Jonathan Smith Optimistic About This Michigan State Football Squad

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Scott Salomon | Last updated Jul 26, 2025 8:00 AM ET

Michigan State head coach Jonathan Smith took the podium at Big Ten Football Media Days on Thursday and spoke like he owned the place. He took command of the room and spoke with strength and courage.

It was a much different Smith than the one we saw last year at Indianapolis.

He came into Las Vegas like a high roller. He was no longer the new kid on the block. He paid his dues. Smith made it through his first year in the Big Ten and is now a veteran.

Smith spoke of last season's trials and tribulations. It was the first year post-Mel Tucker regime, and Smith had to take stock of the players who remained and the transfers who came in. There were a lot of new faces to remember and positions on a depth chart to be filled out.

Smith and the Spartans started out like gangbusters. They won their first three games and then hit a brick wall. They went 2-7 the rest of the way. Smith knows if he puts together another 5-7 season in East Lansing there could be problems associated with it.

However, Smith is the eternal optimist. He sees the program being very far ahead of where it was last year at this time. When practice starts next week, Smith believes he will see an aura of confidence in the team which would be different from last season.

“Leaps and bounds have taken place so there’s been a lot of work from Year 1 to Year 2,” Smith said on Thursday. “That’s going to be vitally important because let’s face it, the Big Ten, in my opinion, the best conference in America. A gauntlet of nine conference games against big-time opponents, we’ve got to continue to be ready to work to challenge and we accept that challenge of playing in the best conference in America.”

It should be noted the Spartans added more than 20 transfers. They also return more than 30 veterans from last year's team who are now in Year 2 of the system. He also retained his three coordinators. Smith feels good about where the program is right now.

“I thought it was really important our retention that we were able to have with our roster and with our coaching staff to be able to grow and improve off of the first season,” Smith said. “I’m excited about all the coordinators coming back, schematics being similar to be able to grow and improve on that in year two.”