Tom Izzo and Michigan State basketball returned to the court on Monday afternoon, holding their first official practice, followed by a media session for the Hall of Fame head coach.
Everything was talked about from Kaleb Glenn's recovery to the Final Four in Detroit in a couple of years to the team captains officially being announced.
Izzo revealed that the 2025-26 team had officially voted on captains.
For just the second time in his career, Michigan State will have four team captains, and they're the returning starters from last year's Elite Eight team: Coen Carr, Jeremy Fears Jr., Jaxon Kohler, and Carson Cooper. It just makes sense.
Izzo says Jeremy Fears Jr., Coen Carr, Jaxon Kohler and Carson Cooper were all selected as MSU's captains by his teammates. Only 2nd time with 4 captains in his career, Izzo adds.
— Chris Solari (@chrissolari) September 22, 2025
It's cool that the team recognizes that these four guys stuck it out when several players left the program this past offseason. They recognize that if Michigan State is going to repeat as Big Ten champs, these guys will be leading the way. That's a ton of respect from the newcomers.
Fears is an obvious choice as captain, and many believe that he's going to be Izzo's next great point guard and leader, following in the footsteps of Mateen Cleaves, Kalin Lucas, and Cassius Winston, among others. He'll be a redshirt sophomore in 2025-26.
Carr is a little quieter, but he leads by example. He's one of the most improved players on the team, and he's the best athlete in the country. He'll be a junior this season.
Both Cooper and Kohler will be seniors, and they spearhead the frontcourt attack for the Spartans. If the Spartans want to repeat as Big Ten champs, they'll both need to take a step forward this season -- they do have the potential to be forces down low.
Four captains? Izzo loves a player-coached team, and he might just have one of his best this year.