Arizona football coach Jedd Fisch on report he interviewed for Michigan State job: 'False'

Asked Friday night whether a report that he has interviewed for the Michigan State opening is true, Arizona head coach Jedd Fisch issued a one-word response: “False.”

Spartans Illustrated, part of the Rivals network, reported that Fisch is one of at least four coaches who have advanced to a second round of interviews at MSU. The others listed in the report are Oregon State’s Jonathan Smith, Toledo’s Jason Candle and Duke’s Mike Elko.

Fisch is in his third season at Arizona, where he has directed a major program turnaround. Fisch inherited a team that had lost 12 straight games. The Wildcats went 1-11 in 2021, his first season. They improved to 5-7 last year and are 7-3 heading into Saturday afternoon’s home finale against Utah.

Arizona is eligible for a bowl game for the first time since 2017 and has moved up to 17th in the latest College Football Playoff Rankings.

Fisch signed a contract extension with the UA in December 2022 that goes through 2027. The new five-year deal was valued at the time at $16.3 million. But the Star has learned that its actual value is $18.3 million with annual guaranteed compensation escalating from $3.25 million to $4 million over the course of the contract.

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Should he leave the UA, Fisch’s buyout through Nov. 30 is $6.5 million. It drops to $5.5 million on Dec. 1.

Although Fisch and the UA agreed to the extension less than a year ago, it's expected that the two sides will work on another one to further boost his pay.

MSU has been searching for a coach since the school fired Mel Tucker in late September for off-field reasons. Tucker was in the midst of a 10-year, $95 million contract. Coaches in the Big Ten and SEC generally make significantly more money than their counterparts in the Pac-12 and Big 12, which Arizona is joining next season.

As he continues to have success, Fisch’s name will continue to surface in connection with job openings. Asked about that during a news conference this week, Fisch said:

“Yeah, that's this time of year. When you're successful and your team's playing well, that's what happens. I think our only focus is beating Utah. This is a great team coming in. I told our team (Sunday) ... they are the reigning champions. They are the two- year, reigning Pac-12 champions. We need everybody focusing on one thing and one thing only, and that is Utah football and trying to have the best Arizona football program we could have to go beat Utah’s football team. And we are going to give them everything that we have. We are going to empty the tank.”