Alan Haller is out. After nearly four years as Michigan State's athletic director, the school decided to part ways with Haller which means that a national search will begin immediately.
Haller will be credited for hiring Jonathan Smith and also being in charge when Adam Nightingale was brought in as well as Robyn Fralick. However, he just never seemed to do enough on the NIL side of things and Michigan State was constantly behind in that regard.
The news was probably a bit surprising for Haller as it was for much of the fanbase, but many reacted to it as a positive. Michigan State can now find an AD who takes NIL seriously and puts the Spartans first always. That didn't happen enough under Haller as donors called him out for not doing enough with NIL and the instances (the tunnel, Kaleel Mullings "stomping", Central Michigan and Connor Stalions) in which Michigan State's leadership was challenged.
For that reason, changes are being made.
We hadn't heard from either side after the news broke, but Haller released an official statement on Friday afternoon, stating that he was humbled by the support he got when the news came out and he's proud of what he accomplished. He's sad to go but is always a Spartan.
Statement from outgoing MSU athletic director Alan Haller on his impending departure. pic.twitter.com/0ib12rvJwx
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) May 2, 2025
By all accounts, Haller was a good guy and one of the nicest guys to be around and he had good relationships with Smith and Tom Izzo. However, he just wasn't cutthroat enough in the NIL era.
The next AD will have some big tasks to accomplish to get Michigan State athletics back to the top where it belongs.