Michigan State Athletic Director Dan Bartholomae, left, talks with football coach Pat Fitzgerald after the Spartans win over Toledo on Friday, Sept. 4, 2026, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co Darin Radatz · SB Nation Tue, November 3, 2026 at 10:00 PM UTC · 8 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement With Michigan State enjoying a much-needed bye week, I'm taking a break from the usual Film Room breakdown. After weeks of watching missed blocks, blown assignments, turnovers and just about every other way to lose a football game, I think we've all earned a week off. My eyes certainly have.
Instead, let's talk about money. Specifically, how much Michigan State is reportedly spending on its football roster and how that compares with the rest of the Big Ten. Between NIL, the transfer portal and revenue sharing, college football has become an expensive business. Several estimates value Michigan State's roster at around $23 million this season. That's a lot of money, but apparently not in the Big Ten, where it puts the Spartans in the bottom half of the conference.
So, are the Spartans spending enough to compete? Are they getting enough out of the resources they already have? And with the Big Ten adopting new rules governing athlete compensation, what will it cost to turn Michigan State back into a competitive football program?
Trying to figure out how much college football teams spend on their rosters is like splitting a dinner bill with 18 people. Nobody agrees on the numbers and everyone claims they paid their share.
Unlike professional sports, there's no public salary sheet showing what every player makes. Fortunately, several outlets have taken a crack at estimating Michigan State's 2026 roster. In September, The Athletic estimated MSU's football budget between $21 million and $25 million, ranking the Spartans 11th among 18 Big Ten programs.
The NIL Standard values Michigan State at $23 million, also 11th in the conference and $6.5 million below its estimated Big Ten average of $29.5 million. The Sideline arrives at the same $23 million figure, ranking MSU 37th nationally among the programs it tracks. Meanwhile, StickToTheModel uses its own player valuation model, with estimates that vary depending on how the roster is calculated.
The individual player estimates below show just how much these valuations can vary depending on who's doing the math. The NIL Standard values Alessio Milivojevic at approximately $1.42 million, followed by offensive tackle Ben Murawski at $1.27 million and edge rusher Kenny Soares Jr. at $1.06 million. Meanwhile, StickToTheModel puts Milivojevic closer to $1 million, a difference of more than $400,000. It also has Ben Roberts leading Michigan State's roster at $1.4 million. Keep in mind, these are estimated NIL values, not confirmed earnings, and the two models clearly don't agree on what everyone is worth.
None of these figures represents a confirmed university payroll, and the models don't necessarily measure the same things. Still, multiple estimates put Michigan State somewhere around $23 million.
The conference comparison below, from The Athletic, shows just how far that money goes in today's Big Ten. Ohio State and Oregon lead the way with estimated football budgets around $50 million, while Michigan, USC and Indiana fall between $36 million and $40 million. Nebraska sits between $31 million and $35 million.
Using the midpoint of those estimates, Michigan State trails Michigan by roughly $15 million and Ohio State by nearly $29 million. That's a pretty big gap when you're trying to beat teams that can spend twice as much assembling their rosters. But MSU isn't at the bottom, either. The Spartans rank ahead of several conference programs, including Illinois, Iowa, Purdue and Rutgers. More money would certainly help, but spending alone doesn't explain everything we've watched on Saturdays.
Just when everyone was starting to understand NIL and revenue sharing, college sports decided it needed another financial rulebook.
On Oct. 28, the Big Ten announced new conference rules governing institutional involvement in athlete compensation , establishing a combined limit of approximately $49 million per school.
The framework includes a maximum of $27.5 million in third-party NIL agreements arranged through institutional involvement, alongside payments permitted under the existing House settlement. The conference also established financial penalties and other disciplinary measures for schools that violate the rules.
Importantly, that $49 million figure applies to an entire athletic department, not just football. Michigan State would have to divide those resources among football, basketball and its other sports. Athletes can still pursue legitimate independent NIL opportunities outside the institutional framework, meaning the limit doesn't necessarily represent everything a school's athletes could earn.
The Big Ten's decision comes as Congress continues considering the Protect College Sports Act. In a report for Yahoo Sports , Ross Dellenger detailed how conference leaders were developing an alternative framework in case federal legislation stalled. The Big Ten has now moved forward with its own rules rather than waiting for Washington.
The timing matters. Schools need to know what financial resources they can offer before the next transfer portal opens, and Michigan State has plenty of roster decisions ahead.
Of course, establishing a spending limit doesn't mean everyone can afford to reach it. Ohio State and Oregon already have significantly more financial resources committed to their football rosters than Michigan State, and new rules won't magically close that gap.
That's where Michigan State's new athletic director comes in.
Michigan State athletic director Dan Bartholomae has made it clear that he wants the Spartans spending like a program that expects to compete. In an Oct. 28 interview with Graham Couch of the Lansing State Journal , Bartholomae discussed increasing Michigan State's investment in athletics, with football at the top of the priority list.
His goal is to provide programs expected to compete for championships with resources ranking in the top third of the Big Ten. Considering Michigan State currently sits 11th in estimated football spending, there's some ground to make up. Bartholomae has also expressed a desire to reach the maximum spending level permitted under the new rules, potentially as soon as next year. That's an ambitious goal, especially for an athletic department trying to make up years of lost ground.
As Couch points out, Bartholomae understands the skepticism surrounding Michigan State football. Fans have heard plenty about rebuilding, investing and returning to relevance. Meanwhile, the losses keep piling up. The new athletic director sees football as the financial engine for the entire department, and he's right. Winning football brings ticket sales, donations, television exposure and plenty of other opportunities.
But getting anywhere near that $49 million institutional limit will require serious fundraising and new revenue. Pat Fitzgerald and his staff also need to know what they'll have available before the next transfer portal opens. Bartholomae has identified where he wants Michigan State to go. Now he just needs to find the money to get there. Hopefully, finding the money proves easier than finding a few more wins on Saturdays.
I don't think Michigan State needs to match Ohio State or Oregon dollar for dollar to become competitive again. But expecting to consistently compete near the top of the Big Ten while spending in the bottom half probably isn't a great business plan.
Looking at the reported numbers, I'd like to see Michigan State move toward the $30 million to $35 million range for its football roster. That would put the Spartans closer to Nebraska and give the coaching staff more resources to recruit and retain talent. Of course, that's a football roster target, not the same thing as the new $49 million institutional limit.
But money alone isn't fixing this mess. Michigan State has already invested millions in a roster that has struggled with talent, depth and an injury list that seems to grow every Saturday. Those injuries have exposed just how thin the Spartans are at several positions. There's only so much coaching can do when you're running out of healthy bodies. Fitzgerald and his staff need more talent, better depth and hopefully a little better luck keeping everyone out of the training room.
I'm also concerned about keeping the young players who have shown promise. We've watched enough former Spartans find success elsewhere. The last thing this program needs is to become a developmental league for teams with bigger checkbooks.
I appreciate Bartholomae making football a priority, and I hope he can deliver on those promises. Michigan State should have the resources and ambition to compete with the better programs in this conference. But at some point, the talk about investments, rebuilding and the future needs to turn into wins on Saturdays.
Money can't buy happiness, and apparently $23 million can't buy a winning record in East Lansing. But in today's college football, a bigger checkbook certainly helps. The trick is finding players worth paying and coaches who can get the most out of them.
Now I want to hear from you, Spartan fans. What's the magic number? Is $30 million to $35 million enough to get Michigan State back in the Big Ten race, or does it take $40 million or more? And is spending more really the answer, or is spending smarter just as important? Let me know what you think in the comments.
Source: Sports
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