Why did Michigan State football fire Jonathan Smith? Spartans move on from coachAustin Curtright, USA TODAY NETWORKSun, November 30, 2025 at 8:43 PM UTC·3 min readMichigan State football is firing head coach Jonathan Smith on Sunday, Nov. 30, the Detroit Free Press confirmed on Sunday, Nov. 30.
Smith, finished his second season with the Spartans with a 48-38 win vs. Maryland, concludes his Michigan State tenure with a 4-15 official record after five wins in 2024 were vacated due to an NCAA settlement over recruiting violations during Mel Tucker's tenure.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementREQUIRED READING: Michigan State football firing Jonathan Smith after 2 seasons
The 46-year-old coach's tenure didn't go according to plan after he was hired away from Oregon State following the 2023 college football season. The former Oregon State quarterback led his alma mater to a 10-3 season in 2022 and an 8-4 finish in 2023 before taking the Spartans job.
Michigan State will likely look to move fast on its coaching search, as numerous Power Four schools across the country — Florida, Auburn and Arkansas — made hires on Nov. 30, a day after the regular season ended.
Here's what to know of Michigan State's firing of Smith:
Cal fired Justin Wilcox on Nov. 23 with one game left in the regular season. The Golden Bears are 6-5 this season but 48-55 in Wilcox's seven seasons in charge.
Auburn fired coach Hugh Freeze on Nov. 2 following a home loss to Kentucky. Freeze was 15-19 in two-plus seasons on the Plains.
LSU fired Brian Kelly on Oct. 26 after an embarrassing home loss to Texas A&M the night before.
Florida fired Billy Napier on Oct. 19 during his fourth season as Gators coach. UF was 22-23 during Napier's tenure.
Penn State fired James Franklin on Oct. 12 after a third straight loss. The Nittany Lions were 104-45 in 11-plus seasons under Franklin.
UAB fired Trent Dilfer on Oct. 12 after a 2-4 start to the 2025 season. Dilfer was in his third season as head coach of the Blazers.
Sam Pittman was fired by Arkansas on Sept. 25, a day after the Razorbacks were blown out by Notre Dame, 56-13. Pittman was 32-34 in his five-plus seasons as Hogs coach.
Virginia Tech fired Brent Pry on Sept. 14 after the Hokies started the season 0-3. Virginia Tech was 16-24 overall in Pry's three-plus seasons.
UCLA fired DeShaun Foster on Sept. 14 after the Bruins fell to 0-3 following a home loss to New Mexico. The Bruins were 5-10 in Foster's one-plus season in charge.
Mike Gundy was in his 21st season as Oklahoma State coach when he was fired on Sept. 23. Gundy was 170-90 as Cowboys coach, but started 1-2 this season after going 3-9 in 2024.
Oregon State fired Trent Bray on Oct. 12 after the Beavers started the season 0-7. The Beavers were 5-14 in Bray's season-plus in Corvallis.
Colorado State fired football coach Jay Norvell on Oct. 19. Norvell was 18-26 in his four seasons in Fort Collins.
Stanford coach Troy Taylor was fired prior to the 2025 season following allegations of mistreating staff. He was 6-18 in two seasons with the Cardinal and was replaced by interim coach Frank Reich.
