With the departures of Dean Lowry and Deonte Gibson, Northwestern will need Odenigbo to step up at defensive end
At No. 5 in our Most Important Players series, we have Ifeadi Odenigbo. Arguably the biggest recruit Pat Fitzgerald has even gotten, Odenigbo has had a disappointing few years in Evanston. In 2015, Odenigbo had 4.0 sacks, but much of his production came early on in the season against weak non-conference opponents. He almost completely disappeared during conference play. However, after an exodus of talent at defensive end this offseason, the redshirt senior will need to step up as a starter this fall.