UM Title Shows MSU Must Tweak Philosophy To Reach Top
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Dusty May has as many National Championships as Tom Izzo.
That doesn’t diminish what Izzo has done at Michigan State, but it’s the type of fact that should make an MSU fan rub their temples a little bit. Izzo’s only title also came back in 2000; during games at the Breslin Center, the Izzone wasn’t even an idea yet.
Four-year Class of 2026 graduates in East Lansing in May will have seen Michigan win titles in both football and men's basketball, but not an MSU Final Four or even a football bowl game.
No one would necessarily have blamed Izzo if he had retired a few years ago, citing anger over NIL and the transfer portal. He wouldn’t have been the only coach to do that. But he’s still here and says he sees himself still chasing national titles five years from now. Well, his biggest rival just got one.
Clearly, Izzo wants to prove he can reach the mountaintop again. College hoops in 2026 is basically a different sport compared to 2000. He’s made six Final Fours since that national title, but the Spartans haven’t broken through the tape at the end of the marathon.
If there is anything that will truly motivate Izzo to get back up there again, it is probably seeing maize and blue confetti rain down on the court in Indianapolis. The relationship between Izzo and May in the press can be described as… icy… to put it mildly. May isn’t passing Izzo on any all-time lists yet, but trotting into Ann Arbor and turning an 8-24 team into — let’s be real here — one of the best Big Ten teams ever in two years is still remarkable.
It took Izzo a bit of time to adapt to the transfer portal era. He’s adjusted a little bit, but Michigan’s national title is proving he hasn’t adjusted enough. If MSU and Izzo want to lift the trophy UM just got to hoist, it’s time the Spartans get with the times a little more.
Hit the Portal. Hard.
Now, this doesn’t mean you have to go full Dusty May mode and overturn the entire roster in one offseason. May partially did that because he had to (again, he inherited an 8-24 team). How would you feel if Pat Fitzgerald kept the Michigan State football roster and coaching staff from Jonathan Smith largely intact?
But you have to go after higher-end players and not be worried about stepping on a few toes. The Wolverines had the No. 2 transfer portal class in the nation last season, according to 247Sports. Only St. John’s was ahead of UM, and the Red Storm had three more commits to help bolster that ranking.
It’s a crazy concept, but Michigan simply went out and got really good players. Yaxel Lendeborg (UAB) was the top transfer in the class on 247Sports’ rankings. Morez Johnson Jr. (Illinois) was 26th, Aday Mara (UCLA) was 46th, and Elliot Cadeau (North Carolina) was 60th.
The three high-major adds weren’t being fully utilized at previous stops, but they were all either five-star or high four-star talents coming out of high school. They weren’t pulled off the street.
Michigan State’s strategy is, objectively, much more timid. Kaleb Glenn (Florida Atlantic) was the top addition of last year's class, and he was ranked 81st. Trey Fort (Samford) was 83rd. Divine Ugochukwu (Miami-FL) was 453rd. Denham Wojcik (Harvard) wasn’t even ranked.
To this point, the strategy feels more like plugging holes in the roster, rather than looking for upgrades and finding ways to move the needle. It feels carefully crafted to ensure that returnees like Kur Teng and incoming freshmen don’t have their playing time stepped on. It’s noble, but it’s not what wins you national titles nowadays.
Again, look at Michigan. May could have maybe been fine with having L.J. Cason and Trey McKenney as his top two point guards, two homegrown players, but he saw a chance to add and upgrade with Cadeau, and he took it. Senior Will Tschetter, who spent his whole career at UM, actually got his minutes reduced this year because of additions like Johnson and Lendeborg. I think he’s fine with it.
Talent Matters More Than Ever
Michigan State should be a program that can do things like that. If your players truly want to represent the “STATE” across the front end of the jersey, they’ll understand. They’re tough conversations to have, but if a transfer addition will truly make a team better and more talented, it should be done.
That balance between portal usage and internal development has to be struck. Michigan is a bit of an anomaly in having an all-transfer starting five, but UConn can be a great example. You still need program guys and leaders like Alex Karaban, but you also need that ringer from the portal like Tarris Reed Jr. (who, ironically, transferred from Michigan).
The Spartans are imbalanced in the "internal development" side of the weight. Michigan State was the only team in the Sweet 16 that didn’t start a single transfer. That’s partially due to Glenn’s and Ugochukwu’s injuries, but the point remains. It’s fun to say it’s “old-school” or that you’re “doing it the right way,” but you also don’t want to be a dinosaur.
Talent goes ahead of chemistry a bit these days. About two-thirds of March Madness champions since the field went to 64 have been 1-seeds, as well as seven of the last eight. The 2000 MSU team was one, and so is the 2026 Michigan team. The Spartans haven’t been a top seed since 2012, which is now closer to that title than to now.
Among the four 1-seeds this year, in total, half of the 20 starters come to their school via the transfer portal. All four of them had at least one.
Back in 2024, when Michigan State lost to North Carolina in the second round of the NCAA Tournament — a game UM’s Cadeau started in — Izzo said he’d get back to deeper runs in the tourney or “die trying.” Sweet 16 and Elite Eights are cool, but banners don’t go up for that. In order to get Final Four No. 9 or a national title No. 2, Izzo has to go out and get it in the portal in the next couple of weeks.
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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