Dan Bartholomae admits Michigan State has work to do – but he's not going anywhere

Michigan State athletic director Dan Bartholomae has been on the job for all of five weeks, and he's already making some pretty big promises.

Football will be a priority. Michigan State will work toward funding its programs in the top third of the Big Ten. Spartan Ventures will become a legitimate revenue-generating operation. And the athletic department will finally establish something that has been pretty hard to find around East Lansing lately – consistency.

Sounds great, right?

Well, I had Bartholomae on Locked On Spartans on Friday, just two days after he sent a letter to Spartan Nation outlining his vision. And while I enjoyed the letter, I wanted to know how much of it was a realistic commitment and how much was an ambitious goal.

Because we've all heard the big plans before.

Let's start with the biggest item: Money.

Bartholomae's letter stated that Michigan State needs to resource programs in the upper third of the conference to compete for championships. That's a pretty substantial statement in a league where football spending has become an arms race.

So I asked him whether this was something Michigan State was prepared to deliver or something it was simply hoping to achieve.

"It's probably a little bit in between," Bartholomae said. "Are we close to that now? No."

Michigan State isn't where it needs to be financially to compete with the upper tier of the Big Ten, and its new athletic director isn't pretending otherwise.

But he believes the mechanisms exist to get there, and he wants it to happen immediately.

How? A little bit of everything.

"It's a potpourri, man. It's a potpourri," Bartholomae said.

That means traditional fundraising, donor support, FOR SPARTA, and Spartan Ventures all playing a role in bringing additional resources into the athletic department.

And speaking of Spartan Ventures, I asked Bartholomae to explain it to me like I'm five years old. Because, frankly, that's about where a lot of us are with this thing.

His answer was refreshingly candid.

He's still figuring it out himself.

The athletic director and CEO who launched Spartan Ventures are gone, and Bartholomae is working to hire a replacement CEO, something he hopes to complete within the next two weeks.

He explained that Spartan Ventures operates as an affiliated entity designed to consolidate Michigan State's revenue-generating operations outside the traditional university business structure.

But he was also careful about what it isn't.

"It's not like the solution to revenue generation in NIL," Bartholomae said. "It is a mechanism that we need to activate."

In other words, Spartan Ventures isn't some magical money machine that's going to solve Michigan State's problems overnight. There is infrastructure in place, but the university still needs to figure out how to make it produce meaningful returns.

Bartholomae expects to provide a more complete explanation of both Spartan Ventures and FOR SPARTA over the coming months.

And I think that's fair, provided those explanations eventually arrive.

His biggest challenge might surprise you

When I asked Bartholomae to identify the biggest item on his to-do list, I expected something about fundraising, football, or Spartan Stadium.

Instead, he talked about trust.

He said he's already encountered a recurring response in conversations with donors, coaches, student-athletes, and staff members.

They like what he's saying. They appreciate his vision.

But they're wondering whether he'll still be around to see it through.

"I like you. You seem great, but I don't know if you're going to be here in a year," Bartholomae said, describing the reaction he's received.

And really, can you blame them?

Michigan State has experienced four athletic directors and three football coaches over the past five-plus years. People have seen plans introduced, initiatives launched, and leadership changes that send everyone back to square one.

Bartholomae understands that skepticism.

During his 15 years at Pittsburgh, he worked under nine athletic directors, including interims. He also experienced a stretch when the university had five football coaches in four years.

He's seen what instability can do to an athletic department.

Now he's trying to establish a plan that survives beyond the next press conference, the next season, or the next leadership change.

And he made one thing pretty clear.

"Matt, I'm going to be here a year from now, and I'm going to be here two years from now," Bartholomae said.

Then he added, "I ain't going anywhere."

That's quite a statement from somebody who's barely unpacked his office.

But it's also exactly what a fan base tired of administrative turnover probably needed to hear.

Building a relationship with Pat Fitzgerald

Of course, none of this works if Michigan State can't get its football program moving in the right direction.

And that means Bartholomae and Pat Fitzgerald need to be working together.

The interesting thing is that they're still getting to know each other.

Bartholomae started Aug. 31, the Monday of Michigan State's opening game week. That's not exactly an ideal time to take over an entire athletic department.

He acknowledged that the timing has kept him from spending as much time around football practice as he'd normally prefer.

But he and Fitzgerald have established a routine.

