MSU’s Best Next Move Is Retaining Courtney Hawkins

This hasn't been said about Michigan State football much lately, but sometimes the best thing to do is to be happy with what you already have.

MSU's coaching staff, alongside head coach Pat Fitzgerald, is beginning to fill in. Almost all of it has been on the defensive side of the ball, but the Spartans are picking Nick Sheridan to be the program's new offensive coordinator. Sheridan is currently the co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Alabama and is a former quarterback at Michigan.

Sep 7, 2024; Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA; Alabama offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Nick Sheridan watches his quarterbacks warm up at Bryant-Denny Stadium before a game against the South Florida Bulls. Mandatory Credit: Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images | Gary Cosby Jr.-Imagn Images

Certainly, Fitzgerald was likely not going to set any positional spots in stone before picking an offensive coordinator. Joe Rossi had already been retained as MSU's defensive coordinator, and the hiring of his former player and defensive line coach, Winston DeLattiboudere III, away from the Arizona Cardinals seems to indicate that Rossi has some input in those defensive positional hirings.

That could very well be the case for Sheridan's offensive staff, too, especially since Fitzgerald is a defensive-minded coach. One decision of Sheridan's should have already been made for him: he should retain wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins.

Hawkins' Time at MSU

Michigan State's wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins looks on during the spring game on Saturday, April 16, 2022, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. | Nick King / USA TODAY NETWORK

There has been one position on the Michigan State offense that has consistently been a strength since Hawkins came back to East Lansing in 2020: wide receiver. Hawkins has consistently been able to identify talent that has excelled at MSU and has then been able to reach the NFL.

The list of wide receivers Hawkins has coached includes: Jalen Nailor, Jayden Reed, Keon Coleman, Germie Bernard, and Nick Marsh. That is five NFL-caliber wide receivers coached in five seasons. Those last three names are either going to finish or finished their college careers elsewhere in college, but those transfers have largely been to coaching changes or instability, which is something largely out of Hawkins' control.

Anyone else that Fitzgerald or Sheridan looks at to become the wide receivers coach, it better be someone who is clearly an upgrade. That list is not very long. The list of candidates who are a realistic upgrade and also have an emotional connection to Michigan State might not exist.

The staff that Fitzgerald, armed with a $12.12 million budget for his assisting staff, has put together has been impressive so far and reflects the investment MSU has put into it. Hawkins has put a lot into this place, both as a player and as a coach. More importantly, he's produced and done a good job. Hopefully, Fitzgerald and Sheridan will see that and try to grant him a spot on their attempted turnaround of the program.

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