EAST LANSING — Jonathan Smith had a surprise rivalry week guest for fans at his weekly radio show.
Tom Izzo.
Michigan State football’s somewhat embattled coach – mired in a four-game losing streak and off to an 8-11 start to his tenure with the Spartans – got a voice of support and pep talk from the legendary basketball coach on Wednesday, Oct. 22.
“I did it in an era that was normal. This era is not normal to try to rebuild the program,” Izzo said during the show at OneNorth Kitchen & Bar near campus. “Everybody thinks because of the portal it’s easier. I told Jonathan this morning, until you get your culture right, it doesn’t matter who you bring in. It’s hard. …
“We all go through it, it’s part of the process. And I swear it – I don’t know about you, Jonathan – but every day I tell my players, ‘You gotta embrace the process, it takes time, you gotta embrace the process.’ And anything that’s quick-fix is probably not long-lasting. And so the process takes time.”
MSU (3-4, 0-4 Big Ten) hosts No. 24 Michigan (5-2, 3-1) in the 118th meeting between the rivals Saturday (7:30 p.m., NBC).
As he did during his own media day availability last week, Izzo pointed to his first few seasons as MSU’s head coach after spending 12 years as a Jud Heathcote assistant. There were plenty of rumblings in his first two seasons that he wasn’t the right fit to replace his mentor. Then, after losses to UIC and Detroit Mercy during the first month of 1997-98, his third year, Izzo thought he might get fired.
Instead, MSU won the Big Ten title and advanced to the Sweet 16 in Izzo’s first NCAA tournament appearance. The Spartans made the Final Four and win the Big Ten in each of the following three seasons, including winning Izzo’s national championship in 2000.
Putting that reminder and message into MSU fans’ minds was the reason Izzo visited Smith’s show, he said.
“The natives were a little restless. And I understood it. My wife had me sleep in the garage,” he said. “But things got turned around. … Because of that, I just have a great appreciation for what coaches go through. You know what? Things turn around, too. That’s what rivalry games are for.
“The focus is off the charts. You remember when you played. There’s nothing like a locker room at this time of year, it’s like sacred ground. And so I’m all in, man.”
Smith said Izzo’s appearance and support “means a ton, it really does.”
“Oftentimes, football coaches and basketball coaches, they’re not getting along,” said Smith, who is in his second year at MSU after six years coaching his alma mater, Oregon State. “All of a sudden, we gotta be sharing resources, sharing attention maybe to that extent. So for him to come out here and spend a little time with us and speak to some of the things we’re continuing to work on, it means a lot, coach.”
There are plenty of parallels between Izzo and Smith’s careers.
Like Izzo was at Northern Michigan in basketball, Smith was a walk-on when he arrived as a quarterback at Oregon State in 1997. Like Izzo, who was a Division II All-America point guard as a senior in 1977, Smith built himself into a star, starting four seasons with the Beavers and setting multiple school passing records from 1998-2001 before going into coaching.
Unlike Smith, who is experiencing just his second MSU-Michigan week, though, this will be the 43rd for Izzo since arriving as a graduate assistant coach in 1983.
“It means the Hatfield and the McCoys,” he said of the rivalry. “Some of our goofy media always ask me, ‘How do you feel about Michigan?’ I always answer them, ‘Well, how do you feel about your wife’s ex-boyfriend? Are you gonna like the guy or what?’
“You respect them. But this is special. And I think Jonathan already knows part of it.”
Contact Chris Solari: csolari@freepress.com. Follow him @chrissolari.
Subscribe to the “Spartan Speak” podcast for new episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or anywhere you listen to podcasts.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Tom Izzo voices support for Michigan State football coach Jonathan Smith: ‘It takes time’
Reporting by Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
