Five things to watch at Michigan State football's 'Spring Showcase' (2024)

East Lansing — Jonathan Smith didn’t make any outward promises when he took over as Michigan State's head coach at the end of last season.

But he’s already delivering fans something that his predecessor didn’t — and that’s some semblance of a spring scrimmage.

Saturday’s “Spring Showcase” is a glorified practice that should offer a taste of what Michigan State has been working on over the past few weeks. Smith also plans to bring back a scrimmage for at least part of the two-hour event at Spartan Stadium.

“The clock’s going to run, try to create a game-like atmosphere for most of it,” Smith said earlier this week. “We’re gonna try to get about four quarters in of 10 minutes running clock and go offense versus defense. We’re gonna let the defense start with a lead, point-wise, and then play.”

Saturday's event is scheduled to start at 2 p.m. but gates will open at 12:15 p.m. Fans who arrive early will have a chance to meet Smith and the team during a photo op and autograph session that will take place until 1 p.m.

With this being a critical offseason for Michigan State, and Smith’s first year at the helm, Saturday should offer plenty fans will want to see.

Here are five things to keep an eye on:

First look at 'D' under Rossi

Michigan State’s defense, once revered, has been rather underwhelming as of late. Last season, the Spartans didn’t dazzle at anything on that side of the ball as they allowed the 11th-most points per game in the Big Ten (28.3) and gave up the league’s second-most total yards per game (389.3).

New defensive coordinator Joe Rossi is hoping to fix that.

Rossi was hired away from Minnesota, where he helped the Gophers to one of the nation’s best defensive units in 2021 and 2022 before injuries to Minnesota’s defense last season hampered its success in that area.

Rossi’s defensive philosophy has been shaped over various stops over the course of his career. The three main goals, though, are stopping the run, creating takeaways and eliminating explosive plays.

Earlier takeaways from players and other coaches have been encouraging. Some have described Rossi’s scheme this spring as “aggressive.” Saturday should give a better idea of where the team is at in mastering it.

Chemistry between Chiles and his weapons

Oregon State transfer Aidan Chiles was one of Michigan State’s most exciting additions of the offseason. Chiles is coming off a freshman season where he served as a backup to a veteran but took advantage of his opportunities when he got them.

Chiles didn’t throw a single interception in his 35 attempts and completed 68.6% of his passes for 309 yards and four touchdowns. He said his confidence blossomed every time he stepped onto the field.

Chiles’ established relationship with Smith and coordinator Brian Lindgren as well as his familiarity in the offense they plan to run should aid in the process of implementing it at Michigan State.

There’s no denying Chiles has the skill set to be a star, but that’s only part of it.

Chiles has spent his first few months in East Lansing getting to know his teammates. He’s taken the offensive line out for a fancy steak dinner and worked with the receiving corps. But getting everyone on the offense on the same page won’t happen in a month.

Wide receivers coach Courtney Hawkins said the process of Chiles building chemistry with his offensive weapons, including returners Montorie Foster Jr., Alante Brown and Antonio Gates Jr., remains a work in progress.

“There’s been flashes. There’s days where we do some really good things, and then there’s days where you can see where he’s thinking, we’re thinking, maybe we’re not on the same page,” Hawkins said. “But I think every single day this spring we’ve gotten better. It’s gotten better, guys are understanding the offense better and playing faster.”

Saturday is only a check-in and Hawkins noted that chemistry will continue to develop over the summer as guys get additional reps.

Transfers and early enrollees

Saturday will mark the first opportunity for fans to get a look at some of the Spartans’ 20 newcomers.

Michigan State welcomed 11 transfers, including three players who followed Smith from Oregon State, as well as nine early enrollees this spring.

Some of the more notable roster additions happened in the quarterback and linebacker rooms.

After all four scholarship quarterbacks transferred out at the end of last season, Michigan State signed two transfers — Chiles and veteran Tommy Schuster (North Dakota) — and added Ryland Jessee and Alessio Milivojevic to the 2024 freshman class.

All four of those aforementioned players have been on campus since January and have spent the past five weeks getting reps in the new system.

As for linebackers, Michigan State bolstered the group with the addition of veteran transfers Jordan Turner from Wisconsin and Wayne Matthews III from Old Dominion. The Spartans also managed to flip freshman Brady Pretzlaff from Minnesota while also welcoming back a healthy Darius Snow, Jordan Hall and Cal Haladay.

Other newcomers to look out for include freshman wideout Nick Marsh and twin offensive linemen Charles and Mercer Luniewski.

The run game

It shouldn't be hard for Michigan State's hopefully improved run game to outdo what little damage it did on the ground last season. The Spartan averaged just 89.5 yards on the ground per game, the fifth-lowest average in FBS, setting quite a low bar.

It didn’t help that Jalen Berger and Jaren Mangham had injuries, leaving little depth behind UConn transfer Nathan Carter. The offensive line also had its issues.

But Jim Michalczik has been brought in to help fix the Spartans’ abysmal run game.

Last season, Michalczik helped oversee an Oregon State offense that averaged 167.1 rushing yards per game. The Beavers also had one of college football’s top offensive lines.

Michigan State lost starting center Nick Samac and left guard J.D. Duplain to graduation, as well as Spencer Brown and Kevin Wigenton, who both transferred out. That leaves Geno VanDeMark and Brandon Baldwin as the Spartans’ two returning starters up front. Ethan Boyd and Kristian Phillips are also back.

Oregon State transfer Tanner Miller, who was a second team All-Pac 12 selection, has been taking reps at center. The Spartans also added Holy Cross transfer Luke Newman and freshmen twins Charles and Mercer Luniewski.

Michalczik expressed confidence in his group earlier this spring, but it’ll be interesting to see if his belief is reflected in on-field results. On the bright side, Michigan State’s run game can’t be any worse than it was last season…right?

Overall fan interest

It’s been a wild ride for Michigan State fans the past two years. In 2021, Michigan State had an 11-win season that ended with a Peach Bowl victory. But back-to-back losing seasons and a drama-filled fall resulted in major changes to the program.

Gone are the days of doom and gloom that clouded 2023. Those bad vibes have been replaced with positive energy that’s been noticeable in and around Michigan State football this spring.

While the players are rejuvenated and the coaches are excited, Saturday should be telling on how the fans will feel about everything that’s happened over the past few months. The Smith hiring seemed to get a stamp of approval from the fan base when it happened, but how many will brave the chilly weather to get a first look at what he’s cooking?

mkenney@detroitnews.com

@madkenney

Michigan State 'Spring Showcase'

▶ When: 2 p.m. Saturday

▶ Where: Spartan Stadium, East Lansing

▶ TV: BTN-plus

▶ Admission: Free, gates open at 12:15 p.m.