Michigan State’s schedule has turned into a strange little reunion tour, and Saturday’s matchup with Illinois adds another familiar face to the mix.
Katin Houser is the second former Spartan starting quarterback to come back through East Lansing this season, with Illinois set for a 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff on FS1.
Noah Kim already made his return in Week 2 with Eastern Michigan, and Aidan Chiles and Northwestern are next week. Houser’s route back to Spartan Stadium has been a winding one, but he arrives this time as a much different quarterback than the one Michigan State once had in-house.
When Houser signed with Michigan State, he was a highly regarded recruit: a four-star prospect, ranked No. 215 overall and No. 14 among quarterbacks in the 2022 class by the 247Sports Composite. Like most freshmen, he spent his first season learning behind the veterans. In 2022, he attempted just two passes while sitting behind Payton Thorne and Kim on the depth chart.
The opportunity finally opened in 2023. Kim began the season as the starter, but once the schedule got tougher, Michigan State needed a change. Houser got his first start in the Spartans’ sixth game of the year and stayed in the lineup the rest of the way.
That run didn’t last into the next regime. Once Jonathan Smith took over, it was hard to see Houser staying on as QB1, especially with Smith bringing Chiles with him. Houser, Kim, and then-true freshman Sam Leavitt all entered the transfer portal.
Houser ended up at East Carolina, where the first year brought its own chaos. He lost an initial quarterback battle, then watched ECU fire its head coach seven games into the season.
The quarterback who beat him out, Jake Garcia, was later benched as well. Houser eventually stepped in and gave the Pirates a jolt, starting their final seven games.
East Carolina went 5-1 after the coaching change, and the season ended with a Power Four win over N.C. State in the Military Bowl.
The Pirates kept interim head coach Blake Harrell, and Houser stayed too. In 2025, he put together the best season of his career, throwing for 3,300 yards with 19 touchdowns and six interceptions as East Carolina went 8-4 in the regular season.
That performance pushed him back into the Power Four picture. When he entered the portal again, On3 ranked him as the No. 16 quarterback available and No. 135 overall.
So far at Illinois, Houser has looked like a solid Big Ten starter. He’s had some misses, the kind that show up when a quarterback leaves throws on the field, but he’s also clearly grown since his Michigan State and East Carolina days. Through five games and five starts, he has 1,246 passing yards, which ranks sixth in the Big Ten, along with 11 touchdown passes, good for fifth, and three interceptions.
Illinois has put up 30.6 points per game, which ranks 11th in the Big Ten and 68th nationally. Last week was a rough one, though, as the offense stumbled in a 24-17 loss to Purdue. Even so, the Illini have shown they can score in their other two losses, putting up 19 points at Ohio State and 27 in a Week 2 loss against Illinois.
"I didn't know a lot about him until I did my off-season study," Pat Fitzgerald said when asked about Houser on Monday. "Obviously, very impressed with what he's done so far.
He can make a lot of throws. Again, another athletic quarterback.
You look at last week [vs. Purdue]: he put together a couple of really spectacular drives with his arm and then extended plays with his legs.
"Explosive games against Southern [Illinois] and in the opener against UAB. Then they had a great lead against Duke, and it just fell by the wayside. He's played pretty dang clean in all those games."
Houser’s running ability matters, even if he isn’t quite the kind of threat Nebraska’s Anthony Colandrea or Wisconsin’s Colton Joseph are. His arm may actually be a step above those two, too.
And he’s not doing it alone. Illinois has a dangerous target in Collin Dixon, who already has 40 catches for 548 yards and eight touchdowns. For a Michigan State defense still working through injuries in the secondary, containing both Houser and Dixon is going to be a major test.
In Other News...
Michigan State Is Getting The Kind Of Preseason Respect Fans Crave
Preseason polls do not decide anything, but they do tell you where the noise is landing, and Michigan State is drawing plenty of it heading into the 2026-27 college basketball season. In a survey of 28 media members conducted by The Columbus Dispatch, the Spartans were picked to finish second in the Big Ten, a sign that Tom Izzos program is already being viewed as one of the leagues most complete groups before a game is even played.
The recognition does not stop there, either. Jeremy Fears Jr. was selected as the Preseason Player of the Year and was the lone unanimous pick on the First Team All-Big Ten, while Michigan State also brings back important pieces such as Coen Carr and added Anton Bonke through the transfer portal. For a fan base that has spent years expecting October optimism to turn into March relevance, this is the kind of early respect that tends to matter even if it comes with the usual preseason asterisk. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan States Newcomers Showed Promise With UConn Suddenly Looming
Michigan State opened exhibition play with a comfortable 30-point win over Incarnate Word, and the first look at the Spartans offered a little of everything. Forward Jesse McCulloch led the way with 20 points, while the newcomers had a mixed but generally encouraging night as the roster began to take shape in game action.
Anton Bonke, the transfer center, and freshman Jasiah Jervis were part of that early evaluation, with the staff getting a clearer sense of how the new pieces fit alongside the returning core. The next test comes quickly, with UConn on deck Oct. 20, and for Michigan State the attention now shifts from a preseason tune-up to a far stiffer measuring stick. [Read more 🡒]
Michigan State Faces A Season Turning Point Against Illinois
Michigan State heads into its meeting with Illinois at a point in the season where the margin for error has nearly disappeared. At 2-3 overall and 0-2 in Big Ten play, the Spartans have already spent the first part of October trying to steady themselves after a rocky start, with the offense still searching for a rhythm and the protection up front becoming an obvious concern.
The challenge is even sharper now after the loss of star running back Cam Edwards, leaving the offense with less margin to absorb mistakes. The defense has shown enough to keep hope alive in stretches, but not enough to fully offset the inconsistency elsewhere, which is why this matchup feels so important for the direction of the year. How Michigan State responds here could say a lot about whether this becomes a salvageable season or one that keeps sliding. [Read more 🡒]