Pat Fitzgerald has been a busy man over the past week, and really since he was hired a month ago. Things have really ramped up this week for the Michigan State football coach, though.
The transfer portal opened up about a month ago, and Fitzgerald has already scheduled several visits, landing about a dozen commitments. It’s impressive to see what Fitzgerald can do with more resources. He knows how to sell a program, and he’s landed some really good players.
He’s also addressed some major needs.
Michigan State has landed its next punter, a kicker, some linebacker and defensive backfield depth, and now a backup quarterback to Alessio Milivojevic.
On Tuesday afternoon, Pete Nakos of On3 reported that Michigan State picked up a commitment from UCF quarterback and former Spartan opponent Cam Fancher. He will play the backup role to Milivojevic in 2026.
Michigan State has landed a transfer commitment from UCF QB Cam Fancher, @On3sports has learned.
— Pete Nakos (@PeteNakos) January 6, 2026
Fancher won the UCF starting QB job out of training camp.https://t.co/wMrfFrdlE6 pic.twitter.com/E6h0qEf6rk
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Landing Alessio Milivojevic’s backup is important
Nabbing a solid backup quarterback with a ton of experience is huge, especially for Milivojevic’s development. He now gets to learn from a guy who’s been in college for six years and who has over 5,600 passing yards and over 1,200 rushing yards with 36 total touchdowns.
This will be Fancher’s fourth school after starting at Marshall, going to FAU for a year where he faced Michigan State in Jonathan Smith’s first game, and then to UCF last season where he only attempted 72 passes.
Fancher is going to be a key veteran in the quarterback room who will help both Milivojevic and Kayd Coffman develop. This is also an important pickup because Ryland Jessee just hit the portal earlier this offseason.
Michigan State will now have a full quarterback room, and a decent backup options if something were to happen to Milivojevic.
It’s best not to throw a freshman into the fire before he’s ready. Coffman will now get a chance to sit for a couple of years and learn from Fancher and Milivojevic over that span before taking over. Fitzgerald knows exactly what he’s doing and it’s going to pay off in the long run.