Jonathan Smith shocked many when he bolted from his alma mater at Oregon State to clean up after Mel Tucker at Michigan State. Or maybe we shouldn’t, as the Beavers were left behind with Washington State in the Pac-Two (er, “12”) after the “Conference of Champions” was ransacked by the Big Ten, Big XII and even the ACC. But the Spartan roster Smith inherited had a bunch of holes at quarterback and both lines that combined with a tough schedule meant the Spartans had another losing season. Really tough for a rebuilding program to do much with a six game stretch against Ohio State, Oregon, Iowa, Michigan, Indiana and Illinois.
This year’s schedule replaces Oregon with Southern Cal, Illinois with Minnesota but Ohio State with Penn State. That combined with fewer holes in the roster should make Sparty a more solid team in 2025. Perhaps the biggest returnee for Sparty is junior quarterback Aidan Chiles (6’3” 217 lbs.) Chiles followed Smith and his staff from Corvallis to East Lansing, where he started every game last year, completing 59% of his passes for 2,415 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also is Michigan State’s leading returning rusher with 225 yards on the ground and three touchdowns last season. His big issue was turnovers, with 11 interceptions and four fumbles. But depth behind Chiles is an issue with four freshmen behind him on the depth chart.
Michigan State had to hit the portal to find a running back and came up with Sacramento State transfer Elijah Tau-Tolliver (6’1” 204 lbs.), who rushed for 950 yards with another 317 yards receiving last season. But the back to keep an eye on is true freshman Jace Larizio (5’10” 200 lbs.), who flipped to Michigan State from Alabama.
Sophomore Nick Marsh (6’3” 209 lbs.) led the Spartans with 41 catches for 649 yards and three touchdowns last…
Source link : https://www.cornnation.com/2025-husker-football-opponent-previews/83553/michigan-state-2025-football-preview
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Publish date : 2025-08-12 17:42:00
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