Katin Houser is coming back to Spartan Stadium on Saturday, and this time he’ll be wearing orange and blue.
That alone gives the matchup a familiar twist, but the bigger story is how much has changed since Houser last lined up under center for Michigan State. In the span since 2022, Spartan Stadium has seen just five Big Ten wins, and one of them came with Houser at quarterback.
His run in East Lansing came during a stretch of upheaval. Michigan State opened the 2023 season 2-0, then head coach Mel Tucker was fired for cause and Harlon Barnett took over as interim coach for the final 10 games. After Noah Kim struggled through the first five weeks, Houser, then a freshman, started the final seven games.
He went 2-5 as a starter and helped Michigan State beat Indiana 24-21, the Spartans’ last win over a rival. Houser finished that season with 1,130 passing yards, six touchdowns and five interceptions, while also scoring twice on the ground.
At the time, there was plenty of reason to think he might be the next quarterback in line for the Spartans. Houser arrived as a four-star recruit, according to 247Sports, and had seven starts as a freshman.
But the fit did not last. Two days after MSU hired Jonathan Smith on Nov.
25, Houser announced he was entering the transfer portal, with Aidan Chiles expected to follow Smith from Oregon State. Houser was one of three Michigan State quarterbacks to transfer that offseason, joining Kim and then-freshman Sam Leavitt, now a top NFL draft prospect at LSU.
Since Houser left, Michigan State has kept changing around him, especially at the top. The program has had two head coaches in three years. The results have been mixed at best: a 5-7 season in 2024, a 4-8 finish last season with only one Big Ten win, and a 2-3 start this year.
Houser, meanwhile, has kept building. He enters Saturday with 31 career starts, the fifth most in the Big Ten.
After transferring, he landed at East Carolina and started seven games in 2024, going 5-2 while throwing for 2,006 yards, 18 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. In 2025, he finally got a full season as a junior and delivered 3,300 passing yards, 19 touchdowns, six interceptions and nine rushing scores across 12 games, helping lead the Pirates to an 8-4 regular season.
Now with Illinois, Houser has opened this season with 1,246 passing yards, 11 touchdowns and three interceptions through five games. He has also rushed for 106 yards and a touchdown.
“You look at last week, put together a couple really spectacular drives with his arm and then extended plays with his legs,” MSU head coach Pat Fitzgerald said at Monday’s press conference. “He’s played pretty dang clean.”
Houser still hasn’t picked up a Big Ten win with Illinois, and Saturday offers him a shot to get one in the same stadium where he earned his first career victory in 2023.
Michigan State, now 2-3, will try to keep its Homecoming crowd happy by beating Illinois, also 2-3. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Spartan Stadium, with the game airing on FS1.
In Other News...
Michigan State Faces New Lineup Uncertainty In Critical Illinois Week
Michigan States prep for a pivotal Big Ten matchup against Illinois got a little clearer, and a little more complicated, when the schools released their initial player availability reports ahead of the game. The Spartans already know they will be without linebacker Caleb Wheatland because of injury, while Cam Fancher, Tre Bell and Jordan Hall all landed in the questionable category as the week heads toward kickoff.
Illinois, meanwhile, has its own availability questions to sort through, with running back Ca'Lil Valentine ruled out, defensive back Tywan Cox listed as doubtful and guard Champ Smith tagged questionable. For Michigan State, the report adds another layer of uncertainty in a game where depth and availability could matter just as much as game plan, especially with both sides still awaiting final word on a few key names. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State Gets A Revealing Look At Illinois Before Homecoming
Michigan States upcoming homecoming opponent comes into the matchup carrying plenty of conversation points, and a fresh look at Illinois makes clear why the Spartans cannot treat this as a routine conference week. An interview with Isaac Ambrose of The Champaign Room painted the Fighting Illini as a team still working through the pressure of heightened expectations, with questions around quarterback Katin Housers play and a supporting cast that has had to shoulder different kinds of responsibility as the season has unfolded.
The more revealing part for Michigan State is on the other side of the ball, where Illinois has had to navigate both injuries and changes in how the defense is being run. Ambrose touched on those complications, along with the recent coaching turnover that has altered the backdrop for the Illini heading into East Lansing. For a Spartan team trying to get a read on what kind of test it will face, the interview offered a useful snapshot, but also left enough uncertainty to make Saturdays matchup worth watching closely. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State Is Sending A Clearer Message About Football Money
Michigan State athletic director Dan Bartholomew is making the case that football funding needs to be a more visible priority, and he did it in a letter aimed directly at fans. In it, he laid out why the program needs stronger backing, pointing to the dollars required for roster development and stadium renovations while tying those needs to the departments broader push through Spartan Ventures and the For Sparta campaign.
The message also comes with a bigger-picture legislative angle, as Bartholomew noted the possible effect of the Protect College Sports Act on athletics revenue-sharing rules. For a program trying to keep pace in a changing model, the issue is not just how much money can be raised, but how clearly the department communicates where it is going and why it matters. [Read more 🡒]