Michigan State's head coach Jonathan Smith looks on from the sideline during the third quarter in the game against Rutgers on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

How MSU's Jonathan Smith's First Year Compares to Others

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Aidan Champion | Last updated Jun 1, 2025 2:04 PM ET

Jonathan Smith's first season as Michigan State's head coach has a lot of fans feeling down about the future of the program.

While the program improved by a win, there were opportunities where the Spartans could have seized a postseason berth and dropped the ball.

The program was in a bad place when Smith took over, and many were hoping for things to turn around overnight. But Rome wasn't built in a day, and history should tell you that.

There were some great coaches before Smith who had tough starts at the helm as well.

Mark Dantonio (7-6)

Dantonio gave Michigan State a sense of hope, taking a 4-8 team and turning it into a 7-6 team, giving the program its first bowl bid in four years.

It certainly was an indication of what was to come. Smith could have very well won two more games if a few plays here or there last season, but nobody cares about what could have been.

Nick Saban (6-5-1)

Saban did manage to lead the Spartans to a winning record in his first season (1995-96), but it wasn't much of an improvement from George Perles' 5-6 year the season before. The Spartans were also handled in a near 20-point defeat against LSU in the Independence Bowl.

Things didn't get better in Year 2, either, as Saban and the Spartans went 6-6. It wasn't until his last season that the program really took off, attaining its first 10-win campaign since 1965.

George Perles (4-6)

The bar wasn't set very high for Perles, who merely had to improve a 2-9 program. He won just two more games, but it didn't take long for the Spartans to start finding success under his reign,

The program wouldn't have another losing season until 1991. He led it to three eight-plus-win seasons, including its 1987-88 Rose Bowl season.

Duffy Daugherty (3-6)

Even the great Duffy Daugherty, who many consider to be the greatest coach in program history, had a rough beginning.

He had succeeded the great Biggie Munn, who led the Spartans to a nine-win season that was capped off by a Rose Bowl victory the year prior. It didn't take long for Daugherty to get the program to that same level of success, though, as he led the Spartans to an identical record, also capped off by a Rose Bowl victory.

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This article first appeared on Michigan State Spartans on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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