Michigan State Spartans football | |||
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First season | 1896 | ||
Athletic director | Mark Hollis | ||
Head coach |
Mark Dantonio 11th year, 90–42 (.682) |
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Stadium | Spartan Stadium | ||
Seating capacity | 75,005 | ||
Field surface | Grass | ||
Location | East Lansing, Michigan | ||
Conference | Big Ten | ||
Division | East | ||
All-time record | 684–450–44 (.599) | ||
Bowl record | 11–15 (.423) | ||
Playoff record | 0–1 | ||
Claimed nat'l titles | 6 (1951, 1952, 1955, 1957, 1965, 1966) | ||
Conference titles | 11 (9 Big Ten, 2 MIAA) | ||
Division titles | 3 | ||
Consensus All-Americans | 31 | ||
Current uniform | |||
Colors | Green and White |
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Fight song | Victory for MSU | ||
Mascot | Sparty | ||
Marching band | Spartan Marching Band | ||
Rivals |
Notre Dame Fighting Irish Penn State Nittany Lions Michigan Wolverines |
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Website | www.msuspartans.com |
The "Game of the Century" (1966 version) | |||||||||||||||||||
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Date | November 19, 1966 | ||||||||||||||||||
Season | 1966 | ||||||||||||||||||
Stadium | Spartan Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||
Location | East Lansing, Michigan |
The Michigan State Spartans football program represents Michigan State University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. The Spartans are members of the Big Ten Conference. Michigan State claims a total of six national championships (1951, 1952, 1955, 1957, 1965, and 1966); the AP Poll voted Michigan State as national champion one time (1952). They have been named national champions twice in the Coaches Poll (1952 and 1965). The Spartans have also won two Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association championships (1903 and 1905) and nine Big Ten championships (1953, 1965, 1966, 1978, 1987, 1990, 2010, 2013, and 2015).
The Spartans home games are played at Spartan Stadium, which is located on the main university campus. Spartan Stadium has ranked among the NCAA's Top 25 in attendance for 59 consecutive seasons, from 1953 through 2014. The Spartans' current coach, Mark Dantonio was hired on November 27, 2006. The team's iconic Spartan helmet logo has been ranked as one of the game's best.
Starting as a club sport in 1885, football gained varsity status in 1896. Early teams at the then Michigan Agricultural College (MAC) competed in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA), which was chartered in 1888 and is the oldest existing collegiate leagues in the United States. Previously, in 1884, Albion College and Michigan Agricultural had played in the first intercollegiate football game held within the state of Michigan. The MIAA's other charter members included Albion, Olivet and Hillsdale Colleges. The Association's first season of competitive football was in 1894 which by then also included Eastern Michigan University (then Michigan Normal School) and Alma College; Kalamazoo College was added in 1896. In those early years the MAC Aggies could only accomplish one outright league football championship (1905) and share another with Albion (1903). The first decade of the 20th Century generally saw the MIAA and MAC being dominated by either Albion or Olivet Colleges. MSU left the league and became an Independent in 1907.