Michigan State football: 3 Mel Tucker replacements to fix the program

2. Mike Tressel - DC, Wisconsin

Michigan State fans are more than familiar with Mike Tressel, beyond just him obviously being the brother of longtime Ohio State head coach Jim Tressel.

Tressel was a key figure on Mark Dantanio's staff in East Lansing from 2007-19, serving first as the linebackers and special teams coach for many years before being promoted to defensive coordinator. He was then retained by Mel Tucker as the safeties coach in 2020 but departed to join Luke Fickell's staff at Cincinnati -- where he previously coached with Dantonio -- the following season. Fickell then brought Tressel with him to Madison when he was hired by Wisconsin ahead of the 2023 season.

As such, Tressel is acutely aware of what's necessary to succeed as a Michigan State football program given the great seasons he was a part of under Dantonio. More importantly, he's not been a part of the precipitous decline for the Spartans that we've seen under Tucker in the past few seasons.

Tressel has never gotten a head coaching opportunity in his career, which will certainly be a talking point if he comes into consideration as a replacement for Tucker. At the same time, the success he's helped generate on the defensive side of the ball combined with his Michigan State experience and, let's face it, his last name could make him an attractive, albeit risky, hire for the Spartans to consider.