A former highly-touted Michigan State quarterback under Mel Tucker has found himself a new home in the Big Ten.
Katin Houser announced on Sunday evening that he would be headed back to the Midwest at Illinois, according to Pete Thamel.
That’s right, Bret Bielema strikes again.
The Illini have consistently had good quarterback play under Bielema and he’s done an impressive job of turning Illinois around. Houser is only going to get better under Bielema and that’s what’ll make the 2026 matchup with Illinois so interesting. Before, that was just another game, but now it’s going to be circled on a lot of calendars, including his former teammates.
From a Boise State commit to a Michigan State flip to a Spartan backup-then-QB1, then East Carolina backup-to-starter, and back to the Big Ten. It’s been quite the past few years for Houser.
Katin Houser still has a spot in Spartan lore
A few years ago, Houser was considered the future of Michigan State football. He came to East Lansing as a highly-touted four-star who flipped his previous commitment from Boise State to the Spartans under Tucker.
After Payton Thorne broke out in 2021 and led the Spartans to the Peach Bowl with Kenneth Walker III, it looked like he would be the starter for the next 2-3 years before giving way to Houser.
Thorne struggled in 2022 and there were some rumblings among the fanbase about Houser giving him a competition the next fall. Thorne would transfer out, Houser would battle Noah Kim and true freshman Sam Leavitt for the job, and eventually land himself in the backup role. He eventually took over mid-season in 2023, but had some accuracy issues and he had just six touchdowns to five picks.
Many hoped he would return the following season and compete for the starting job with Leavitt, but he eventually transferred out — Leavitt, too.
Houser wound up at East Carolina while Leavitt went to Arizona State, and both saw immediate success at their new programs. At ECU, Houser would throw for 5,306 yards, 37 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions. He looked like a star in the Group of Five, but now he finds himself back in the Big Ten at Illinois.
The 2026 matchup between the Spartans and Illini will be fun.