Harlon Barnett reiterates that he wants the Michigan State head coach job, hoping for an interview

East Lansing, Mich. – Interim Michigan State head football coach Harlon Barnett is not backing down from his hopes of being considered for the permanent position. During Monday’s press conference, possibly his last weekly presser in this role, he was asked what his pitch would be in advocating for himself for the job.

“As far as the job and wanting the job – and I do want this job as the head football coach – there is nobody that they can find that loves this place more than I do and I don’t think could do a better job,” Barnett said. “There is something about loving a place and caring about a place as opposed to just going there for a job. There is extra that will be done above and beyond, understanding the place. I understand what Michigan State is all about and our alumni and our fans. 

“That’s my deal. I am a Spartan. I bleed green and there’s nobody that they can find to do a better job; maybe equal to, but not better.” 

Barnett told the NBC broadcast crew prior to the Michigan State-Ohio State game on Nov. 11 that he was told he would get an interview. Barnett shed further light on that statement, Monday.

“I was told several weeks ago that I would get an opportunity to interview,” Barnett said. 

Sources told SpartanMag on Friday that a Barnett interview with Michigan State was expected to take place on Tuesday. 

Barnett indicated on Monday that none has been scheduled. 

“I do not have a specific date,” Barnett said. “So you know what I know right now.”

When asked if he wants an interview, Barnett said: “Oh yeah. I asked.”

SpartanMag has learned that Duke’s Mike Elko and Oregon State’s Jonathan Smith are among the top candidates that Michigan State is interviewing during the coach search process. There have been reports that Michigan State has also been in communication with Toledo’s Jason Candle, Arizona’s Jedd Fisch and North Carolina State’s Dave Doeren. 

Barnett took over as acting head coach at Michigan State when former head coach Mel Tucker was suspended from the job on Sept. 10 due to allegations of sexual harassment made by Brenda Tracy, who had been contracted by Tucker to speak to Michigan State’s football team about sexual assault awareness.

When Tucker was officially fired on Sept. 27, Barnett was elevated to interim head coach.

Michigan State is 2-7 with Barnett as acting and interim head coach, and 4-7 overall.  Michigan State will wrap up its regular season on Friday against Penn State at Ford Field in Detroit.

Michigan State has won two of its last three games, including Saturday’s 24-21 victory at Indiana.

“In this position, I’ve grown,” Barnett said. “Way back when I first started, I said there’s a rhythm to the way you do things. I have to catch this rhythm. There is a rhythm to how you do things. I finally caught the rhythm. 

“Once you catch the rhythm, you start doing pretty decent at it. Then you start to gain confidence. That’s kind of what has happened with me going through this and seeing what it’s all about and understanding you are not really a coach anymore, you’re more of a counselor. I’ve learned that.”

If Michigan State beats Penn State, there is an outside chance that Michigan State would be invited to a bowl game with a 5-7 record. If there are not enough bowl-eligible teams with 6-6 records in the FBS, teams with 5-7 records can be invited to fill vacant bowl slots. 

In 2015, Nebraska was invited to the Foster Farms Bowl with a 5-7 record, and defeated UCLA. 

Last year, Michigan State had a 5-7 record did not get a bowl invitation because there were enough FBS teams with bowl-eligible, 6-6 records.

Getting to 5-7 would require a major upset on Friday. Penn State is a 20-point favorite by some gambling corporations. 

If Michigan State beat Penn State, achieved a 5-7 record and earned a bowl invitation, would the Spartans – after a long, emotional, adverse year – accept a postseason bid?

“Good question,” Barnett said. “There hasn’t been any discussion on that. We haven’t discussed that. We just focus on the Penn State game. If that comes about, then we’ll talk about that when that happens.” 

Barnett, 56, played at Michigan State from 1986-89, including the Rose Bowl season of ’87.

He played four years in the NFL with the New England Patriots and Minnesota Vikings. 

He served as a graduate assistant for Nick Saban at LSU in 2003 and then became defensive backs coach for Mark Dantonio at the University of Cincinnati from 2004-06, and with Dantonio at Michigan State from 2007-14. 

He became assistant head coach and co-defensive coordinator for Dantonio at Michigan State from 2015-17. 

He left Michigan State to become sole defensive coordinator at Florida State for former head coach Willie Taggart from 2018-19, and then returned to Michigan State to be defensive backs coach for Tucker at Michigan State in 2020. 

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