Michigan State football hires “future head coach” to replace Demetrice Martin

About a month after losing Demetrice Martin to UCLA, Michigan State football has finally found his replacement.

On Monday afternoon, the four-year anniversary of Kenneth Walker III announcing his transfer to Michigan State, the Spartans hired Wake Forest associate head coach James Adams as the team’s new safeties coach.

Don’t know much about Adams? That’s OK, well-connected insider Allen Trieu spoke to high school contacts about Adams who was touted as a good recruiter and a “slam dunk” hire. One contact even called Adams a “future head coach”.

Hearing really good reviews as a recruiter among my high school contacts. One called him a "slam dunk" and a "future head coach." https://t.co/eDoX3eQNYH

— Allen Trieu (@AllenTrieu) January 6, 2025

Adams spent the last three years coaching safeties at his alma mater. He also was just promoted to associate head coach before the 2024 season which happened to be Dave Clawson’s last in Winston-Salem as he announced he would be stepping down after the season.

This move opened up the discussion for Adams to pursue different opportunities and Michigan State came calling.

Jonathan Smith had just lost Martin to UCLA and he was looking for a young guy who could recruit at a high level and he landed on Adams from Wake Forst. He also had stops at Navy, Charlotte, and Purdue where he helped each program’s secondary improve.

Hearing that Adams is not only a good recruiter but a “slam dunk” who will likely be a head coach somewhere some day makes me think that Smith truly nailed this hire. He found the perfect guy to replace arguably his best recruiter who seemed to draw plenty of interest every recruiting cycle. Now with Blue Adams and James Adams, this secondary is in good hands.

The Spartans’ staff has rebounded nicely from losing one of its top guys.

With the talent coming in via the transfer portal and 2025 recruiting class to the secondary, it feels like Adams has plenty to work with and some room to grow as an assistant in East Lansing.