Jonathan Smith is in a tough spot. The second-year Michigan State football coach finds his job security at an all-time low after a six-game losing streak, but he could save it with a strong finish to the 2025 season. That strong finish, however, may have to include a bowl berth.
After losing to UCLA to begin October, fans immediately turned on Smith, calling for his job and saying that he has done nothing but make the program worse.
The words after that loss were a bit harsh because emotions were running high, but that was the start of what many consider the end of the Smith era. He had a chance to pick up a nice win to end a two-game losing streak, but he fumbled it away against a 1-4 UCLA team on his home field. Not only did his Spartans lose that game, but they were throttled by 25 after going up 7-0 early.
Many fans kind of expected J Batt to move on from Smith shortly after that loss, but he still has a job despite not winning since mid-September. Now, fans are worried that he may return in 2026 like Luke Fickell at Wisconsin — that’s a dangerous precedent that the Badgers set.
However, it sounds like he’s as good as gone, at least according to one plugged-in media member.
On an episode of Couch and the Rube earlier this week (Episode 1089 titled “Hot Take Monday”, Lansing State Journal columnist Graham Couch gave fans exactly what they wanted to hear. He said that Smith is “probably going to lose his job”.
Couch has been fairly adamant about this notion. He has been consistent in his reporting, stating that he believes that there’s a sliver of a chance that Smith in retained, but he’s likely gone.
While nothing is certain, it does sound like it would take a miracle for Batt to bring Smith back.