This week, the Huskies head to East Lansing for a showdown with the Michigan State Spartans. To get the lowdown on this Spartan squad, I talked to O Basse of The Only Colors, SB Nation’s Michigan State blog. Let’s get to the questions!
Mark Schafer: This is year 1 for former Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald, after the dismissal of Jonathan Smith. The Spartans currently sit at 3-6 this year. Do fans have confidence that Fitzgerald can inject some life into the program? What has he done differently
than Smith?
O Basse: This is very much a topic of debate over on The Only Colors. I think more people lean toward having confidence in Coach Fitzgerald, though the voters who don’t have confidence are the more vocal bloc. You can put me in the having-confidence group. The big difference between Pat Fitzgerald and Jonathan Smith is personality – Smith seemingly lacked it while Fitz has an abundance of it. Fitz is fiery and emotional and inspiring. This year’s team just plays so much harder than the one MSU was fielding the last two seasons. There have been a few losses that have hurt, but it is much easier to cheer for these guys than it was during the Smith years.
MS: The offense is coordinated by former UW tight ends coach Nick Sheridan, and features quarterback Alessio Milevojevic, who has passed for 1451 yards, 7 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. Who are the other weapons on this offense, and what does the scheme look like?
OB: Like the defense, the MSU offense is dealing with injuries. Alessio Milivojevic was back last week after missing the previous game. But the game he missed ended up featuring QB3 and QB4 because QB2 was already injured as well. In the backfield, the Spartans relied on RB5, Brandon Tullis, last week.
The wide receivers and tight ends rooms are mostly intact, and while this was the part of the offense that MSU fans were most concerned about leading up to the season, they have actually shown some consistency. Please don’t confuse that with above-average play, just consistency. WRs Chrishon McCray and Rodney Bullard and TE Jayden Savoury lead the team in receiving yards. That said, I think WR3 Fredrick Moore may be even better than those two. He just needs to figure out how to earn more targets.
Scheme-wise, it’s a lot of 11 and 12 personnel. Not a lot of formations with a fullback. Maybe that is because the TEs are doing a good enough job in run-blocking. Maybe that is because the coaching staff wants the WRs out there in numbers.
MS: The defense is coordinated by Joe Rossi. What does his scheme look like, and how has he done with the defense as he enters year 3 with the program? Who are the major playmakers on this defense?
OB: Joe Rossi is one of the few holdovers from Coach Smith’s staff, and he submitted his application to whoever would be the new coach late last year. Knowing full well that Smith would not be retained, Rossi made the decision to move from the booth to the sideline for the last 2 or 3 games in 2025. And he brought his intense, anti-Smith, personality with him. When that happened, the defense suddenly looked better (low bar, I know). Michigan State is largely playing in a Nickel formation. Part of this is the injuries to our linebacker unit – Jordan Hall (the best player on the team), Caleb Wheatland, and Brady Pretzlaff have all missed significant time. Only Pretzlaff was in the lineup against Michigan last weekend.
The other reason for the fifth defensive back is the fact that this group has been playing above expectations. Safeties Nikai Martinez and Devin Vaught are getting turnovers for the Spartans. The cornerback room resembles the MSU RB stable in terms of injuries with the top 4 guys out, but NiJhay Burt just had a monster performance last week with a forced fumble and recovery as well as an interception. Michael Richard at nickel has been great as well. All that said, this still is very much a defense that you can hit a few explosive plays against each game.
MS: Who is an underrated, fan favorite Spartan that non Michigan State fans might not know about?
OB: Let me go with freshman WR Samson Gash. Gash isn’t likely to see much action against Washington. But he has been utilized a few times this year, often in non-conventional ways, even bordering on trick play territory. As his last name seems to imply, Gash has some speed, and his limited appearances have helped the Spartans move the ball.
MS: What does the future look like for Michigan State, and do fans believe that Fitzgerald can lead them to long term success?
OB: I touched on this a bit in question 1. I do think Pat Fitzgerald is a great coach and can lift up the state of MSU Football. However, unfortunately for old-school fans of college football, the answer to this question comes down to NIL and paying players. A story came out a few weeks back reporting on how much money all the different football programs were spending on their rosters. Michigan State was nowhere near the top. If MSU wants to be in the conversation for CFP appearances, the program is going to have to shell out for it and bring in more talent.
MS: It’s time for a score prediction! What will the score be in this clash in East Lansing?
OB: I’m buying MSU right now after taking down our in-state rivals last week. It seems like the offense and defense both figured out some things in that game, and I am looking for both sides to take another step forward at home against a team just a game ahead in the Big Ten standings who will be flying three time zones for this game. Give me 29-22 MSU!
My thanks to O, and I wish the Spartans the best of luck the rest of the way! For my answers to his questions, head to The Only Colors.
