Dan Bartholomae penned a letter to Spartan Nation on Thursday and spoke about his goals for the athletic department since he’s been on the job for a little over a month now.
Like Pat Fitzgerald, Bartholomae said all the right things and got fans fired up for the future despite the present being as bleak as can be. He vowed to resource the football program to be competitive immediately and it was nice to hear a Michigan State AD say that out loud for once. An athletic director prioritizing football NIL has been a long time coming.
Was it all just AD-speak or does Bartholomae actually believe what he said about giving the football program the necessary resources?
Well, he doubled down on that statement during a recent appearance on LockedOn Spartans appearance with Matt Sheehan, saying that he wants Michigan State to be able to spend in the top half and when that’s accomplished, he wants it to be in the top third of the Big Ten.
We tackle A TON with newly minted Michigan State Athletic Director @danbart3.
— Fireball sommelier (@Sheehan_Sports) October 9, 2026
Starting with the BOLD statement in his letter to Spartan Nation. 👀https://t.co/c55NXXmEyq pic.twitter.com/RXdLIfgMqS
That “top-third” promise was rumored by MSU insiders and now it’s been confirmed by Bartholomae as not only an achievable goal, but a priority. He is going to make this happen and he feels like he has the necessary programs in place to accomplosh the it.
I don’t know about you, but it never felt like J Batt was talking like this and he was never quite as candid with the media. Bartholomae joining Sheehan’s podcast is just more proof that he wants to connect with the fanbase and make things work. He’s also not going anywhere any time soon.
Michigan State got itself a really good one.
Michigan State needs to spend with the Big Ten’s big boys
It’s no secret that if Michigan State wants to be competitive, it needs to spend like a competitor. It’s rare to see teams that spend very little on NIL compete in the Big Ten, especially with big-time programs like Ohio State, Oregon, Michigan, USC, Penn State, and now Indiana spending a ton of money on their rosters every year.
If Michigan State wants to join that group, it’ll need to spend as much money as some of them do and definitely more than the programs like Iowa, Wisconsin, Washington, UCLA, and Minnesota.
Having an athletic director vow to provide the football program with funds that will make it competitive with Penn State, USC, Indiana, and even Michigan is going to get the Spartans out of the Big Ten’s basement both financially and on the field. This prorgam is too proud.
Bartholomae continues to say the right things. Acting on them will be a different beast.
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