MSU AD Bartholomae Making Big Statements on Football NIL Strategy
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EAST LANSING -- Michigan State's new-ish athletic director is aiming to secure better funding for his football program.
Dan Bartholomae sent out a letter to MSU fans on Wednesday afternoon, a few days ahead of the Spartans' homecoming matchup with Illinois. MSU football has lost three straight games and likely faces another roster upheaval. The team's NIL efforts were rated in the bottom half of the Big Ten by The Athletic a few weeks ago at between $21 and 25 million. Bartholomae is looking to change that.
Bartholomae's Words
"Football must be resourced to be competitive immediately, and they will be," Bartholomae wrote. "Providing those resources as we build towards the future is my primary focus every day. This includes resources for roster development AND other football priorities such as Spartan Stadium renovations. We can’t just pick one – they both must be addressed."
To get the money cannon loaded, Bartholomae is also recognizing that there probably needs to be more transparency about how Michigan State athletics is operating in this chaotic, Wild West-like era of college sports.
This primarily centers on Spartan Ventures, the department's recently launched affiliated company designed to simplify brand and NIL deals, and "For Sparta," the school's financial campaign for funds meant to renovate Spartan Stadium, the Breslin Center, and other athletic landmarks around campus.
Nearly all of Greg Williams' $401 million donation in December 2025 went to these two things: $290 million was earmarked for "For Sparta," and another $100 million was a Spartan Ventures seed investment.
"Buy-in from our community will only be achieved if we are clear about our vision and explain our decisions," Bartholomae wrote. "Transparency will allow staff and fans to feel invested in our initiatives. From there, success will follow."
"The two most pressing areas that need more explanation are Spartan Ventures and FOR SPARTA. While both initiatives serve to benefit Spartan Athletics, there’s a great opportunity for more transparency, direction and clarity. And while I sense urgency in the need for that, it needs to be genuine, true to my own leadership style and in strategic alignment with our goals. As we formalize the direction for our future, I look forward to offering more information in the months ahead."
Outlook for MSU's NIL Situation
Pat Fitzgerald's next transfer portal class will reveal a lot about the kind of resources he has to work with at Michigan State. He's used to fighting with one hand tied behind his back, at least resource-wise, from his time at Northwestern, but part of what is supposed to make the Fitzgerald experiment so interesting is what he would do with a little bit more at MSU.
Even NU is catching up (or really even surpassing) the Spartans in that regard. The previously mentioned article from The Athletic has Northwestern's roster also valued in the $21-25 million range, and the Wildcats definitely have a stadium advantage with the recent grand opening of the new Ryan Field.
Impact of the 'Protect College Sports Act'
Another thing to keep a close eye on is the Protect College Sports Act, which passed the Senate about a week ago by a 77-22 vote and is waiting to be voted on in the House of Representatives.
Currently, schools are limited to spending about $21.5 million per year in direct revenue-sharing with athletics. If the Protect College Sports Act became law, that "cap" would rise to about $48 million. Bartholomae wants to see Michigan State reach that number.
"We need to do better there across the board [on NIL and revenue-sharing] -- revenue sports and non-revenue sports," Bartholomae said on Sept. 30 during an appearance on 'Staudt on Sports'. "If we want to be serious about winning -- and I want to be serious about winning, I know our coaches want to be serious about winning -- we can't play around and say, 'Well, we'll just try to get to the cap.' We need to be at the cap."
"We're not there. We need to get there by next year, and there's a number of sports where I'm having conversations with those coaches today to put them in the position to be successful while they're recruiting for next year."
Bartholomae doesn't explicitly talk about the football team there, but it's easy to deduce that's what he's mostly talking about after Wednesday's letter. Whatever the leap in funds is for Fitzgerald, it needs to be significant. MSU likely will have to overpay for quality players after several losing seasons in a row, and the required number to be competitive keeps rising across the country.
Really, a tough but doable target for Bartholomae with football is probably in that upper-30 million range. That feels like an area where Fitzgerald could retain the players who need to be retained while also getting some potential difference-makers in the portal this coming winter.
Further Analysis
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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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