Michigan State Football Has to Get Out of its Slump

The Spartans have not made the College Football Playoff or won the Big Ten championship in almost 10 years.

Michigan State's Maliq Carr and the Spartans sport the gruff Sparty helmet for the game against / Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA

Michigan State football hasn't been doing very well in recent years. It used to be a big deal, especially in the Big Ten, but things have gone downhill since its last playoff run back in the 2015 season.

One big problem is the Spartans keep changing coaches. After Coach Mark Dantonio left in 2020, it's been a bit of a mess trying to find someone to fill his shoes. New coaches mean new strategies and styles, which can take a while for the players to get used to. The current team says that new Spartans coach Jonathan Smith has a great scheme, and it is working well, which is good news, but with everyone else preparing for the four new teams, they all likely have a new strategy as well.

Recruiting hasn't been going great either. Smith is having trouble convincing top players to join the team and losing more than it is gaining, which means the Spartans are not getting the talent they need to compete at the highest level. Losing out on good recruits to other teams in the conference and around the country doesn't help either.

Not making the playoffs for so long is frustrating for everyone involved. Fans want to see their team succeed, players want to compete for championships and coaches want to prove themselves. But breaking out of this slump is going to take time and effort.

Smith needs to find a way to bring in some top talent and start to revive this struggling program and bring it to its feet. He did it once before with Oregon State, and now, he has the opportunity to do it again in a much bigger and much more difficult division.

Despite all the setbacks, there's still hope for Michigan State football. It has loyal fans who are sticking by it through the tough times, and there's a strong tradition of success that it can build on. If it can get their recruiting back on track, keep players healthy and find the right coach to lead it, there's no reason it can't get back to competing with the best teams in the country.

It's just going to take some work to get there.

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