Do you hear that? That’s the sound of the clock ticking on Jonathan Smith as he enters the final game of the 2025 season — and potentially the final game of his Michigan State coaching career.
If it were up to Michigan State fans, Smith would have already been fired, but J Batt and the athletic department have decided to keep their decision close to their chest. This could be Batt showing Smith some respect by letting him finish out the season, but there are people who believe that he will be back next season with one final chance to prove himself.
That feels a little unnecessary as the team has only gotten worse under Smith, going from 5-7 in his first year to potentially 3-9 this season, if the Spartans can’t beat Maryland at Ford Field on Saturday.
Will Saturday mark his last time coaching a Michigan State football team?
That’s the big question entering the game, but no one seems to know for sure. Heck, I don’t know if Batt even knows what he’s going to do yet. While he probably does have his mind made up, everyone is still wondering if Smith will be given another shot like Wisconsin did with Luke Fickell, Baylor did with Dave Aranda, and Maryland did with Mike Locksley.
i’m not so sure, however.
Michigan State fans are hoping for some good news on Sunday morning in the form of a coaching search, and I think that’s going to happen. While Smith talks to Batt regularly and they said that they’re on the same page, he still hasn’t been assured that he’ll be back, which is odd if that’s what the decision is.
It feels like if Batt was going to keep Smith, he would’ve told him by now or made a press release, but neither has happened. For that reason, I think Smith will be out on Sunday.
There’s a small chance that if Michigan State wins and the players show that they want him back after the game, Batt could opt to retain him based on the fact that he didn’t quit.
If I were to put a percentage on it, I’d say there’s a 70 percent chance MSU moves on.