One New Dynamic That Will Have Positive Impact on MSU Football
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Michigan State's coaching staff will take a relatively unique approach.
Many offensive and defensive coordinators choose to watch and call their games from the press box. The upside is that it gives them an easy, all-22 view of what's happening on the field. The downside is that it keeps them from providing face-to-face instruction to their players.
MSU's coordinators value that part a lot. Both offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan and defensive coordinator Joe Rossi will be on the field during games this fall.
Why Coordinators Will Be on Field
This will be a pretty big shift from last year for the Spartans. Rossi and previous offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren both called plays from up top at the beginning of last season. Lindgren stayed there throughout the season, but Rossi became a bit of a fan favorite when he moved down to the field from the Michigan game onward, providing some much-needed energy to the sideline. It also coincided with some nice in-season improvement on defense.
"There's benefits to both being up and being down," Sheridan said Tuesday. "I think the benefit to being on the field is you can look the players in the eye and talk to them. I think that's important. You can see the body language of not just your team, the opponent, the rhythm, the flow of the game a little bit better. It's a little louder on the sideline, you know, as opposed to in the box. So there's pros and cons."
What Changes Could Mean
The vibe on the sideline this season should be a lot different this year. Energy around the facility and the practice field has been a common theme among players who have been in East Lansing during both the Jonathan Smith and Pat Fitzgerald eras. Michigan State is a place that loves a coach with some fire -- see Tom Izzo and Mark Dantonio.
Smith's very calm approach during games, with little to no emotion shown, isn't necessarily "wrong," but it never connected with the fanbase (it especially doesn't land when the team is losing games). It wasn't a great sign when Rossi was shown on TV broadcasts as often as, or more often than, Smith during the final games of the 2025 season.
Having the coordinators on the field and that face-to-face instruction is probably the right thing to do these days. The NCAA eliminated a rule that limited the number of coaches a team could have back in June 2024. MSU has 31 coaches listed online right now. With that many people, a few can be put up in the press box and just relay to Sheridan and/or Rossi what they see.
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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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