Michigan State football head coach Jonathan Smith looks on during practice on Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in East Lansing. Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Will We See a More Smooth MSU Offense in 2025?

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Carter Landis | Last updated Jul 30, 2025 6:55 AM ET

The Michigan State Spartans are preparing for the 2025 season, as fall camp is officially underway.

MSU will take on Western Michigan in less than a month, kicking off Jonathan Smith’s second season in East Lansing. The team showed promise in his first year as head coach, but things faltered down the stretch.

The Spartans do not want that to happen again, and one way they can prevent it is by sustaining more offensive drives. MSU struggled to move the ball or put points on the board last season.

Smith and his staff worked hard to improve that side of the ball this offseason, and those efforts should lead to a better offensive output.

By adding more explosive playmakers at receiver and seeing growth from returning players, we should see a much smoother MSU offense in 2025.

However, offensive improvement starts and ends with quarterback Aidan Chiles. The junior has all the talent in the world, but his mental mistakes doomed the team far too often last season.

Smith expects to see a much more composed and experienced Chiles in 2025.

“There’s an emphasis on the reads, the decision-making, recognition, getting the ball out of his hands,” Smith told the media on Tuesday. “There’s also this balancing act of – he can extend and create. And so, when he goes and does that, when it’s pull the trigger and let it go down the field, or it’s get out, I still don’t have anything, not making a bad play worse, that’s where I’m anxious to see over the next couple weeks in practice where he gets in those situations, what it looks like.”

The run game has a chance to improve with better offensive line play and more experience at running back. A player like Elijah Tau-Tolliver, a transfer from Sacramento State, should help with his seniority and pass-catching ability.

Tight end Jack Velling was not the player many expected him to be last season, but he appears to be settling in with this team. Chiles could have an elite and reliable receiving option with Velling, as the two already have a strong connection.

Fewer turnovers, more explosive plays, and improved offensive line play are the biggest keys for this Spartan offense.

If they make these three things happen, expect to see MSU in a bowl game.

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