Michigan State expected to part ways with General Manager Saeed Khalif
Saeed Khalif – Michigan State’s general manager/executive director of player personnel and recruiting – will no longer be a part of the MSU program. His contract with the Spartans, which expires soon, is not expected to be renewed.
Spartan Tailgate was the first to have the report. Earlier in the week, Spartans Illustrated was told by multiple sources with knowledge of the situation that Michigan State was planning to part ways with Khalif.
It is unclear why Michigan State decided to move on from Khalif, but after some recruiting misses and differences in opinions, the program obviously feels that it is best to go in a different direction.
Khalif was hired by Michigan State and head coach Mel Tucker as director of player personnel in June of 2021. He was promoted to the role of general manager/executive director of player personnel and recruiting in 2022.
Khalif directed the Spartans’ recruiting efforts and led the entire recruiting staff. Per his Michigan State bio, Khalif’s job duties were as follows:
“Khalif directs the recruiting efforts for the Spartans, developing and implementing strategic plans while supervising the recruiting staff. He oversees and manages prospect identification and evaluations and works with the assistant coaches to identify prospective student-athletes.
In addition, Khalif coordinates the evaluation of all current players on the active roster, providing detailed reports to the coaching staff. He also runs the NFL Education Program and annual Spartan Pro Day.”
It is also unclear when Khalif departed or when he will depart. Spartans Illustrated was at Michigan State’s pro day on March 15, and can confirm Khalif was in attendance. He has not been active on Twitter since March 16.
With Khalif on staff, Michigan State brought in the No. 23 ranked recruiting class in 2022, and No. 36 class in the 2023 cycle.
Prior to his stint at Michigan State, Khalif was director of player personnel at Wisconsin from 2017 through 2020. He also served as assistant director of player personnel at his alma mater, Georgia Tech, from 2013 through 2016.
Additionally, other reports indicate that recruiting operations coordinator Jensen Gebhardt's contract will not be renewed either. Meanwhile, assistant director of player personnel Sean Levy will run the recruiting department in the interim.
The next step for Tucker and Michigan State will be to hire a full-time replacement for Khalif’s role.
This story may be updated as more information becomes available.