New Michigan State football head coach Pat Fitzgerald is in the midst of putting together his first coaching staff in East Lansing. After retaining Joe Rossi as the school's defensive coordinator, it is now time for the Spartan head man to turn his attention to the offensive coordinator position.
Majority of the MSU fan base would argue that the offensive coordinator hire is the most important hire that Fitzgerald will make in his time in East Lansing.
Last week, Spartans Wire speculated about five candidates that Fitzgerald could consider for the position, and that is what we are going to do once again.
There is still not a ton of intel on what direction Fitzgerald is going, and what candidates have emerged as favorites, but there has been some vibes surrounding some certain candidates. As of now, we do know Jason Candle was in contention, but he is now off the board following his acceptance of the UConn job.
The massive hire is approaching, and Fitzgerald is preparing to finalize this hire before portal season. Here are five names that could make sense for the job:
Andy Kotelnicki (Penn State OC)
One of the hottest offensive coordinator names in the industry, Kotelnicki had linked with James Franklin and Penn State the last two years, but obviously the situation did not work out. Kotelnicki will not be going with Franklin to Virginia Tech, and is on the market.
His come up came with success at Buffalo (2015-2020) and Kansas (2021-2023), and has made himself a big name. Many don't blame him for Penn State's downfall, and with his offensive creativity, he would be the perfect flavor to bring into Michigan State.
Kotelnicki will have options, and the Spartans should make themselves one of those options.
Tyler Bowen (Ohio State OL coach/Run Game Coordinator)
An interesting name that could find himself at the top of Fitzgerald's list, Tyler Bowen was a big offseason addition for the Buckeyes a year ago, and could be one for the Spartans this offseason.
The 36-year old Bowen has extensive experience in the power conferences already, spending 2017 with Maryland as an offensive line coach before going to Penn State from 2018-2020. A one year stint with Urban Meyer and the Jacksonville Jaguars preceded a three year run as the offensive coordinator of Virginia Tech.
Fitzgerald and Bowen obviously do not have a working relationship together, but are almost guaranteed to of known one another working in the Big Ten against each other. He has experience calling plays, and is known as a very good recruiter, while giving additional OL experience to an MSU team that desperately needs it.
Chandler Whitmer (Indiana co-OC/QBs coach)
One of the hottest names in the industry, Chandler Whitmer is a name that schools all over are going to try and poach for offensive coordinator vacancies.
A QB at UConn, he has risen amongst the coaching ranks very quickly. Spending a season at both Ohio State and Clemson as a graduate assistant, he moved on to the NFL ranks as an offensive quality control coach with the Los Angeles Chargers from 2021-2023. He moved on to the Atlanta Falcons as a pass game specialist for the 2024 season, prior to joining the Hoosiers staff in 2025 as a QB coach and co-offensive coordinator.
There obviously is not a true connection to Fitzgerald here, but there is no doubt that Fitzgerald is aware of Whitmer.
Ryan Carty (Delaware HC)
Ryan Carty is the head coach at Delaware, and is a young coach on the market that is catching the attention of many in the industry.
During his two tenures as an offensive coordinator with New Hampshire (2012-2017) and Sam Houston State (2018-2021), he was known to have innovative and creative offensive schemes, and that has only continued when he took over as the head man at Delaware. In four years as the Delaware head coach, he has compiled a 32-17 record.
Carty is a Delaware alum, and I am sure is in no rush to leave his alma mater, but he is surely looking to move up the coaching ranks in his career. He lacks power conference experience, and latching on as an offensive coordinator at a power conference school would be the perfect ice breaker.
Carty makes just over $530,000 at Delaware, a figure the Spartans would most likely also add a million dollars on top of.
Kyle Flood (Texas OC/OL coach)
The most unlikely name on the list, Flood is by far the most qualified candidate for the job. Working under Steve Sarkisian at Texas, Flood is a part of one of the best offensive operations in the country.
Flood has a lot of familiarity with the Spartans staff, though, spending 2005-2015 with Rutgers as an OL coach, offensive coordinator and assistant head coach, before being the head coach from 2012-2015. He has since worked a an assistant OL coach with the Atlanta Falcons for two years, Alabama as an OL coach and now Texas.
While a head coach at Rutgers, Flood hired Joe Rossi to be his DC, giving him a direct connection to the Spartans, while certainly having a working relationship with Fitzgerald as fellow head coaches.
Obviously, this move would be a massive one, and does not seem totally feasible, but we can make a connection.
Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan State news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Cory Linsner on X @Rex_Linzy
This article originally appeared on Spartans Wire: Five additional OC candidates Michigan State could pursue