Michigan State Hiring Giants Coach Bret Bielema?
Michigan State Hiring Giants Coach Bret Bielema?
Michigan State Hiring Giants Coach Bret Bielema?
Is Michigan State hiring Giants coach Bret Bielema to take over for Mark Dantonio?
That may be the Spartans’ only real option at this point.
This past weekend, Michigan State met with Cincinnati head football coach Luke Fickell.
It was no secret that Fickell was the program’s top choice to replace Dantonio. Its ability to actually get him would have been very telling in terms of where the school’s desirability level currently is.
Turns out, it is not in a good place.
Fickell rejected the Spartans on Monday, and in doing so became the fourth head coach to deny the school in some capacity on its hunt to fill its vacant position at the top of the football program.
On Monday morning, Fox Sports college football insider suggested that Bielema may be the next logical target for Michigan State at this stage.
Michigan State should hire Bret Bielema. He is 68-24 overall and 37-19 in Big Ten play. He would bring the kind of mentality to the Spartans that has been proven to work in the past and has the NFL connections that… https://t.co/JGMJWCy3uP
— Barrett Sallee (@BarrettSallee) February 10, 2020
Per Feldman, Bielema has a “big presence” and would “re-energize” the fan base – although the validity of that assessment is certainly debatable.
What is not debatable, however, is that for all of Bielema’s lack of success in the SEC – he was a quality Big Ten coach. In his last four years with Wisconsin, Bielema recorded 40 victories. That is nothing to sneeze at.
“Wouldn’t be surprised if Michigan State made a run at Giants assistant Bret Bielema,” Feldman tweeted out.
“He’s a proven winner at the Big Ten level. Has a big presence and would re-energize that fan base in a hurry.”
CBS Sports college football insider Barrett Sallee shared a similar sentiment.
“Michigan State should hire Bret Bielema. He is 68-24 overall and 37-19 in Big Ten play,” he wrote.
“He would bring the kind of mentality to the Spartans that has been proven to work in the past and has the NFL connections that can be attractive to prospects.”
Bielema was recently signed to Joe Judge’s Giants staff to serve as a defensive assistant. That said, Judge knows how this game works. Assistants in the NFL stick around just long enough to find better jobs – and in Bielema’s case it did not take particularly long.
Bielema’s time at Arkansas definitely took some shine off his one-time rising star status, but he was still a very capable coach with the Badgers. That cannot be denied.
Given the lack of options Michigan State has right now, all the program is really choosing between now is Bielema and one of Dantonio’s inept assistant coaches.
Faced with a decision like that, Bielema does not seem too bad of an option at all.
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A graduate from the University of Texas, Anthony Amador has been credentialed to cover the Houston Texans, Dallas Cowboys, San Antonio Spurs, Dallas Mavericks and high school games all over the Lone Star State. Currently, his primary beats are the NBA, MLB, NFL and UFC.
