2023 Michigan State Spartans football team
The 2023 Michigan State Spartans football team is an American football team that represents Michigan State University in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Spartans play their home games at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan. The Spartans were led by Mel Tucker through the first two games of the season; Tucker was suspended without pay on September 10 and was fired for cause on September 27 following disclosures relating to alleged sexual harassment. Defensive backs coach Harlon Barnett was appointed interim head coach, and former head coach Mark Dantonio agreed to return as the team's associate head coach. Schedule

Game summaries

vs Central Michigan 

Michigan State opened the season against Central Michigan on a Friday night in East Lansing. MSU head coach Mel Tucker announced shortly before the game that Noah Kim would be the starting quarterback for the Spartans in the game. In the first quarter, the Spartans received the ball first and new running back Nate Carter ran for 31 yards on the first play of the drive, moving MSU to the Central Michigan 43. The drive sputtered from there and facing fourth and one at the CMU 34, Carter was tackled for no gain as the Spartans turned the ball over on downs. CMU quickly took advantage, moving into MSU territory reaching the Spartan five yard line. MSU stopped the Chippewas on a third down play, but an unsportsmanlike penalty against linebacker Jacoby Windmon gave CMU a new set of downs at the eight. The Spartan defense held and CMU's fourth down play failed, giving the Spartans the ball at their own nine. The teams punted on each of their next two possessions as the game moved to the second quarter. Following a poor punt, MSU took over at their own 46 and moved into Chippewas territory, reaching the CMU 25 before being pushed back and settling for a 47-yard field goal by Jonathan Kim. The teams exchanged punts again before CMU took over with 3:11 left in the half. The Chippewas moved quickly into Spartan territory before Bert Emanuel Jr. completed a 12-yard touchdown pass to Chris Parker to put CMU ahead 7–3. With only 1:45 left in the half, MSU went 84 yards in 53 seconds and Carter scored on a two-yard run to give MSU the 10–3 halftime lead. On the first drive of the third quarter, linebacker Cal Haladay intercepted CMU's Emanuel, giving MSU the ball at their own 35. The teams exchanged punts on their next possessions before MSU increased the lead on a Jalen Berger 12-yard touchdown run. with 2:36 left in the quarter. Following a punt by CMU, the game moved to the fourth quarter before MSU's Noah Kim completed a 10-yard touchdown pass to Tyrell Henry who made a spectacular one-handed catch. The score moved MSU ahead 24–7. Following another punt by CMU, Maliq Carr caught an eight-yard touchdown pass from Noah Kim to push the lead to 24 with 9:05 left in the game. Neither team could manage any more points as MSU walked away with the 31–7 win. The final score made the game seem more of a blowout then it was, but the Spartan offense did rush for 152 yards in the game with Nate Carter getting 113 yards on 18 carries. Noah Kim completed 18 of 33 passes for 279 yards and two touchdowns in the win. The win moved MSU to 1–0 on the season. vs Richmond

vs No. 8 Washington

vs Maryland

at Iowa

at Rutgers

vs No. 2 Michigan

at Minnesota

vs Nebraska

at Ohio State

at Indiana

vs Penn State

Rankings

Personnel

Roster

Coaching staff

Coaching changes 
On January 4, defensive line coach Marco Coleman left MSU to join his alma mater, Georgia Tech, as their defensive line coach. On January 25, the school named Stanford defensive line coach Diron Reynolds the team's new defensive line coach. On March 4, pass rush specialist coach Brandon Jordan left to take a job with the Seattle Seahawks. On March 16, the school named former Buffalo Bills safeties coach Jim Salgado as the new cornerbacks coach. Transfers

Outgoing
On April 30, the final day to declare for the transfer portal, two-year starting quarterback Payton Thorne announced he was entering the portal. Wide receiver Keon Coleman also announced he would transfer. Source

Incoming

Source

2023 NFL draft 
Following the conclusion of the season, several players declared for the NFL draft. Three players were selected in the draft. Several other undrafted players signed free agent contracts with NFL teams:

 Jarrett Horst, offensive lineman, Miami Dolphins
 Jacob Slade, defensive lineman, Arizona Cardinals
 Kendell Brooks, safety, Arizona Cardinals
 Xavier Henderson, safety, Washington Commanders
 Ben VanSumeren, linebacker, Philadelphia Eagles

References

Michigan State
Michigan State Spartans football seasons
Michigan State Spartans football