When Keith Nichol was offered a football scholarship by former MSU head coach John L. Smith two years ago, he didn't toil over the decision for six months like most recruits — he accepted the offer right away and planned to play for the Spartans in 2007. Since the Lowell High School quarterback's decision, it seems like everything in the MSU football program has changed.
Mark Dantonio's salary just doubled, and then some. But if you think his decision to become MSU's third football coach in five seasons was solely about the money, think again. Several Ohio media reported Monday that Cincinnati had offered to match MSU's $1.1 million contract, but Dantonio went with the Spartans anyway. Why? One likely reason: Institutional support.
The last time Mark Dantonio coached in the Big Ten, it was 2003 and he was defensive coordinator under Jim Tressel at Ohio State.
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.
Many MSU players were upset that the university didn't inform them of John L. Smith's firing last month until after an announcement had been made to the media. MSU officials didn't want that to happen again. So, the day before the Spartans played Penn State, Mark Hollis, senior associate athletics director and one of the lead directors of the coaching search, met with junior linebacker Kaleb Thornhill and junior running back Jehuu Caulcrick and asked them what the players were looking for in a new coach. While neither player would reveal what he told Hollis went wrong during Smith's tenure, both appreciated their input was sought. "I just want to thank (the administration) for involving us, letting us have a say in what we thought would be beneficial for this program," Thornhill said Monday. Caulcrick said Dantonio will be a players' coach like Smith — albeit a more hard-nosed one — but one who should help address the problems the players saw with the program. "Thinking about all the stuff that we mentioned to him that we needed," Caulcrick said, "Coach Dantonio is the guy that we were talking about."
When Dantonio was a graduate assistant at Ohio State from 1983-84, the head coach was Earle Bruce, a 2002 inductee to the College Football Hall of Fame.
As I arrived at Ford Field on Saturday to watch my alma mater, Dakota High School, play in the Division 1 state football finals, my expectations were low. I didn't think Dakota would come out with a win, seeing as it was the school's first appearance in the finals and its opponent was Rockford, which had won the last two state titles and has a lot of kids with more facial hair than I have now. And I didn't think I'd be all that excited by the game, seeing as I don't recognize any of the names on the jerseys anymore and my expectations had been raised by rooting for a real football team (kind of) for the last four years.
It was a Thanksgiving weekend the No. 6 Spartans would like to forget. After dropping a 2-1 decision to intrastate rival Michigan, the Spartans went on the road for the weekend and lost a 5-4 heartbreaker to No.
Marquise Gray's college basketball career has been a roller-coaster ride. In three up-and-down seasons, the sophomore forward has battled several injuries and has struggled to live up to the hype that came with being an elite recruit. Gray's performance against Oakland (4-3) on Saturday was one of the "up" days.
The City of Detroit is seeking a firm to lead the auction of memorabilia from Tiger Stadium, which is scheduled to be demolished soon. Among the first items to be auctioned from the clubhouse: Cecil Fielder's artificial popcorn butter machine. Chicago Bulls head coach Scott Skiles is feuding with Ben Wallace after Wallace violated team policy by wearing a headband during a game. The spat comes on the heels of Skiles' complaints last week about the 3-foot long hairs he keeps finding in the locker room shower drain. Chadron State College running back Danny Woodhead set the NCAA single-season rushing record Saturday, finishing the season with 2,740 yards. Scouts at the game were amazed that they actually found the Chadron State campus. New Lothrop High School, which has just more than 800 students, captured its first ever state football championship Friday, beating Crystal Falls Forest Park in the Division 8 state finals. Internet message board posters immediately anointed New Lothrop head coach Jake Emmendorfer as the top candidate for the vacant MSU position.
1. In previous seasons, Victoria Lucas-Perry and Rene Haynes have been, to some extent, overshadowed by the team's senior classes.
1. Junior guard Drew Neitzel has embraced his role as the team's go-to scorer. Neitzel averaged 33 points per game as a senior at Wyoming Park High School but was more of a distributor during his first two years at MSU, deferring to Paul Davis, Maurice Ager and Shannon Brown.
Three quality opponents in one week. Three losses. It's exactly what the No. 6 MSU hockey team didn't want heading into a tough stretch of late-November games.
With the news that former MSU hockey player and current Buffalo Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller has a featured playlist on iTunes, we couldn't help but think what some other prominent members of the athletic community have on their iPods: OJ Simpson Shaggy — It Wasn't Me Bob Knight Akon — Smack That Former Michigan defensive tackle Larry Harrison Michael Jackson — Beat It Charles Rogers Rose Royce — Workin' at the Car Wash Allyssa DeHaan The Commodores — Brick House Drew Neitzel The Offspring — Pretty Fly (For a White Guy) Tom Izzo (to Matt Trannon) Player — Baby, Come Back Tom Izzo (to the MSU head football coach search committee) Jack Johnson — If I Could Drew Stanton Postal Service — This Place Is A Prison Kellen Freeman-Davis, Eric Andino, Barre Mackie, Jeremy McGinis Elton John — Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting) John L.
Two MSU football commitments faced each other in the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 3 state football finals on Saturday at Ford Field. Two-way lineman Darrell Davis-Budanauro and his East Grand Rapids team defeated wide receiver Mark Dell's Farmington Hills Harrison squad, 42-17. Davis-Budanauro (6-foot-4, 370 pounds) played both nose guard and offensive tackle, helping East Grand Rapids score five consecutive rushing touchdowns.
After winning four of its final six games, the MSU volleyball team is heading to the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship. MSU (19-11) is paired against Utah (27-3) in its first-round game in Los Angeles.
As a freshman, Aisha Jefferson battled a shoulder injury that forced her to play with a large wrap. Then, with the shoulder finally healed this past summer, Jefferson ran into another injury: A torn meniscus in her left knee. Jefferson underwent scope surgery that left her in a brace as she tried to regain her timing on the court and get back into game shape. "I had just come back from my shoulder surgery, (was) going full-strength, and then my knee set me back," Jefferson said.
Former MSU quarterback Jeff Smoker is getting another chance at playing football. After a stint with the NFL's St.
Senior punter Brandon Fields was named first-team All-Big Ten by both the coaches and media Tuesday, and senior offensive lineman Kyle Cook was named second-team All-Big Ten by the coaches. Fields led the Big Ten in punting yardage average, with 43.3 yards per punt, and also had the longest punt, 73 yards, of All-Big Ten punters. Fields' selection was his third first-team All-Big Ten award.
The MSU women's and men's cross country teams raced to 12th- and 17th-place finishes, respectively, at the NCAA Championship meet Monday in Terre Haute, Ind. "Today was a huge step for our programs," said Walt Drenth, MSU director of cross country and track and field, in a statement. The women, who entered the race ranked fourth in the country after a first-place finish at the Great Lakes Regional, were led by sophomore Alissa McKaig's 10th-place finish in the 6K race.