Meet New Michigan State University Spartans Head Football Coach Pat Fitzgerald

photo credit: The State NewsMichigan State University introduced new Head Football Coach Pat Fitzgerald to Spartan Nation at an introductory press conference on December 2 in the Greg and Dawn Williams Lobby of the Tom Izzo Football Building on the MSU campus.Conversation Highlights:(0:00) – Opening remarks from Athletic Director J Batt(3:59) – Remarks from President Kevin Guskiewicz(8:58) – Remarks from Coach Pat FitzgeraldQuestions from the media:(18:05) – How hungry are you to succeed?(19:45) – How are you prepared to handle the changing and evolving landscape of college football?(21:04) – When is the first time you thought about coaching MSU?(22:10) – For J Batt – how early on did you identify Pat as the guy? How quickly will we see his impact on the field?(23:17) – What did you learn from your Northwestern experience and how will that make you a better coach at MSU?(24:30) – What are the resources available to you, and what resources do you need to succeed?(25:25) – What’s your message to MSU students?(26:58) – For Kevin and J – When and how did you decide to change coaches?(29:08) – How important are these next five days for you?(31:35) – What traits will you look for in your coaching staff?(33:26) – When did it click for you that MSU was the place for you?(35:23) – Was it an advantage in a way to be away from the game for awhile?Listen to “MSU Today with Russ White” on the radio and through Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your shows. Conversation Transcript:J Batt (00:00):Well, good afternoon. Good afternoon. Welcome to everyone today, our head coaches that are with us, our donors, our athletic department staff, media members, so glad to see you and many of our special guests in particular. Welcome to the Fitzgerald family. We're so glad you're here. Welcome. It is indeed a great day to be a Spartan. We are excited you're here and ready for a tremendous start to the next chapter of Michigan State Football. Before I get into today's news, I'd like to thank Jonathan Smith for the first class manner in which he represented Michigan State and the professional classy manner. He's handled this transition. We certainly wish him well and his family well and their future endeavors, but as I said, today marks the start of a new era of Michigan State football. Spartan football has a proud history of national championships, big 10 Championships, rose Bowl, CFP appearances and much of that success is recent. (01:08):More importantly, Spartan football is defined by its people, the student athletes and coaches that have built this program and the loyal passionate fan base that fill Spartan Stadium each and every week is with them in mind that I set about making sure we had the right coach to lead our program. Transitions are always difficult and throughout the process I continually focused on what I believe was in the best long-term interest of our programs. I wanted a coach who was a proven winner, a coach of integrity and intensity, someone with a formula for success on the field and a plan of attack in a continually evolving landscape, someone who could effectively and efficiently use the resources they were provided. Fit was also important as we set out on this search. Someone who understands the Big 10 and has relationships through the Midwest, a coach who embodies the values on which our program was built. (02:07):Perhaps most importantly, someone who shares our standard of excellence and aggressively pursues that excellence each and every day. I was looking for someone who would partner as we continue to elevate not just Michigan State football, but our entire athletic department, someone who would share our fundraising vision. Some of you may have seen we launched a $1 billion capital initiative today, so a few renderings of the east side of Spartan Stadium. Pretty excited about that and it certainly gave me chills to see that rendering for the first time and hopefully he did the same for you as we went through this list of criteria. Pat Fitzgerald met every criteria. He's a passionate winner. He understands the Big 10 in college football here in the Midwest. We have a shared vision for building championships and returning this program to its elite level of success. At the same time, we have an obligation as a department to the football program. (03:02):We are fully committed to providing the resources and infrastructure required to compete at the highest lever. Nearly six months ago, almost to the day, I stood in this exact same spot and shared that my vision for reestablishing Michigan State Athletics as a top 10 athletic department. I also spoke about the importance of Michigan State football and what is required for us to reach that goal. To reach that level of success requires alignment at every level. I'd like to publicly thank President Gussy and our board of trustees for their support of our department through this transition and throughout the year also being a great partner as we work towards our common goals. They have certainly positioned us well for success in years to come and is in that spirit of alignment that I'd like to welcome the stage our president, Dr. Kevin Skow. Kevin Guskiewicz (04:00):Thanks Jay and it's an honor to be here Today I want to take this opportunity to welcome the Fitzgerald family to our family here in East Lansing to Michigan State University State, Jack, Brendan, and I know that Ryan, I think is off at football practice across the lake. You're going to love the family that you are joining today. I want to also take this opportunity to welcome two of our board of trustees members, Renee Kki Jefferson and Dennis Deno who are with us today. I see Dennis and Trustee Kki Jefferson is here somewhere I think, but thank you for your support in supporting this transition. I also want to take the opportunity as Jay Bat has already done, and that is to thank Jonathan Smith for his contributions to Michigan State University and his family for being part of this community and he is indeed a class act and I know we will continue to try to support him and his family even on a wintry day like today. (05:01):I'm sure that Coach Fitz, as he has said, he likes to be called Coach Fitz. I'm going to work on that and his family will discover the warmth of our Michigan State community much in the same way that Amy and our family did when we visited this campus nearly two years to the day when it was much like this with a little snow on the ground, but it's warmth that's as I like to say, kindled by our passionate campus and a Spartan community and all those many who are in the room today who are dedicated to making a difference on the field and beyond, and that's the way we develop talent here at Michigan State University. I'm excited for what Coach Fitzgerald's addition to our athletics program will do not only for Spartan football but for our entire campus. Pat Fitzgerald is a p...