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Jonathan Smith left his position as head coach at Oregon State on Saturday to take up the head coaching role at Michigan State. The move was announced just a few hours after both programs completed their 2023 regular-season campaigns.
Smith led No. 15 Oregon State (8-4, 5-4) to a fourth-place finish in the Pac-12 in his final season with the team. The Beavers lost their last two regular-season games against No. 4 Washington and No. 6 Oregon.
Smith spent six seasons as the head coach of Oregon State. He will replace Mel Tucker as the new head coach for the Michigan State Spartans heading into the 2024 season.
The Spartans fired Tucker on Sept. 27 after he admitted to improprieties on an April 2022 phone call with Brenda Tracy.
Exploring potential reasons why Jonathan Smith left Oregon State
According to reports, Jonathan Smith opted against signing a new contract with Oregon State to take up the job at Michigan State. The potential new deal also came with a pay raise. In a statement, OSU athletic director Scott Barnes said:
“Coach Smith has shared that he has accepted the position of Head Coach at Michigan State. His decision follows weeks of conversations during which he expressed his support for Oregon State’s short- and long-term plans and appreciation for the efforts Oregon State made to provide him with a new contract and guaranteed compensation."
There are suggestions that Smith's decision to join Michigan State might not be motivated by money. However, sources from 247Sports claim that Smith will be given a larger assistant coach salary pool than Mel Tucker had during his time with the Spartans.
Another reason behind Smith's decision to join Michigan State (4-8, 2-7) would be the challenge of proving himself in a different conference. The Spartans had a torrid season in 2023, finishing sixth in the B10 East.
Smith has shown that he can build a program from scratch and it appears that he will have his work cut out at Michigan State.
