CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2026 Michigan State

2–⁠5 (0–⁠4 Big Ten), coached by Pat Fitzgerald. The season’s Wikipedia article records 2–⁠4, over six games to the seven on file here.

Schedule and results

Michigan State in 2026, game by game: won vs. Toledo 30–20; won vs. Eastern Michigan 35–7; lost at No. 3 Notre Dame 10–27; lost vs. Nebraska 13–31; lost at Wisconsin 3–31; lost vs. Illinois 37–38; lost vs. No. 25 Northwestern 21–24+28−28Won 30–20 vs. Toledo+10ToledoWon 35–7 vs. Eastern Michigan+28Eastern MichiganLost 10–27 at No. 3 Notre Dame-17No. 3 Notre DameLost 13–31 vs. Nebraska-18NebraskaLost 3–31 at Wisconsin-28WisconsinLost 37–38 vs. Illinois-1IllinoisLost 21–24 vs. No. 25 Northwestern-3No. 25 Northwestern
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 4vsToledoW 30–⁠2042%
Sep 12vsEastern MichiganW 35–⁠766%
Sep 19at3Notre DameL 10–⁠2715%
Sep 26vsNebraskaL 13–⁠3145%
Oct 3atWisconsinL 3–⁠3133%
Oct 10vsIllinoisL 37–⁠3845%
Oct 17vs25NorthwesternL 21–⁠2435%
Oct 24atUCLAPreview20%
Nov 7atMichiganPreview19%
Nov 14vsWashingtonPreview34%
Nov 20vsOregonPreview22%
Nov 28atRutgersPreview39%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

Record
2–⁠5
Conference
0–⁠4 tied for 16th in Big Ten
AP now
Unranked
Points
149–⁠178
Coach
Pat Fitzgerald
Elo
1422 −19 this season
SP+ rating
-1.2 No. 77 of 138; offense No. 87, defense No. 72, special teams No. 45
SRS
0.8 No. 64 of 138 in FBS
Returning
21% of last season’s EPA, No. 100 of 136
Recruiting class
No. 45 roster talent No. 61 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Nick Sheridan
Defensive coordinators
Joe Rossi and Max Bullough
Offense
Pro spread
Defense
Multiple 4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense105th of 138
  • Defense105th of 138
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted110th of 138
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted82nd of 138
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0244%1.06105th of 138
Defense0.1943%1.41105th of 138
Opponent-adjusted0.04 off
0.12 def		45% off
40% def		—110th off
82nd def

Passing and running

Pass successDepth of targetDeep throwsLine yardsStuffed
Offense49%7.5 yds8%3.1016%
Defense47%8.1 yds11%2.9020%
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played. Passing and running: depth of target is how far downfield passes traveled in the air; deep throws are the share thrown deep, of the passes whose depth and direction the play-by-play describes (about half); line yards are the running yards per carry credited to the blockers; stuffed is the share of carries stopped at or behind the line. The defense’s line is what its opponents did. From CollegeFootballData.com, 2025 on.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.5own 3216% allowed
Defense3.7own 2814% caused

CORE rating 1.3, 58th of 138 (offense -1.7, defense -3.0).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsAlessio Milivojevic QB1,263 yds
Passing touchdownsAlessio Milivojevic QB7 TD
Rushing yardsJaziun Patterson RB327 yds
Rushing touchdownsJaziun Patterson RB5 TD
Receiving yardsJayden Savoury TE261 yds
Receiving touchdownsFredrick Moore WR2 TD
TacklesDevin Vaught S46 tkl
SacksEli Coenen DL3.5 sacks
InterceptionsDevin Vaught S1 INT

Top recruits in the 2026 class

Collin Campbell OT★★★★No. 197
Samson Gash WR★★★★No. 257
Kayd Coffman QB★★★★No. 273
Joey Caudill TE★★★★No. 453
Eli Bickel OT★★★★No. 456

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2026 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks14.00.909
Receivers53.40.883
Offensive line43.50.892
Defensive line23.00.867
Linebackers23.00.856
Defensive backs53.00.869
Athletes and specialists33.00.825
Whole class223.20.871

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 111

The 2026 roster

111 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2026 line; 59 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 28

The 2026 portal
Ben Murawski OT★★★from UConn
Charles Brantley CB★★★from Miami
Jaziun Patterson RB★★★from Iowa
Tre Bell CB★★★from Iowa State
Trey Lisle DE★★★from Southeast Missouri State
Camryn Edwards RB★★★from UConn
Carson Gulker TE★★★from Ferris State
Eli Coenen DL★★★from Illinois
K.K. Smith WR★★★from Notre Dame
Kenny Soares Jr. LB★★★from NC State
Trent Fraley OL★★★from North Dakota State
Caleb Wheatland LB★★★from Auburn

And 16 more, lower-rated or unrated.

Transfers out 46

Nick Marsh WR★★★★to Indiana
Aidan Chiles QB★★★★to Northwestern
Alex VanSumeren DL★★★to USC
Jalen Thompson DE★★★to Arizona State
Makhi Frazier RB★★★to Ole Miss
Stanton Ramil OT★★★to Auburn
Aydan West CB★★★to Minnesota
Ade Willie CB★★★to North Carolina
Aisea Moa LB★★★to Michigan
Ashton Lepo OT★★★to Oklahoma State
David Santiago DE★★★to Kansas
Kristian Phillips OL★★★to Boston College

And 34 more, lower-rated or unrated.

2026 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
UCLA4–⁠06–⁠0
Ohio State4–⁠06–⁠1
USC3–⁠16–⁠1
Indiana3–⁠16–⁠1
Iowa2–⁠15–⁠1
Northwestern2–⁠15–⁠1
Oregon2–⁠14–⁠2
Minnesota2–⁠14–⁠2
Wisconsin2–⁠14–⁠2
Nebraska2–⁠25–⁠2
Purdue2–⁠23–⁠4
Michigan1–⁠24–⁠2
Illinois1–⁠23–⁠3
Rutgers1–⁠22–⁠4
Washington1–⁠34–⁠3
Penn State0–⁠43–⁠4
Michigan State0–⁠42–⁠5
Maryland0–⁠42–⁠5

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.