Michigan State AD Alan Haller has gotten every head coaching hire right

Michigan State athletic director Alan Haller continues to make the right hires and his recent resume speak for itself.

Michigan State athletic director Alan Haller has a very difficult job, as does any from any university. They constantly have many issues and problems that they need to take care of that fans don’t even realize.

But the thing that matters most to the public and fans is who they are hiring as head coach of their sports teams.

Haller was promoted to this position on Sept. 1, 2021. Since then, he has had to make countless head coach hires during his short two-year tenure. Hiring a head coach is an extremely difficult thing to do. Even if the coach has a lot of experience elsewhere, there’s no guarantee that translates when they get to their new team.

However, Haller has knocked it out of the park with each head coaching hire he has made so far.

MSU Hockey — Adam Nightingale

This arguably is the best new head coach that Haller has hired so far. Michigan State hockey was in a tough spot for over a decade. After winning the national championship in 2007, they went into a downward spiral only making the NCAA Tournament twice since winning it all.

Enter Adam Nightingale.

Nightingale was hired in May of 2022 and immediately turned the program around. The Spartans had a fantastic season last year, including a six-win improvement from the prior season. MSU also won its first-ever Big Ten Tournament series. Unfortunately, the Spartans finished one spot short in the NCAA Tournament being the first team left out.

This season has been even better as the Spartans are currently No. 7 in the country. They also lead the Big Ten in the conference standings as well. An NCAA Tournament berth for the first time since 2012 is very likely and would be a massive milestone for this program. Recruiting has also vastly improved as well, so it appears Michigan State will be at the top of college hockey for many years to come.

MSU women’s basketball — Robyn Fralick

MSU women’s basketball is next on the list of amazing hires by Alan Haller. Robyn Fralick is in her first year as head coach and she already has the Spartans off to their best start in recent history.

In the last two seasons, MSU finished around .500 and failed to make the NCAA Tournament. However, this year the Spartans are 11-3 and nearly beat the No. 4 team in the country on Tuesday.

The jury is still out on this hire as it only seems fair to wait until an entire season is complete. But all signs are pointing to a much-improved team and another great hire by Haller.

MSU women’s soccer — Jeff Hosler

This is another example of a masterful hire by Haller. MSU women’s soccer is arguably finding its greatest success in program history right now.

Jeff Hosler became the head coach in 2021 and has coached two seasons so far in East Lansing. The Spartans won the Big Ten in both seasons under Hosler and most recently made a run to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament this fall.

Hosler also won Big Ten Coach of the Year in 2022, further cementing just how impactful his presence in East Lansing has been.

MSU men’s tennis — Harry Jadun

Harry Jadun became the head coach in June 2022 and has quickly turned the MSU men’s tennis program around. In his first season in charge, Jadun led the Spartans to an 11-14 record and a 3-6 Big Ten record. This may not sound that great, but it’s the most Big Ten wins for MSU since 2015.

Heading into this season, the Spartans are No. 24 in the preseason national poll. This is the highest ranking in program history and only the second time they have ever cracked the top 40. No. 24 is third-best in the conference, so expectations are starting to rise for this program.

MSU football — Jonathan Smith

The jury is still out on new head coach Jonathan Smith. He became the head coach one month ago, so we need to wait and see what happens on the field. But all signs so far point towards this being another home run hire.

MSU football’s 2024 recruiting class was practically empty when Smith was hired. But he went to work and put together a very respectable recruiting class in a short amount of time. He also has done an excellent job at working the transfer portal, both by winning recruitments from new transfers and keeping many players in East Lansing.

If his time at Oregon State tells us anything, MSU football should be back soon.

Alan Haller, in his short time as athletic director, has done a great job at revamping many of our sports teams. My confidence in him is at an all-time high and I’ll never doubt a new head coaching hire he has to make ever again.