On Saturday, the Michigan State Spartans were finally able to pick up their first win in Big Ten play of the season. The win seemed to be crucial for Jonathan Smith as he entered an offseason where his job security was certainly in jeopardy after finishing the season 4-8 with a 1-8 record in conference play.
On Sunday Afternoon, Michigan State confirmed that winning the final game of the season was not enough to save Jonathan Smith's job as the Spartans are reportedly firing their head coach just two seasons into his tenure according to ESPN's Pete Thamel.
Sources: Michigan State plans to fire coach Jonathan Smith today. He went 1-8 in the Big Ten this season and his overall record in two seasons was 9-15. He's set to be owed $33 million. pic.twitter.com/M31wFM4CWi
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) November 30, 2025
Michigan State couldn't accept the results Jonathan Smith gave them
While Michigan State would've preferred to hang onto Jonathan Smith, the results he gave them weren't good enough to justify giving him one more season. Over his two seasons in East Lansing, Jonathan Smith went just 9-15 with a 4-14 record in Big Ten play. Making matters worse for Smith is the fact that the Spartans had to vacate 5 of his wins from his first season as a result of Mel Tucker's recruiting violations.
The Spartans are making a massive financial decision by firing Jonathan Smith as they'll owe him a $33 million buyout. While the figure is massive, with how much money programs are pouring into their rosters, we're going to see plenty of schools pony up significant buyouts.
Michigan State now enters a crowded coaching carousel window, and they may have waited too long as some of the top candidates have already come off the board with several other moves waiting to be made.
It's still very early in Michigan State's coaching carousel search, but former Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald has emerged as an early candidate to land the full time job after Northwestern agreed to pay him a settlement clearing him of wrongdoing.