Approximately 16 months ago, the Michigan State football program was in a serious state of flux. After a chaotic fall that saw the firing of disgraced head coach Mel Tucker and a 4-8 finish to the season under interim head coach Harlon Barnett, former Oregon State head coach Jonathan Smith was hired in late November of 2023 and given the task of rebuilding the Spartan program.

In the spring of 2024, Smith and his newly assembled staff were simply trying to get the program back on its feet again. One year later, the situation in East Lansing is much more stable. Most coaches on the staff now have a full year-plus of experience with the Green and White.

But there are a few fresh faces among the coaching staff. Back in December, Spartans' cornerbacks coach Demetrice Martin decided to return to the West Coast as he accepted a position as the passing game coordinator/defensive backs coach for the UCLA Bruins.

As his replacement, MSU lured safeties coach James Adams away from his alma mater of Wake Forest to fill the same role with the Spartans. Adams brings 16 years of secondary coaching experience to East Lansing, including stints at Purdue, Navy, Western Michigan, Charlotte and Wofford.

As Adams told the media this week, his goal so far in his career has been to learn from the best. Adams implied that he has been an admirer of Smith from afar for a while now.

"(In looking for new opportunities) it's been the head coach, it's been the people, and how they run a program," Adams said. "Coach Smith has been successful everywhere. He's done it the right way in recruiting the right kids (and in) hiring the right coaches."

Adams described his decision to join Smith's program as a "no-brainer” and expressed a lot of excitement to be at MSU.

"I was almost begging Coach Smith," he said. "'Hey, man, if you crack the door, I'm in.' It's been a great opportunity."

After just three months on campus in East Lansing, Adams has completed a "relatively smooth" transition back to the Big Ten and the state of Michigan. So far, he likes the potential that he sees in the Spartans.

"I feel like Michigan State is positioned to be competitive in all arenas," Adams said "(In) recruiting, development, retention, and then obviously what we do on Saturday."

Smith was not the only draw on the coaching staff for Adams. He also mentioned following the work of Spartan defensive coordinator/linebackers Joe Rossi and appreciating the aggressive style that Rossi deploys.

"We're gonna get after some people on Saturdays on defense," Adams said. "Just having an opportunity to work with (Rossi) and work under him was what drew me here."