Why Big QB Decision Should Loom This Winter for MSU, Milivojevic
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EAST LANSING -- Time is ticking for Michigan State to make another decision at quarterback.
Starters are playing for their jobs every week and year during the transfer portal era. It's never been easier to find the next guy. MSU benched Aidan Chiles last year, despite Jonathan Smith's huge amount of investment in him. One year later, Chiles just beat the Spartans and his replacement, Alessio Milivojevic, in a 24-21 game with a roller-coaster ending.
Milivojevic has now started 11 games for Michigan State. His starts have resulted in a 3-8 record, 2,249 passing yards, 14 passing touchdowns, and five interceptions. The poor starting record is certainly not just on Milivojevic, but the only win against a P4 team there is against a 4-8 Maryland team last year.
Come December or January, head coach Pat Fitzgerald has to choose: Milivojevic or the mystery box from the transfer portal. Through seven games this season, and after that Northwestern loss that featured multiple missed touchdowns, that mystery box seems very plausible.
MSU's Current QB Situation
Picking Milivojevic as QB1 was a natural decision last winter. Milivojevic took the starting job from Chiles and played pretty well. He averaged nearly 250 yards per game in his four starts last season and was consistently fitting throws into some pretty small windows. Milivojevic was a fit for Fitzgerald's longer-term vision with three remaining years of eligibility left, too.
The offense's ceiling seems to be lowered this season, though. Offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan's offense seems to run better with a dual-threat guy, and Milivojevic is a pocket passer. Milivojevic has also had processing issues this year. He still makes the occasional impressive throw up the seam or over the middle, but for every one of those, there's about two instances of him missing an open receiver deep.
Milivojevic also just doesn't have true, Big Ten-level arm talent or a ton of zip on his throws, which isn't great for somebody who isn't a serious running threat.
He should still remain Michigan State's starter the rest of the way, though. Regular backup Cam Fancher is injured at the moment, but he was just an average, turnover-prone Group of Six starter in the past.
How Coffman Factors In
True freshman Kayd Coffman is probably the most popular quarterback among the Spartan fanbase right now. That's mainly because he hasn't done anything to make anyone change their opinion of him. He's only made one relief appearance this year at the end of the Wisconsin loss and hasn't thrown a pass, but Coffman is a 4-star, in-state recruit who has the raw arm talent and legs to eventually be a great Big Ten QB.
This won't be Coffman's year to get the keys to Sheridan's offense. It probably shouldn't be next year, either. But during that junior year in 2028? Probably. That could potentially still line up three years for him to be the starter.
If Michigan State were to move on from Milivojevic, it would have plenty of potential older, one-year rental quarterbacks to choose from or recruit in the portal who can stabilize things and run the show while Coffman continues to develop. There is some sense to that, and it's a path MSU should consider in a few months.
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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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