Friday was a bad day for Michigan State fans. Not only did the basketball team lose at home to No. 3 Michigan in excruciating fashion, but also because Michigan State football lost a popular assistant defensive line coach to a larger role at a Division II school.
The Spartans are now down one Antjuan Simmons after the defensive line analyst was reportedly hired by Saginaw Valley State to be the linebackers coach there.
Ryan O’Bleness of Spartans Illustrated broke the news on Friday right before the big game which was a sign of things to come. Tom Izzo’s Spartans were unable to overcome a strong start by Michigan, crawling back into the game in the second half and even taking a lead with seven minutes left, but the Wolverines closed the game on a 28-14 run.
We’re not here to dwell on the disappointing basketball loss, but rather the departure of Simmons who was actually a hero in the 2020 Michigan game on the defensive end. He helped lead Mel Tucker to his first win over Michigan along with Rocky Lombardi and Ricky White.
Simmons was retained by Pat Fitzgerald on the 2026 staff, but he ultimately decided it was in his best interest to lead his own position group rather than be an assistant position coach.
Simmons will always be welcomed home to East Lansing with open arms because he’s an Ann Arbor native who decided to play for the good guys and he became a Michigan game hero.
Antjuan Simmons is one of the most underrated Spartans ever
While it feels like it’s been a decade since Antjuan Simmons suited up for Michigan State, he was one of the first great players in the Tucker era. He played at Michigan State from 2017 until 2020, and he finished his career with some incredible numbers.
Simmons had 165 total tackles, 24 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, an interception, and five pass breakups in his final two seasons in East Lansing — just 20 games due to COVID-19.
Although he was an All-Big Ten-caliber linebacker, Simmons went undrafted and never really got a shot at the NFL because he was considered too small. He probably was a little too small to be an NFL linebacker, but the talent was never a question.
Simmons will always be one of the most underrated Spartans ever.