Spartan Sundays: P4 Losses Prove MSU Needs Additional Roster Overhaul
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The biggest concern for Michigan State entering the year was the lack of playmakers on the roster. It's a heck of a lot more of a concern now.
MSU got embarrassed on the road at Wisconsin, 31-3. The Spartans have now been outscored 89-26 in their three games against Power Four competition, and they've lost all three by at least three possessions.
"It sucks to get your ass kicked," head coach Pat Fitzgerald said after the game. "That's what you take from it. So do something about it. Right? Do something about it. That's what I take from this game. You get your ass kicked; there's nothing else. Leave it here, walk out, and get ready to go back to work on Monday."
Michigan State played Saturday without its two best players, running back Cam Edwards (out for the season) and linebacker Jordan Hall, but those two guys aren't worth 28 points. The Badgers, who really aren't as flashy or as impressive as even Nebraska, dominated everywhere. MSU's roster isn't nearly good enough, and a lot will have to change.
Outlook for Roster Moving Forward
The Spartans' 2026 roster began with 62 new players, including 32 new transfers. Fitzgerald has said that he doesn't anticipate that he'll use the transfer portal that heavily in future years, but it may be time he rethinks that.
MSU's portal activity this coming offseason will reveal a lot. It'll show more about Fitzgerald's roster-building philosophy and the kind of resources he's working with. The Spartans have 13 starters whose eligibility will run out after 2026 (including Edwards, who could maybe get a waiver), and Michigan State will have to find portal players who are better than a lot of these guys.
Few players with remaining eligibility should feel secure in their current roles. If Edwards gets a medical waiver, most would be happy to have him back. Tight end Jayden Savoury is probably the only player on that list on offense. The defensive list is a bit longer, including Jordan Hall, Brady Pretzlaff, Eli Coenen, and Tyran Chappell. Even then, Hall and Coenen feel like potential NFL prospects.
Everyone else eligible for 2027 should feel like they're playing for their jobs, including quarterback Alessio Milivojevic, who was pedestrian again on Saturday. That's the reality of the sport these days. Fitzgerald will get three years minimum because of the hefty buyout MSU is paying Jonathan Smith, but there's a sped-up timeline every coach is on, Fitzgerald has acknowledged that before.
The list of schools MSU pulls guys from could also get a lot more Power Four-heavy. About 40% of the Spartans' portal class from last winter were players from P4 programs, and only six in the 32-person class had serious Power Four starting experience. In hindsight, the class was pretty full of decent but hardly elite Group of Five or FCS players.
Fitzgerald said they valued production over potential in the transfer portal, but the actual number of Power Four production MSU got last winter was very limited. It felt especially mystifying at receiver, with the Spartans taking a pair of Power Four retreads in Fredrick Moore (Michigan) and KK Smith (Notre Dame). Moore has been an unimpressive starter so far, and Smith has barely played. Receiver, as a whole, has been a big weakness.
Michigan State just doesn't have the talent or the players to hang with slightly above-average Big Ten teams like Wisconsin. The Badgers are an improved product from last season, but that's probably not a team that should beat you by 28 points, even during Year 1 of a program rebuild.
Transfer portal conversations start long before the portal ever officially opens. It's easier said than done, but MSU will soon have some difficult conversations with some of its players about their role moving forward, because what it pieced together via the portal in Year 1 hasn't been close to good enough.
What's the Fix?
It's not what many want to hear right now, but patience has to be part of the solution here. MSU accepted the possibility of a longer rebuild when it hired Fitzgerald, who didn't have a staff or a bunch of players to bring with him. There was hope that this Michigan State could be better than the teams of recent years' past, but that may not be the case right now. Even then, Fitzgerald deserves time to get his team and program together.
It also sounds like a bit of a juvenile and oversimplified suggestion, but sometimes it comes down to money. It's a simple reality that Michigan State has to overpay for good players now. That's what happens after (presumably) five losing seasons in a row. It's a transactional sport now, but guys still generally want to go to places where they can experience winning. Part of the reason Wisconsin is better this year is that it upped its investment in its roster instead of firing Luke Fickell.
The Spartans' NIL efforts were placed in the bottom half of the Big Ten by The Athletic a few weeks ago. There are successful programs, such as Iowa, reportedly spending less, but those programs generally have been much more stable than MSU over the last half-decade.
Trying to start up a copycat Mark Dantonio and/or Kirk Ferentz program just isn't going to work these days. There can be elements from each coach used in Fitzgerald's vision for Michigan State, but it's hard to see the Spartans being where they need to be next season if they don't bring in at least 25 transfers or so this coming offseason. The quantity of transfers doesn't necessarily need to go up, but the quality generally does.
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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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