INDIANAPOLIS- Day two of Big Ten Media Days featured an array of traditional and new blood in the Big Ten Conference. 

It introduced new teams and coaches to the conference for the first time while also highlighting long-standing Big Ten programs with more established head coaches. 

Day two featured newcomers to the landscape of the Big Ten, USC, and UCLA, as well as four Big Ten staple programs, Iowa, Penn State, Nebraska, and Michigan State, all hoping to  establish new goals and new hopes of their own. 

This offseason marked the most changes conference-wide in its entire history. With huge changes like four new teams entering the conference or the abandonment of the East and West divisions, it can be easy for other changes to slide under the radar. 

One of those drastic changes was Michigan State’s gutting and rebuilding of their coaching staff and using that staff to build and strengthen their roster. 

This was a big theme with the questions asked to the members representing Michigan State at Big Ten Media Days. Those included head coach Jonathan Smith, running back Nathan Carter, tight end Jack Velling, and defensive back Dillion Tatum.

The day started with Jonathan Smith addressing the media with his opening statement. In his first fifteen minutes, he mentioned how important it was to have a good mix of new guys as well as coaches on his former staff. 

He was able to have a good chunk of his staff follow him from Oregon State but with the new hires outside of the Beavers, he was very pleased with who they landed, especially the coaches he was able to get from previous Big Ten schools. 

“With Chad Wilt and Joe Rossi having coordinated in this league at a really high level I felt really good about those two additions,” Smith said. 

Chad Wilt, the new special teams coordinator for MSU comes from Indiana and Joe Rossi, the new defensive coordinator for the Spartans comes from Minnesota. 

“Having two other coaches that have been former Spartans and played here with Courtney Hawkins and Demetrice Martin I think rounded out really well,” Smith said. 

Those four coaches join a Jonathan Smith staff that both Smith himself and the players are excited to be a part of.

Dillion Tatum spoke about his new defensive coordinator Joe Rossi during his 30 minutes with the media. 

“He is going to put all of my teammates in positions where we are going to be successful, to where we can play to our best ability. I think his defense is very good and you can tell by the accolades he built over the years,” Tatum said.

Tatum will be working with him for the first time as well as Demetrice Martin, the new cornerbacks coach, and Blue Adams, the new secondary coach. 

As far as on the offensive end, players showed the same energy towards their new coaches. Jonathan Smith (head coach) Brian Wozniak (tight end coach) and Brian Lindgren (offensive coordinator) are all coming over to MSU from the Oregon State coaching staff. 

Jack Velling, a transfer tight end from Oregon State, expressed how having most of Oregon State’s coaching staff go to Michigan State had a real impact on his decision. 

“Right when it happened I didn’t know what I was going to do and the more I thought about it the more I thought that if I had stayed or if I went somewhere else I would be always looking back and thinking well what if I went there.”

“So I thought why would I ever want to think that and keep staying with the tight end coach and offensive coordinator who have gotten me where I am and just trying to stack another year on top of that,” Velling said.

Another offensive piece that should have a big impact this year is running back Nathan Carter. 

He was one of the first to meet with the new MSU coaching staff and he made it known during his media day that the interaction helped him realize MSU football was heading in the right direction. 

“My first interaction with them was in a way where I could sense that they cared about us and they cared about this culture and they cared about Michigan State as a whole and that’s important to me because that is what I care about,” Carter said. 

Another offensive coach from Oregon State heading over to MSU is assistant and running backs coach Keith Bhonapha. 

With Carter working with him the most in the offseason he had very positive things to say about the new culture Bhonapha brings to the running back room. 

“He just incorporates a mindset where we are a family. Yes, we are competing, but it’s not necessarily that we are competing with each other. We are competing to be great, We are competing so that our running back room as a whole is great. Coach KB does a great job with us making sure we do stay as a family,” Carter said.

The new culture these Michigan State coaches have spread to their players all goes back to the motto head coach Jonathan Smith has set with his team, “Low Ego, High Output”. 

This was repeated many times during both the coach’s and player’s media sessions. 

Michigan State is set to start its training camp on Tuesday to prepare for the new schemes and challenges of the upcoming season. 

Michigan State will open up their season at home against Florida Atlantic on August 30 at 7 p.m.