Newly named head football coach Mark Dantonio and his family — wife Becky and daughters Kristen, 14, and Lauren, 12 — are returning to East Lansing after leaving in 2000 for Ohio State.

During Monday's press conference, Becky wore a necklace from the Spartans' 2001 Citrus Bowl appearance, for which her husband was MSU's defensive secondary coach and associate head coach. Afterward, she gave The State News a wife's perspective of MSU's new head football coach.

On what attracted her to Mark:

"He's very kind, he's sweet, he's considerate, he's very unselfish, he really puts people before himself, he tries to do what's right — all those qualities about him attracted me to him. Plus, he's handsome as heck. How do I pass on that, right?"

Where they met:

"When he was actually (secondary) coach at the University of Akron (in 1985.) Soon afterward, he went to Youngstown State for five years (from 1986-1990) and that's where I married him."

On their first date:

"Boy, I should know that right? Probably out to dinner to this little Italian place I liked … I guess it's been too long."

What Mark does with his free time:

"He likes to run and he likes to do machines and weights … He really just hangs out with us, he's not very exciting, I guess."

What Mark would do if he didn't coach:

"A teacher, for sure. … He'd probably teach high school."