By: Mike Huesmann
The job opening we all forgot about is still available. With all the buzz around the recent firings, we have some clarity in East Lansing, but there is still a ways to go. A few guys, including Lance Leipold, have said they’re not interested. A few guys we weren’t sure about before, like Jason Candle, appear to be in the mix. Here is an updated candidate list for the Spartans.
Jonathan Smith
Head Coach, Oregon State
Smith knows the West Coast and has no Big 10 connections. He played and has been an assistant and head coach at Oregon State. Beyond that, he has everything you could want. Oregon St. pays him a pittance, relatively speaking, for a P5 head coach, at 2.4 million a year. They face conference and future insecurity, and they aren’t the attraction he may warrant. Michigan St. would double his salary and offer a better recruiting base while allowing him to remain in a P5 conference that is stable. The job he is doing this year in the face of so much uncertainty is remarkable.
https://twitter.com/DouglasTS/status/1727019170506879170
Harlon Barnett
Michigan State, DB Coach/Interim Head Coach
A Michigan State alumni, a locker room favorite, a highly experienced coach with stops at Florida State, LSU, and Cincinnati. Barnett is a guy I am warming to. He has a lot going for him. That being said, you don’t often see an internal candidate take over on a permanent basis after a scandal. In addition to that, the Spartans were not lighting the world on fire before this fiasco went down. I think he gets an interview, and if the right people like him, he’s got a puncher’s chance. I wouldn’t hire the house painter to build the foundation, but he may be in the running.
https://twitter.com/StephenM_Brooks/status/1726704260510011792
Urban Meyer
Former Head Coach, Bowling Green, Utah, Florida, Ohio St.
He is arrogant and aloof on his best days, unlikeable and repugnant on his worst. He is also the second most successful college coach of the last 25 years. A proven winner at four colleges who has significantly improved every team, conquered all, and has results above reproach. This brings up two questions: does Urban want to coach again? And, if so, would Michigan St. be a job he’d want? The Spartans offer a unique job in a tough division, but one which he knows well. If he wants back in, there’s a shot.
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Jason Candle
Head Coach, Toledo
He continues to do good things at Toledo. He brings significant head coaching success, Midwest ties, and more experience than most at this level who’ll be considered for the job. Candle has a good squad in 2023, and the pull of the Big 10 and the economic resources Michigan St. can offer will be appealing to most. If previous head coaching experience and ties to the Midwest end up being the driving factors, he’s a guy to watch.
https://twitter.com/FromEastLansing/status/1727024876165472652
Pat Narduzzi
Pittsburgh, Head Coach
Veteran coach Narduzzi might be a long shot, but he’s worth approaching. The former Spartan DC led a turnaround at Pitt and has won an ACC title. He is 65-49 at Pitt, only having 1 losing season out of 8(this will be 2). His stability and attitude could do well to take over in the wake of a scandal. The fact that he’s a familiar face would also go over well. I think if he wants the job, he’s the guy.
