

At this point, it doesn't matter who, but just that it's somebody. Mississippi State needs someone who can take over as the leader of the secondary, and the Bulldogs have a handful of candidates to replace last year's starters, Jay Hughes and Justin Cox, as well as Kendrick Market, whose 2015 is in doubt because of a torn Achilles.

Kivon Coman and Deontay Evans lead MSU's safeties in experience. Both actually finished with more tackles than Hughes and Cox last year.

Evans is the only returning healthy safety that has starting experience. He started in MSU's last two bowl games. The duo of Evans and Coman anchored spots on the first team in the spring. Brandon Bryant and incoming freshmen Jamal Peters and Mark McLaurin also have opportunities to work onto the two-deep depth chart.

Bottom line is a leader from this pool needs to step up for the Mississippi State defense, which ranked last in the SEC in pass defense and 114th in the nation a year ago.

Taveze Calhoun

It's been well documented, even within this list, that MSU struggled to defend the pass last year. This year, Mississippi State returns one of the more experienced corners in the Southeastern Conference. Senior Taveze Calhoun has already earned preseason accolades with all-conference honors from various media outlets.

If he lives up to those expectations, MSU's defense could be one of the best in the country. Calhoun started all 13 games last year and led the secondary with 53 tackles with 3.5 for a loss and one interception.

Beniquez Brown

Mississippi State lost its defensive soul from last year with Benardrick McKinney declaring for the NFL Draft. It also lost its defensive coordinator in Geoff Collins. Beniquez Brown might be able to replace both.

He saw increases in tackles, tackles for loss and sacks from his freshman to sophomore season. The steady climb should continue in 2015, especially with more playing time.

Brown is also the smartest player on the field. He's earned a reputation for diagnosing plays prior to the snap. Combine those two attributes and Brown is expected to be both the heart and the brains of Mississippi State defense.

After his freshman season, he saw linebacker Deontae Skinner sign with the New England Patriots. Last year, McKinney and Matt Wells both graduated from MSU's defense to the NFL.

Brown, a fourth-year junior, could be the next in the 2016 draft.

Contact Michael Bonner at mbonner@gannett.com. Follow @MikeBBonner on Twitter.