Spring Football Preview: Storylines to watch as Michigan State opens 2026 spring practices

The Michigan State football program begins spring practices on Tuesday, March 17 — bright and early. With a new head coach in Pat Fitzgerald, a mostly new coaching staff (along with some returners from the Jonathan Smith regime) and a new-look roster for the 2026 season, there is plenty of intrigue regarding the Spartans, and spring ball will provide fans and media members their first opportunity to see how MSU operates under Fitzgerald.

The Spartans will have 15 practices throughout March and April and conclude spring ball with a "Spring Showcase" event on April 18 at noon Eastern Time, which is open to the public and free to attend.

Leading up to the start of spring practices, the MSU players were focused on getting bigger, faster and stronger as they worked with head football strength and conditioning coach Joel Welsh and his staff throughout the winter. Now it is time for the Spartans to put the pads on (after a few practices without full pads to start) and see how things translate to the field.

In addition to what Michigan State is doing during practice, MSU will be busy recruiting as well. More than 80 high school prospects (and counting) are scheduled to visit East Lansing throughout the duration of spring ball. Read the running list of spring visitors for the Spartans here.

Here are some of the most interesting storylines to follow as the spring session progresses.

A new coaching staff laying the foundation and a new beginning for Pat Fitzgerald

It will be Fitzgerald's first look at his new team on the field, and it will be the team's first chance to get acclimated to how Fitzgerald structures practices and runs things. But operating spring ball as a head coach once again means more to Fitzgerald than most coaches. Fitzgerald has noted on more than one occasion how monumental this opportunity in East Lansing is for him. A Northwestern alumnus and longtime head coach, Fitzgerald was fired by the Wildcats in 2023 following allegations of hazing. Later, in 2025, Fitzgerald settled a wrongful termination lawsuit with NU and said he feels "100% vindicated" in the wake of the settlement. After that saga, Fitzgerald may still feel that he has something to prove, and he doesn't intend to squander this chance with the Spartans.

However, Fitzgerald is certainly not the only new face on MSU's sideline. The Spartans have new coaches at several positions: assistant head coach and special teams coordinator LeVar Woods, offensive coordinator Nick Sheridan, co-defensive coordinator/linebackers coach Max Bullough (a former Spartan player), offensive line coach Nick Tabacca, running backs coach Devon Spalding, quarterbacks coach John McNulty, defensive line coach Winston DeLattiboudere III and cornerbacks coach Hank Poteat. The Spartans have also added various analysts as assistant position coaches and support staffers. Each staff member will look to make an impact.

MSU also has several coaches returning to East Lansing under Fitzgerald in 2026 who previously served under Smith. Wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins enters his seventh year, and third different regime, at MSU (he also coached under Mel Tucker). Defensive coordinator Joe Rossi is now in his third year calling the defense for the Spartans. Tight ends coach Brian Wozniak also enters his third year in Mid-Michigan. Safeties coach James Adams spent just one season under Smith in 2025, but was retained by Fitzgerald for 2026. Additionally, Andrew Bindelglass, who served on the Smith staff as a defensive analyst in 2024 and as assistant linebackers coach in 2025, has been promoted to rush ends coach. The returning coaches bring continuity to the staff and are familiar faces for the returning players. They also have an understanding of the current landscape at MSU, in the Big Ten and on the recruiting trail.

With Rossi returning, the defensive system and schemes will likely remain the same or very similar to what MSU has shown in the 2024 and 2025 with a multiple defense that usually includes a four-man front, including a stand-up rush end in most cases. Sheridan will bring a new offense with his own play designs, formations, motions and wrinkles, but his system is expected to be a pro-style base, which was a heavy theme under Smith and previous offensive coordinator Brian Lindgren as well.

Spring ball allows for the coaches to teach the fundamentals, introduce new terminology, install the offensive system, defensive system and special teams schemes, evaluate what they have on the roster, work on situational football (third down, fourth down, red zone, goal line, etc.), and more. It is an important time for recruiting as well. In the first year of the Fitzgerald era, it's also about laying the foundation for the future and building the culture as Fitzgerald and his staff strive to make Michigan State a contender in the Big Ten and at the national level. That often takes time to accomplish, but it starts now.

Which transfers will make an impact?

It was a busy offseason for Fitzgerald and company. The Spartans had 45 players enter the transfer portal and brought 30 new transfer players into the program ahead of the 2026 campaign. All 30 transfers enrolled at Michigan State in January and will be with the team during spring ball.