Bartholomae checks in with Fitzgerald on Sundays following games, and the two have a standing Thursday meeting. They spend time discussing the program, but they're also learning about each other's families, careers, and approaches to leadership.

"He's going to be my partner, right, and I'm going to be his partner in getting this program to where everybody wants it to be," Bartholomae said.

Yes, fundraising is part of those conversations.

But they're not yet sitting around hammering out every detail of next year's roster budget.

I joked that it would be a little crass for Fitzgerald to immediately demand $30 million or $40 million for the offseason.

Bartholomae laughed off the premise.

"He doesn't need to tell me that," he said.

Fair enough.

He knows what he's getting into.

Michigan State needs its own 'Jump Around'

One of the more interesting portions of our conversation had nothing to do with NIL, fundraising, or conference revenue.

It was about having fun at football games.

Bartholomae believes Michigan State has an incredible asset in its student section, and he wants to do a better job of engaging those students throughout the game.

He's already looking at smaller changes, including student concessions promotions and getting Tom Izzo involved with the student section.

But he has something bigger in mind.

After attending Michigan State's game at Wisconsin last weekend, Bartholomae came away impressed by the Badgers' famous third-quarter tradition.

Even with the early kickoff and students arriving late, the section came alive for "Jump Around."

And it got him thinking.

"What's our Jump Around?" Bartholomae asked.

He wasn't necessarily suggesting Michigan State needs another song. His point was that the Spartans need something that gets the entire stadium involved, something students look forward to and fans embrace regardless of what's happening on the field.

He's right.

Michigan State has plenty of traditions, but finding another one that consistently energizes Spartan Stadium would be a pretty worthwhile accomplishment.

Bartholomae also wants to evaluate the Breslin Center experience during basketball season. He praised what Michigan State already offers inside the arena but believes there's room for improvement, particularly with premium seating and the experience fans have from the moment they enter the building.

He emphasized that the overall fan experience will be a regular topic in executive staff meetings.

And over at Munn Ice Arena, he's excited about what Adam Nightingale has built, particularly the success of the program and the enthusiasm of the Munsters student section.

Having come from Western Michigan, where the Broncos won a national hockey championship, Bartholomae knows what an elite hockey program and a passionate student section can accomplish together.

Sorry, Central Michigan is probably staying on the schedule

I couldn't let Bartholomae leave without asking about Michigan State's scheduled 2027 football game against Central Michigan.

I've made my feelings on this pretty clear. Given the controversy surrounding Central Michigan's involvement in the sign-stealing scandal, I'd rather Michigan State cancel the game.

Bartholomae, despite his Western Michigan background, wasn't about to give me the answer I wanted.

He explained that Michigan State has a contractual obligation that predates his arrival, and breaking that agreement would carry consequences at a time when the athletic department has plenty of financial priorities.

"Breaking a contractual agreement at a time where we're trying to get Spartan Ventures going, we're trying to fund football, it is, in my opinion, not the best global decision for the football program," Bartholomae said.

Translation: Don't expect that game to disappear.

It's the responsible answer.

I still don't have to like it.

When asked, Bartholomae also expressed interest in possibly expanding Michigan State's brand internationally, including the possibility of football games overseas, although he made it clear he wouldn't be eager to sacrifice a home game to accomplish it.

Now comes the hard part

Here's where I land after talking with Bartholomae.

I like what I'm hearing. I like that he was willing to admit Michigan State isn't currently resourcing football at the level it needs to. I like that he acknowledged he doesn't have Spartan Ventures completely figured out yet. And I especially like that he recognizes the damage leadership turnover has done to the department's credibility.

But the next step is what matters.

Michigan State needs more money for football. Spartan Ventures needs to generate revenue. Fitzgerald needs the resources to build a competitive roster. And fans need to see a department operating with a consistent vision.

None of that happens just because the athletic director writes a compelling letter or gives a good interview.

Bartholomae knows it, too.

He pointed to his time at Western Michigan, where the school's highest-level giving society grew from one member when he arrived to more than 100 by the time he left. He credited that success to presenting donors with a plan and giving them reasons to believe their investments would produce results.

Some donors bought in immediately. Others waited years to see whether the vision would become reality.

He expects a similar process at Michigan State.

And for an athletic department that has spent far too much time starting over, the most encouraging thing Bartholomae said might have been the simplest.

He's planning to stick around.

Now let's see what he can build.