Coach Jonathan Smith Plans to Rebuild Michigan State Through Recruiting, Development

Coach Jonathan Smith has started to rebuild Michigan State's football program. Moving forward, he plans to build the program's foundation primarily through recruiting and development.

Michigan State's head coach Jonathan Smith looks on during the Spring Showcase on Saturday, April 20, 2024, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. / Nick King/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Michigan State football is in the early stages of a new coaching regime, which brings almost entirely new ideologies and practices to the program. Coach Jonathan Smith has had a relatively successful first offseason in East Lansing, which he hopes will be a foundational first offseason and regular season as Michigan State’s head football coach.

Smith helped turn Oregon State’s football program around and will do his best to have similar, if not better, results at Michigan State. Since arriving in East Lansing, Smith has already displayed his skills in the transfer portal and the recruiting trail. He recently took the time to elaborate on his approach to both, moving forward at Michigan State.

“We want to get into a pretty similar approach [to the approach at Oregon State] in regards to [recruiting and the transfer portal],” Smith told Todd Blackledge of NBC Sports. “The majority come from high school. Then you put in work developing and get better. Then, you supplement your roster through the portal. We’re not quite there this first year with all the transitions that we have had, but we would like to get to that point.”

While Michigan State may not be where Smith hopes to one day be in terms of recruiting, he did an admirable job in the transfer portal during his first offseason in East Lansing. He has also already started putting together formidable future recruiting classes to help the program become more competitive shortly.

Smith has been tasked with rebuilding Michigan State’s football program back to the point of consistent success. Michigan State has not experienced this since Mark Dantonio coached the Spartans years ago. Smith said he and Dantonio have spoken multiple times and that Dantonio has even stopped by his office in East Lansing a couple of times.

Smith said he has happily accepted advice from Dantonio on various topics.

“[We have talked] a few times,” Smith said. “A few phone calls. He’s been to the office a couple of times. He’s been great. [We have had] conversations about how he got things going. Kind of his approach, whether it's recruiting, practice, or development.”

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