New Michigan State football coach Pat Fitzgerald got more transfer news on Monday afternoon as junior quarterback Aidan Chiles announced that he intended to enter his name.
It wasn’t much of a surprise considering he was rumored to be entering since his head coach was fired at the end of the season, but it was still a bittersweet development for a lot of Michigan State fans. They knew he was gone, but actually hearing the news hurt, especially when you consider what the expectations were for him when he transferred to Michigan State.
Now, it looks like the quarterback room is going to need more depth, but it’s unlikely we see Pat Fitzgerald touch the portal for another passer.
Kayd Coffman reaffirmed his commitment to his new head coach right before signing day, and then inked his NLI with Michigan State, so the quarterback of the future is locked in. Plus, Alessio Milivojevic announced shortly after the season finale that he would be “running it back” with Michigan State in 2026. The Spartans also have freshman Leo Hannan and redshirt freshman Ryland Jessee potentially returning.
I wouldn’t be shocked to see one — or both — of those two opt to hit the transfer portal along with Chiles, but if both return, there would be absolutely no need for Fitzgerald to land a quarterback.
What transfer QBs are even out there for Pat Fitzgerald?
If Fitzgerald were to hit the transfer portal for a quarterback, he’d have to find a younger guy who would be fine with backing Milivojevic up for the next 1-2 years and then battling it out with Hannan, Jessee, and Coffman for the starting job in 2027 or 2028. That’s not exactly an easy sell.
So, no, Michigan State won’t be going after the likes of Sam Leavitt, Katin Houser, Dylan Raiola, or DJ Lagway this offseason. There just aren’t going to be many transfers OK with backing anyone up.
The high-profile transfers are leaving because they don’t like their current situation or want a bigger bag, the medium-level transfers are looking for starting jobs, and the low-level transfers are also looking for a smaller program where they could potentially start in 2026.
Michigan State doesn’t meet any of the qualifications seeing as it’ll be looking for a 1-2-year backup.
The Spartans already have a couple of those on the roster.
Like I said, the only way Fitzgerald adds a quarterback is if both Hannan and Jessee transfer out or he picks up a walk-on. Don’t even waste a second thinking about adding a legitimate quarterback with Milivojevic proving that he’s more than capable of leading this offense.