Jonathan Smith Committed to Building Michigan State

© Robert Goddin-USA TODAY Sports

Michigan State starts a new era in 2024 under new coach Jonathan Smith. Smith took over after Mel Tucker was dismissed mid-season. Smith heads to the Big Ten Conference after leaving his alma mater Oregon State after the Pac-12 Conference dissolved. 

Michigan State is picked to be one of the bottom teams in the Big Ten in 2024, but that hasn't stopped Smith from staying optimistic about the upcoming season. Smith has his work cut out for him if he wants to get Michigan State back to a program that can compete with the country’s best year in and year out.

Smith and the Spartans talked about the importance of the upcoming season at Day 2 of the Big Ten Media Days on July 24 in Indianapolis.

Schedule Calls for Portal Help

With the new coaching job, Smith needed to find reinforcements for a conference that features some of college football's biggest brands. MSU had several players leave, and Smith needed to focus on roster construction as soon as he got to East Lansing.

The B1G did Michigan State no favors when it comes to schedule as the Spartans will face Ohio State, Oregon, Iowa and Michigan in a four-week stretch. Michigan State will welcome OSU in on Sept. 27, will travel to Oregon on Oct. 4 and be at home against Iowa on Oct. 19 before heading to Ann Arbor on Oct. 26 for the backyard brawl. If Smith hopes to compete in the B1G Year 1 he will need to pull the upset in at least two of those games.

Michigan State was hit hard after Tucker left with 38 players deciding to transfer out. Smith, to his credit, was able to fill the roster back in by using the transfer portal. Smith was able to bring in 24 players from the portal, with one of those players being quarterback Aidan Chiles who followed him from Oregon State.

Smith said Chiles will be "familiar with the scheme we will be calling. Along with Chiles—who was one of the top QBs in the portal—two other players are also headed to MSU from Oregon State. According to 247Sports, MSU has the 12th-ranked portal class coming in.

Ready to Build

During his time at Oregon State Smith was able to build the Beavers into a Pac-12 competitor and he is looking to do the same with the Spartans. Smith emphasized at media days that "it’s a process and you are always building for success."

Smith said he goes by the motto “Low Ego High Output.” Smith said that is what he is looking for in his players. If Smith is going to be successful, it starts with fixing the offensive line. Smith will need to target depth and has started but there is still a lot more work to do if he is going to compete week in and week out.

As the 2024 season approaches Smith has his work cut out for him, but all signs after media days point to him being ready. Michigan State made the wrong hire with Tucker but it looks as though they have made the right decision with Smith. Michigan State might not have a good year in 2024 but moving forward they should be a team following the process and built right to compete in this new Big Ten.