Big Ten School Fires $33 Million Head Coach After 4-8 Sea...

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By Nelson Espinal

Contributing Sports Reporter

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The Michigan State Spartans decided to fire head coach Jonathan Smith after the end of their season on Sunday.

Smith and his Spartan team went 4-8 overall with a poor 1-8 conference record, marking the fourth straight losing season for the program.

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He only got to finish two seasons out of the seven that he originally signed on for. For Michigan State to complete the firing, the program is paying $32.5 million for the contract buyout.

Former Athletic Director Alan Haller hired Smith back in November 2023 to replace former coach Mel Tucker. J Batt, the new Athletic Director, has decided to make a clean split from their coach and hopes to start with his own hire.

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Michigan State closed out the season with a 38-28 win over Maryland, a victory that ended Smith's tenure on a positive note, but his overall body of work was not enough to keep him as coach.

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The game was at home, and during the game, fans were calling for Smith's firing, with chants breaking out. Following the game, he addressed the chants.

"Look, I'd say that (I'm) proud of the group, like I said. Happy for these guys to go through tough times, short on the scoreboard repeatedly, I think the group shows that they continue to play hard and all of that," Smith said postgame to the media.

"Yeah, there's going to be conversations. The season now is over. We gotta do it better than we've done it this year, without question. And we're ready to work to do that."

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