LeVar Woods Explains Why He Chose Michigan State
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Pat Fitzgerald is adding one of the best special teams coaches in the country to his staff at Michigan State.
Iowa's LeVar Woods announced Thursday that he would be leaving the Hawkeyes at season's end for MSU, where he will be the assistant head coach and special teams coordinator. Special teams have been something Iowa has excelled in for many years and are a big reason the Hawkeyes beat the Spartans this past season. Woods, an Iowa alum, has been a part of Kirk Ferentz's staff there in some capacity since 2008, and has been the STC for most of that time.
Woods on Fitzgerald, MSU
"I haven't known Pat [Fitzgerald] a long time, but I've been watching him," Woods said Thursday in a press conference in Iowa City. "I've been playing against him, competing against him, seen him. He was a player a couple years older than me when I was in college, and a very competitive player. Every time we've lined up against Northwestern when he was coaching there, very competitive teams, probably with lesser athletes, lesser talent. He's definitely a competitor that I've seen, a leader within the conference.
"To me, he shares a lot of the same values that Coach Ferentz has instilled upon this program [at Iowa]. Those things have come along as opportunities, and I feel like it's an opportunity to go somewhere where you can build from the ground and see it from a different way, a different perspective. You still have that same thought of trying to develop men, trying to develop the person, not just, 'Hey, here's a good football player. Let's pay him this and get him out of here.' To me, that's what I'm excited about."
The special teams units at Michigan State have definitely had some struggles over the past few years. MSU has had great individual components, like Ryan Eckley, Bryce Baringer, or Jonathan Kim, but the holistic view of the Spartans' third phase has not been tremendous for a bit. Fitzgerald is hoping that Woods can do what he did at Iowa in East Lansing.
Woods is also not a stranger to the state of Michigan. He had an NFL career as a special teams guy and a linebacker, and he played for the Detroit Lions in 2006 and 2007. He appeared in 13 games with three starts for the Lions, making 41 total tackles.
"I do know that at the time, it was probably not the most glamorous years of the Detroit Lions, but I do feel comfortable with the state of Michigan and their fans," Woods said. "They are rabid fans. I said this 20 years ago, and then two years ago, when the Lions were in the thick of it for the Super Bowl hunt, when Detroit becomes a real team and the fans get going, they're going to love this place. That's what you see right now with what Dan Campbell's been doing with the Lions.
"These fans are rabid and ready to win."
Future Aspirations
One reason Woods may be interested is that he is interested in running his own program one day. Plenty of Iowa fans were suggesting him as a candidate once Ferentz retires there.
"Those are definitely ambitions that I have," Woods said. "I think anyone that gets into coaching has those sort of ambitions at some point. I feel like, for me personally, at this time in my life, I'm going to be 48 years old, which isn't all that old, but it's old for me and where I'm trying to go trajectory-wise. I feel like now is a good time for that.
"I also feel like the opportunity to try to get my hands dirty on the front end of something that Michigan State's got going on.... that's a great opportunity to learn those things."
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A 2025 graduate from Michigan State University, Cotsonika brings a wealth of experience covering the Spartans from Rivals and On3 to his role as Michigan State Spartans Beat Writer on SI. At Michigan State, he was also a member of the world-renowned Spartan marching band for two seasons.
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