A complete list of incoming transfers for MSU is provided below.

• Tre Bell, redshirt senior, cornerback, Iowa State

• Liam Boyd, kicker, redshirt senior, Charlotte

• Charles Brantley, sixth-year senior, cornerback, Miami (FL.) - previously played for Michigan State

• Tyran Chappell, redshirt sophomore, cornerback, Houston Christian

• Eli Coenen, redshirt junior, defensive lineman, Illinois

• Dion Crawford, senior, linebacker, Buffalo

• Rhys Dakin, junior, punter, Iowa

• Nick Duzansky, redshirt junior, long snapper, Oregon

• Cam Edwards, redshirt senior, running back, Connecticut

• Cam Fancher, sixth-year graduate senior, quarterback, Central Florida

• Trent Fraley, senior, center, North Dakota State

• Carson Gulker, sixth-year graduate senior, tight end, Ferris State

• Carlos Hazelwood, redshirt sophomore, defensive lineman, Toledo

• Trey Lisle, redshirt sophomore, EDGE, Southeast Missouri State

• Trevaughn Martinez, redshirt junior, safety, Western Carolina

• Fredrick Moore, redshirt junior, wide receiver, Michigan

• Ben Murawski, redshirt senior, offensive lineman, Connecticut

• Marvis Parrish, sophomore, running back, Western Kentucky

• Jaziun Patterson, redshirt senior, running back, Iowa

• Michael Richard, senior, safety, Louisiana Tech

• Nick Sharpe, sixth-year graduate senior, offensive lineman, South Carolina

• KK Smith, redshirt junior, wide receiver, Notre Dame

• Kenny Soares Jr., fifth-year graduate senior, EDGE, North Carolina State

• Cam Stodghill, senior, linebacker, Albany

• Keahnist Thompson, redshirt senior, EDGE, Weber State

• Devin Vaught, redshirt junior, safety, Maine

• Alex Weeks, redshirt freshman, punter, Northern Arizona

• Caleb Wheatland, redshirt senior, linebacker, Auburn

• Kenneth Williams, redshirt junior, running back/kick returner, Nebraska

• Robert Wright Jr., redshirt junior, offensive lineman, Georgia Southern

With the overturned roster, many of these newcomers will be expected to come in right away and start or play a role for the Spartans in 2026. Some are going to add depth and may need some development tim before chasing a larger role in the future. However, all of them will have an opportunity to compete in the spring and fall camp and earn a spot.

When looking at this large list of transfers, it is clear that several of the new Spartans bring experience from their previous schools, at various levels of college football. Fitzgerald mentioned previously that production at the college level was an important part of MSU's transfer portal evaluation, and that approach is evident.

The spring will allow the coaching staff to evaluate, in person, what the transfers can bring to the table. While no depth chart is going to be finalized during the spring, it should certainly help to sort out things out and will give the staff a better idea of what the Spartans have before fall camp opens in July or August.

Michigan State put an emphasis on the running backs group and offensive line, bringing in four transfers for each room. UConn transfer Cam Edwards is expected to play a significant role in the backfield, but MSU also brought in Marvis Parrish (Western Kentucky), Jaziun Patterson (Iowa) and Kenneth Williams (Nebraska). Williams is expected to make a big difference in the return game on special teams. On the offensive line, center Trent Fraley, tackle Ben Murawski (UConn), guard Nick Sharpe (South Carolina) and tackle Robert Wright Jr. (Georgia Southern) are all expected to compete right away for starting spots or rotational roles.

MSU also clearly put an emphasis on the secondary, bringing in six defensive backs, and likely multiple starters. These players include cornerbacks Tre Bell (Iowa State), Charles Brantley (Miami FL., previously played for MSU) and Tyran Chappell (Houston Christian), and safeties Michael Richard (Louisiana Tech), Devin Vaught (Maine) and Trevaughn Martinez (walk-on from Western Carolina and the brother of MSU starting safety Nikai Martinez).

Additionally, the Spartans brought in several defensive linemen and rush ends, three linebackers, multiple new special teams players, a tight end and a quarterback. Many players from this group will likely see the field as well.

While the spring is just a small piece of the overall puzzle of the 2026 football season, and months before competition starts in the fall, it should provide some clues as to which transfers will make an impact for the Spartans when the regular season starts.

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