Michigan State Football: Brady Pretzlaff impresses coaching staff vs. Toledo

It is no secret that Michigan State was in dire need of an all-around reset after former head coach Jonathan Smith was fired last year.

Pat Fitzgerald was brought in turn around the Spartan football program in early December of 2025. His arrival brought a ton of new faces to East Lansing. A practically brand-new energetic and young coaching staff as well as 32 new transfers on both sides of the ball injected new life into the green and white.

Fast forward to the present day and the Spartans first game was highlighted by newcomers such as Kenny Soares Jr. with a first-half interception, and former UConn running back Cam Edwards rushing for almost 100 yards in his debut game.

One player stood out to Fitzgerald on Friday night however, and it may be someone that not every Spartan fan would have expected heading into the game.

From Injured List to Rising Star

During his Monday press conference, Pat Fitzgerald mentioned redshirt sophomore linebacker Brady Pretzlaff as as Spartan who was a bright future ahead of him.

“Brady I think is just going to be just an outstanding linebacker in this league,” Fitzgerald told members of the media. “Having the game taken away from him has highly-motivated him.”

Pretzlaff is coming off of his redshirt freshman season that was derailed quickly due to an injury during the Spartans’ week three game against Youngstown State. The redshirt sophomore finished 2025 with only four tackles and two pass breakups, but that is not what Fitzgerald and rest of his defensive staff sees in the young starter.

In Pretzlaff’s first game of 2026, the linebacker started and totaled five tackles in MSU’s first game of the season. During the contest, the Gaylord, Mich., native was only off the field for one defensive snap.

“I thought he was very active on Friday night, and it has been a ton of fun to watch him work,” Fitzgerald said.

Later in his quotes, the former All-Big Ten linebacker-turned-head coach saw a bright future ahead of Pretzlaff. In his last quotes about his young linebacker, Fitzgerald gave a warning to the rest of the league.

“He’s not even scratched the surface of how good he can be,” Fitzgerald said.

The Spartans look towards their next opponent this upcoming weekend in Eastern Michigan. Pretzlaff will have yet another opportunity to prove his worth as a starter on this Michigan State defense.