Michigan State football staff under new coach Pat Fitzgerald
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Here is a look at how new coach Pat Fitzgerald is assembling his Michigan State football staff, according to various reports. The school has not officially announced any of the moves as of Monday, Dec. 15.
Co-defensive coordinator: Joe Rossi (retained)
Previous coach Jonathan Smith hired Rossi away from Minnesota before the 2024 season after the Pittsburgh native spent seven seasons with the Gophers. Rossi also coached linebackers the past two seasons but will cede those responsibilities under Fitzgerald.
Co-defensive coordinator/linebackers: Max Bullough (from Notre Dame)
Fitzgerald is bringing in the former MSU All-American linebacker and rising coaching star to work alongside Rossi. Bullough, who coached his former position group with the Irish the past two seasons, will also take on that same role with the Spartans. The Traverse City native has updated his X bio with his new roles at MSU.
Defensive line: Winston DeLattiboudere III (from Arizona Cardinals)
The former Minnesota defensive end played under Rossi (2015-19) and served on his staff coaching defensive linemen with the Gophers in 2023. After Rossi left for MSU, P.J. Fleck promoted DeLattiboudere to assistant head coach in 2024. The 27-year-old DeLattiboudere also worked at Akron after serving as a graduate assistant at Charlotte and Oregon and had two NFL fellowships with Green Bay and Jacksonville. Legi Suianuoa, who followed Smith from Oregon State, coached MSU’s interior defensive linemen the past two seasons, while Chad Wilt mentored the Spartans’ edge rushers.
Tight ends: Brian Wozniak (retained)
The Loveland, Ohio, native and former Wisconsin tight end arrived at MSU with Smith from Oregon State in 2024 and served as both a position coach and recruiting coordinator. Wozniak played for the Badgers from 2009-13 under Bret Bielema (now the coach at Illinois) and Gary Andersen (for one year). His only coaching jobs have been under Smith, starting as a graduate assistant with the Beavers in 2015 and spending six seasons coaching tight ends in Corvallis before following him to East Lansing.
Strength/conditioning: Joel Welsh (from Central Michigan)
Welsh spent the past five years with the Chippewas after three years at Delaware State and four years as an assistant at Iowa (2012-16). He would replace Mike McDonald, who arrived with Smith from Oregon State in 2024. Welsh has updated his X bio with his new roles at MSU.
Chief of staff: Jacob Schmidt (from Northwestern)
A former walk-on running back and two-time captain under Fitzgerald with the Wildcats (2007-11), Schmidt immediately joined Northwestern’s staff in 2012 after he graduated and rose to director of operations after nine seasons as director of player development. He joined the school’s NIL collective, TruNU, in 2022 and has been in that position the past three years. Schmidt has updated his X bio to include his new role at MSU.
This will be updated as Fitzgerald’s staff comes together.
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State football coaching staff updates under Pat Fitzgerald
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