It felt like the worst-kept secret in college football once Football Scoop broke the news that Michigan State wanted Jonathan Smith as the Spartans’ next head coach.
On Saturday, reports surfaced that Smith would indeed become the next head coach in East Lansing. The news comes not even 24 hours after Smith’s Oregon State Beavers fell to in-state rival Oregon 31-7 in the regular season finale. Oregon State will have to name an interim head coach to lead the program in their upcoming bowl game.
For Smith, his next steps will involve putting together a coaching staff and hitting the recruiting trails. Michigan State made it official on Saturday.
A new era of Spartan Football is here!
Please welcome Jonathan Smith as the 26th Head Coach in program history.
📰 | https://t.co/cianmGIS3E#GoGreen pic.twitter.com/3lGTurivLF
— Michigan State Football (@MSU_Football) November 25, 2023
Smith finishes with a record of 34-35 at his alma mater where he played quarterback from 1998 to 2001. Since 2021, the Beavers are 25-13 with a bowl win last season over Florida in the Las Vegas Bowl.
It will remain to be seen how quickly Smith can turn around a Michigan State program, that just finished a 4-8 season. Stay tuned to Spartans Wire for more on Michigan State and Jonathan Smith.
For Oregon State, they will join the coaching carousel. It is a tough sell for a school that doesn’t have a conference home after the season with 10 of the 12 members leaving ahead of 2024.