Kent State coach fired coach Kenni Burns on April 15 after he posted a 1-23 record of and was placed on administrative leave by the school in March. Mark Carney is serving as interim coach.1 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Cal fired Justin Wilcox on Nov. 23 with one game left in the regular season. The Golden Bears are 6-5 this season but 48-55 in Wilcox's seven seasons in charge.1 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Cal fired Justin Wilcox on Nov. 23 with one game left in the regular season. The Golden Bears are 6-5 this season but 48-55 in Wilcox's seven seasons in charge.2 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Auburn fired coach Hugh Freeze on Nov. 2 following a home loss to Kentucky. Freeze was 15-19 in two-plus seasons on the Plains.3 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
LSU fired Brian Kelly on Oct. 26 after an embarrassing home loss to Texas A&M the night before.4 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Florida fired Billy Napier on Oct. 19 during his fourth season as Gators coach. UF was 22-23 during Napier's tenure.5 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Penn State fired James Franklin on Oct. 12 after a third straight loss. The Nittany Lions were 104-45 in 11-plus seasons under Franklin.6 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
UAB fired Trent Dilfer on Oct. 12 after a 2-4 start to the 2025 season. Dilfer was in his third season as head coach of the Blazers.7 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Sam Pittman was fired by Arkansas on Sept. 25, a day after the Razorbacks were blown out by Notre Dame, 56-13. Pittman was 32-34 in his five-plus seasons as Hogs coach.8 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Virginia Tech fired Brent Pry on Sept. 14 after the Hokies started the season 0-3. Virginia Tech was 16-24 overall in Pry's three-plus seasons.9 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
UCLA fired DeShaun Foster on Sept. 14 after the Bruins fell to 0-3 following a home loss to New Mexico. The Bruins were 5-10 in Foster's one-plus season in charge.10 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Mike Gundy was in his 21st season as Oklahoma State coach when he was fired on Sept. 23. Gundy was 170-90 as Cowboys coach, but started 1-2 this season after going 3-9 in 2024.11 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Oregon State fired Trent Bray on Oct. 12 after the Beavers started the season 0-7. The Beavers were 5-14 in Bray's season-plus in Corvallis.12 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Colorado State fired football coach Jay Norvell on Oct. 19. Norvell was 18-26 in his four seasons in Fort Collins.13 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Stanford coach Troy Taylor was fired prior to the 2025 season following allegations of mistreating staff. He was 6-18 in two seasons with the Cardinal and was replaced by interim coach Frank Reich.
14 / 14College football coaches fired already in 2025 season. See who's on the growing list
Kent State coach fired coach Kenni Burns on April 15 after he posted a 1-23 record of and was placed on administrative leave by the school in March. Mark Carney is serving as interim coach.Why did Michigan State fire Jonathan Smith?
Smith fell out of favor fast with Michigan State and its fans, as the Spartans were uncompetitive against ranked teams. The Spartans were 0-6 against ranked opponents under Smith, and outscored by 139 points in those games.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHe went 5-7 in 2024 — not including the five vacated wins — and 4-8 in 2024 to finish his overall tenure with a 9-15 record. He failed to reach a bowl game in either of his campaigns.
Smith faced some challenges at the school, though, as Michigan State was being investigated due to recruiting violations that occurred under Tucker which led to the program vacating 14 wins from 2022-24. The NCAA found the Spartans allowed players who were ineligible to participate in games.
Michigan State is still searching for a coach to bring the school back to the heights of the Mark Dantonio era. Michigan State won 10 or more games in a season six times under Dantonio, and reached the College Football Playoff in 2015.
Tucker went 11-2 in his second season with the Spartans in 2021 but was fired midway through the 2023 season due to sexual harassment allegations. Tucker threatened to sue to school in April.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementJonathan Smith buyout
Michigan State owes Smith over $30 million if he's fired without cause as of Dec. 1, 2025, according to USA TODAY Sports' head coaches salaries database. He earned $7.35 million in total pay in 2025, making him the 27th highest-paid coach in college football among public institutions.
Jonathan Smith record
Smith finished 9-15 in two seasons at Michigan State, although five of those wins were vacated due to recruiting violations that occurred under Tucker, before Smith coached at the school.
Here's a look at his year-by-year finishes as a college head coach.
2025 (Michigan State): 4-8
2024 (Michigan State): 0-7 (five wins vacated)
2023 (Oregon State): 8-4
2022 (Oregon State): 10-3
2021 (Oregon State): 7-6
2020 (Oregon State): 2-5
2019 (Oregon State): 5-7
2018 (Oregon State): 2-10
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why did Michigan State fire Jonathan Smith? Record, buyout, more
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