MSU Focusing on Improving Offense Through Portal

The Michigan State Spartans have already been active on the offensive side of the ball this offseason.

Nov 16, 2024; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Michigan State Spartans head coach Jonathan Smith during the first half against the Illinois Fighting Illini at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

The Michigan State Spartans are working through the offseason, looking to improve the roster after missing a bowl game in 2024. 

Jonathan Smith knows 2025 must be better in East Lansing, as fans are growing impatient with not seeing postseason football. It would be brutal for Smith and his staff to make it a fourth consecutive year without earning bowl eligibility. 

MSU’s offense struggled in 2024 despite continuity with this staff, quarterback Aidan Chiles, and tight end Jack Velling. The Spartans ranked 12th in total offense (333.4 yards per game), 11th in passing offense (218.1), 13th in rushing offense (115.3), and 15th in scoring offense (19.3). 

That is why this staff has already been active in the NCAA Transfer Portal. The portal officially opened on Monday, and the Spartans have already offered several players. 

Those include running back Eli Sanders from New Mexico, offensive lineman Josh Thompson from Northwestern, wide receivers Chrishon McCray from Kent State, Miami (OH)’s Reginald Virgil and Javon Tracy, and Trech Kekahuna from Wisconsin. 

The Spartans' already offering of six offensive players in the portal on the first day it opens means they know they must improve on that side of the ball. 

Playing with a top quarterback like Chiles and within an offensive system like Smith and Offensive Coordinator Brian Lindgren’s that has produced players in the NFL should be a major selling point for any player in the portal. 

MSU has already lost several players to the portal on the offensive side of the ball, including wide receivers Jaron Glover and Aziah Johnson and some who have run out of eligibility, like Montorie Foster Jr. and Alante Brown. Running back Nate Carter has declared for the 2025 NFL Draft.

The college football offseason has become a nonstop whirlwind. Coaches have to constantly recruit their own players in addition to guys from the portal and through high school. Smith and his staff must adapt to this new era of college football, including continuing to hit the portal hard. 

MSU’s offense will look vastly different than it did in 2024. Smith and his staff have a chance to find players who will fit their offensive goals and give Chiles plenty of options.

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