Michigan State Spartans
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 22 varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan warrior named Sparty. The school colors are green and white. The university participates in the NCAA's Division I-A and in the Big Ten Conference in all Varsity sports except ice hockey, which competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. MSU's golf team won the Big Ten Championship in 1969 and again in 2005. Michigan State offers 14 varsity sports for men and 15 for women. The university's current Athletic Director is Ron Mason, who served as head hockey coach from 1979 to 2002, retiring with a 608-261-64 record at MSU.[1] MSU's marching band plays the fight song at every university event, and both students and alumni sing along. Michigan State University is the only NCAA Division One Athletic program to have multiple National Championships in both football and basketball.
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[edit] Football
Football has a long tradition at Michigan State. Starting as a club sport in 1884, football gained varsity status in 1896.[2] In the 1950's, MSU led the nation in desegregation, allowing black athletes in all sports.
During the 1950s when Detroit was known as the world's leading automobile manufacturer, Michigan State was often referred to as the nation's "football factory." It was then that the Spartans churned out such impressive models as Lynn Chandnois, Dorne Dibble, Don McAulliffe, Tom Yewcic, Sonny Granddelius, Earl Morrall and Dean Look. In 1951, the Spartans finished undefeated and untied to claim a share of the national championship with Tennessee. The following year the team was again unbeaten and untied. They ended the 1952 season with the nation's longest winning streak (24 games) and were named the undisputed national champions by every official poll.
After waiting for several years, the team was finally admitted into the Big 10 as a regular member in 1953. They promptly went on to capture the league championship (losing only one game during the season) and beating UCLA in their first Rose Bowl game. After the 1953 season Biggie Munn, the legendary Spartan coach, turned the team over to his protégé and future legend Duffy Daugherty. It won the Rose Bowl in 1954, 1956, and 1988.
All told, Michigan State has won or shared a total of 6 national championships (1951, 1952, 1955, 1957, 1965 and 1966) and nine Big Ten championships. The team is known for placing some of the most talented players in the NFL, where currently 20 former Spartans are playing.
Today, the team competes in Spartan Stadium, a 75,005 person football stadium in the center of campus. The current coach is Mark Dantonio, who was hired on November 27, 2006.[3] Dantonio had an 18-17 record in his three year tenure at the University of Cincinnati, including a 1-0 Bowl Game record. [4] Dantonio replaced John L. Smith, who finished with a 22-26 record as the Spartans head man.[5] MSU's traditional archrival is the University of Michigan, against whom they compete for the Paul Bunyan Trophy. MSU is traditionally the underdog, with a 28-65-5 record in the annual game.[6] Michigan State is one of three Big Ten teams to have an annual non-conference football game against the University of Notre Dame. MSU's record against the Fighting Irish is 25-43-1.[7]
[edit] Men's basketball
MSU's men's basketball team has won the National Championship twice: in 1979 and again in 2000. The 2000 team was led by the "Flintstones", (Morris Peterson, Charlie Bell, and Mateen Cleaves) from Flint, Michigan who were key to the Spartans' success. On December 13, 2003, Michigan State and Kentucky played at the most-attended basketball game, when they held a match in front of 78,129 at Ford Field, a stadium in Detroit. Kentucky won 79-74.[8] The team currently plays at the Breslin Student Events Center under head coach Tom Izzo, who has a 233-97 record.[9] Izzo's coaching helped the team make four of seven NCAA Final Fours from 1999-2005, winning the title in 2000.
[edit] Ice hockey
The men's ice hockey team plays at the Munn Ice Arena. The current head coach is Rick Comley, who has a 34-19-3 record at MSU.[10] Since the Big Ten Conference does not cover Division I ice hockey, Michigan State competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association. Along with the University of Michigan and the Ohio State University, it is one of three Big Ten schools in the CCHA. As with other sports, the hockey rivalry between MSU and U-M is a fierce one, though MSU's rivalry against Lake Superior State University has grown in recent years. On October 6, 2001, the team was involved in the most-attended hockey game in history: The Cold War. The Spartans set up a hockey rink in the middle of their football stadium, Spartan Stadium and played U-M before a crowd of 74,554. The game ended in a 3-3 tie.[11]
[edit] Golf
Golf has had a long tradition at MSU. Hall of Fame Coach Bruce Fossum led MSU to its first Big Ten title in 1969. The Big Ten title would elude the Spartans until 2005, when arguably, the best team ever assembled, took home the rings in stellar fashion. Not only did the Spartans win the Big Ten Championship in 2005, but they captured two other titles along the way and rose all the way to #5 in the U.S.
[edit] Notes
- ^ MSU Spartans.com Player Bio: Ron Mason.
- ^ Grinczel, Steve. (2003). They Are Spartans. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0-7385-3414-2. p. 9.
- ^ "Michigan State Looks to Cincinnati for Coach". New York Times. November 27, 2006.
- ^ "Michigan State hires former Cincy coach Dantonio". ESPN.com. November 27, 2006.
- ^ College Football Data Warehouse. Michigan State Coaching Records.
- ^ College Football Data Warehouse. Michigan State vs. Michigan.
- ^ College Football Data Warehouse. Michigan State vs. Notre Dame.
- ^ MSU Spartans.com Men's Basketball Falls To No. 8 Kentucky, 79-74.
- ^ MSU Spartans.com Player Bio: Tom Izzo.
- ^ MSU Spartans.com Player Bio: Rick Comley.
- ^ MSU Spartans.com. Spartan Hockey Ties Wolverines In Front Of Record Crowd. October 6, 2001.
[edit] See also
- Michigan State University
- Michigan State Spartans football
- List of Michigan State Spartans championships
