Michigan State’s starting five for the 2026-27 season is still a moving target, and after three October exhibitions, it’s clear Tom Izzo is still sorting through the pieces.
The Spartans open in five days, but there’s been no settled answer yet on who will run out there first against Quinnipiac. Right after the 2025-26 season ended, TOC projected a small-ball group of Jeremy Fears Jr., Divine Ugochukwu, Jordan Scott, Coen Carr, and Ethan Taylor based on the roster at the time.
Then the roster shifted. After Ugochukwu left and Anton Bonke arrived, that prediction changed, though the small-ball idea stayed intact. The new version had Fears, Scott, Kaleb Glenn, Carr, and Bonke.
Izzo then added another twist in August during an appearance on Jon Rothstein’s podcast, saying Cam Ward “should be” the starting power forward. That immediately complicated the small-ball look TOC had been leaning toward.
Michigan State’s first exhibition against Incarnate Word offered a glimpse of that bigger lineup, even though Ward was sidelined with a minor injury. The starters that night were Fears, Scott, Carr, Jesse McCulloch, and Bonke.
When Ward returned for the second exhibition against UConn, he stepped into McCulloch’s spot and the first unit became Fears, Scott, Carr, Ward, and Bonke.
But after that game ended in a loss, Izzo adjusted again for exhibition No. 3 against Marquette, and this time he leaned back toward the smaller setup. Fears, Jasiah Jervis, and Scott formed a three-guard look, Carr moved to the 4, and McCulloch started at center. Carr even handled jump ball duties.
That game also ended in a loss, so another change before the opener would not be a surprise. For now, the lineup question is still wide open, and TOC is asking fans what they hope to see in game No. 1.
As for my own view, I still think the small-ball route makes the most sense, with Carr at the 4. Michigan State’s best strength is in the backcourt and on the wings, so the instinct is to get as many of those players on the floor as possible.
The concern, of course, is whether that asks too much of Carr defensively, forcing him to guard bigger bodies and spend more time dealing with the interior. Even so, the offensive upside could be worth it.
So my pick would be Fears, Jervis, Scott, Carr, and Bonke.
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Jack Velling Reignites A Familiar Michigan State What-Might-Have Debate
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For Spartans followers, Velling is one of those players who naturally triggers the what-might-have-been conversation. His college stint offered flashes without fully settling into the kind of breakout run that changes a programs view of a player, and now his next stop will say plenty about whether there is still untapped NFL value waiting to be found. [Read more 🡒]