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Michigan State may have waited to fire Jonathan Smith until after the season, but the program knew ahead of time who it wants to take over. Michigan State plans to hire former Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald to lead its football program, a source close to the matter indicated to The Detroit News on Sunday.

Fitzgerald, 50, most recently coached at Northwestern, where he amassed a 110-101 overall record, 65-76 in the Big Ten, over 17 seasons before his 2023 firing amid a hazing scandal. He was the Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2018 and Bobby Dodd Coach of the Year in 2020.

A former linebacker at Northwestern, Fitzgerald rose quickly up the coaching ranks, becoming head coach after just six seasons as a position coach when Northwestern predeces

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