Report: Harlon Barnett won't stay on as Michigan State assistant coach
East Lansing, Mich. – Former Michigan State interim head coach and longtime Spartan assistant Harlon Barnett will not be retained as part off Jonathan Smith’s coaching staff, Graham Couch of the Lansing State Journal reported in a column on Thursday afternoon.
Barnett served as interim coach for the final 10 games of the 2023 season after former head coach Mel Tucker was suspended and later fired due to allegations of sexual misconduct.
Barnett pursued the head coaching job at Michigan State, but was not strongly considered as the 2023 season continued to cascade downhill.
Barnett hustled and strained to keep the roster together in order to merely field a team in November, with dozens of players considering opting out on the remainder of the season, as the season progressed. Barnett piloted Michigan State to a 4-8 season, including a 2-2 record in November, culminating in a 42-0 loss to Penn State on Nov. 24.
When Smith was hired in late November, Barnett informed players that he had been told he would be remaining with the team, in a role to be determined. Nearly a month later, his role hadn’t been finalized. On Thursday, Barnett told the Lansing State Journal he is ready to move on.
“After 20 football seasons at Michigan State, five as a player, 15 as a coach, my time is up,” Barnett told Couch. Couch sent out that quote on social media, Thursday afternoon.
Smith has two assistant coaching vacancies to fill. As of Wednesday, Barnett had not been hired for one of them in an official capacity.
During Wednesday’s Signing Day press conference, Smith was asked about Barnett’s status as a candidate for one of the assistant coaching job vacancies.
“Yet to be determined on Harlon,” Smith said. “He has opportunities for options, and we’ll see where it lands.”
Sources tell SpartanMag that Barnett has been seeking coaching opportunities nationally, after his interim head coaching stint ended at Michigan State. With the national coaches convention coming up in January, there were thoughts that Barnett would like to wait until the convention to see what avenues were available.
Smith complimented Barnett for helping Smith and the new coaching staff become informed about previous Michigan State commitments who signed on Wednesday, and other intel on the roster.
“On Harlon’s end, he has been helpful as well,” Smith said. “We have met with him now a couple of times, just getting the landscape and his approach.”
A source tells SpartanMag that Smith met with Barnett on Friday, but the two sides apparently moved no closer in either person’s vision for Barnett having an on-field role as an assistant at Michigan State going forward.
Barnett played at Michigan State from 1986 top 1989. He played in the NFL from 1990 to 1996.
He began his college coaching career for Nick Saban as a graduate assistant at LSU in 2003. He became defensive backs coach for Mark Dantonio at the University of Cincinnati from 2004-06, and came to Michigan State with Dantonio in the same capacity from 2007-14.
He became co-defensive coordinator, along with Mike Tressel, for Dantonio at Michigan State from 2015-17.
He left Michigan State to become defensive coordinator at Florida State from 2018-19.
After head coach Willie Taggart was fired at FSU, Barnett returned to Michigan State as defensive backs coach for Mel Tucker from 2020-23.
As a player and coach, he was part of four Big Ten Championship teams at Michigan State, and two Rose Bowl appearances.
