2006 Michigan State Spartans football team

2006 Michigan State Spartans football

Conference	Big Ten Conference
2006 record	4–8 (1–7 Big Ten)
Head coach	John L. Smith
Home stadium	Spartan Stadium (c. 75,005 natural grass)

2006 Big Ten football standings
	Conf				Overall
Team		W		L		W		L
#2 Ohio State $		8	–	0		12	–	1
#7 Wisconsin		7	–	1		12	–	1
#8 Michigan %		7	–	1		11	–	2
#24 Penn State		5	–	3		9	–	4
Purdue		5	–	3		8	–	6
Minnesota		3	–	5		6	–	7
Indiana		3	–	5		5	–	7
Iowa		2	–	6		6	–	7
Northwestern		2	–	6		4	–	8
Michigan State		1	–	7		4	–	8
Illinois		1	–	7		2	–	10

$ – BCS representative as conference champion % – BCS at-large representative Rankings from AP Poll

The 2006 Michigan State Spartans football team represented Michigan State University in the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Michigan State competed as a member of the Big Ten Conference, and played their home games at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan. The Spartans were led by fourth-year head coach John L. Smith. Smith had compiled a combined 18–18 record in his previous seasons at Michigan State,^[1] and he was fired after the 2006 season in which the team finished 4–8.^[2] The Spartans did, however, set the record for the greatest comeback from a deficit in college football history.^[3]

Season recap

Michigan State teams during Smith's tenure were "known for their late season collapses".^[2] The Spartans started the 2006 season with a 3–0 record with victories over Idaho, Eastern Michigan, and Pittsburgh. The following week, Michigan State led Notre Dame, 37–21, in the third quarter, but surrendered 19 points to lose the game.^[2] The Spartans then lost all but one game on the remainder of their schedule.^[4]

On October 21, Michigan State traveled to Evanston, Illinois to face Northwestern. By the third quarter, Northwestern had extended its lead to a commanding 38–3.^[3] Michigan State gained momentum in the fourth quarter when Devin Thomas blocked a Northwestern punt, which was then returned for a touchdown by Ashton Henderson. Northwestern was forced to punt twice more and Michigan State capitalized on each possession with a touchdown, which tied the game, 38–38.^[3] Placekicker Brett Swenson made good the game-winning field goal with 0:13 remaining to play, and Michigan State won the greatest comeback in college football history.^[3]

After the record-setting victory, it appeared that Smith's job was temporarily secured,^[3] but the administration fired him shortly after a loss to Indiana the following week.^[5] The Spartans ended the season with four consecutive losses to finish with a 4–8 overall record and 1–7 against Big Ten opponents.^[4] In November, Mark Dantonio was hired as the replacement head coach.^[6]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent^#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 2	12:00 PM	Idaho*	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	ESPN+	W 27–17	70,711
September 9	3:30 PM	Eastern Michigan*	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	ESPN+	W 52–20	69,856
September 16	12:00 PM	at Pittsburgh*	Heinz Field • Pittsburgh, PA	ABC	W 38–23	47,956
September 23	8:00 PM	No. 12 Notre Dame*	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI (Megaphone Trophy)	ABC	L 40–37	80,193
September 30	12:00 PM	Illinois	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	ESPN+	L 23–20	71,268
October 7	4:30 PM	at No. 6 Michigan	Michigan Stadium • Ann Arbor, MI (Paul Bunyan Trophy)	ESPN	L 31–13	111,349
October 14	3:30 PM	No. 1 Ohio State	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	ABC	L 38–7	73,498
October 21	12:00 PM	at Northwestern	Ryan Field • Evanston, IL (Greatest comeback in college football history)	ESPN+	W 41–38	29,387
October 28	12:00 PM	at Indiana	Memorial Stadium • Bloomington, IN (Old Brass Spittoon)	ESPN+	L 46–21	36,444
November 4	3:30 PM	Purdue	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	ESPNU	L 17–15	65,398
November 11	12:00 PM	Minnesota	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	ESPNU	L 31–18	64,807
November 18	12:00 PM	at Penn State	Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA (Land Grant Trophy)	ESPN2	L 17–13	108,607
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. ^#Rankings from Coaches' Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Game summaries

Northwestern

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Michigan State	3	0	14	24	41
Northwestern	7	17	14	0	38

Date: October 21
Location: Ryan Field, Evanston, IL
Game start: 12:00 p.m. EST
Game attendance: 29,387
TV announcers (ESPN+): Wayne Larrivee (Play-by-play) & Kelly Stouffer (Color)

Scoring summary

Q1		MSU	Swenson 32 yard field goal	MSU 3–0

Q1		NW	Lane 5 yard pass from Bacher (Howells kick)	NW 7–3

Q2		NW	Bacher 2 yard run (Howells kick)	NW 14–3

Q2		NW	Howells 30 yard field goal	NW 17–3

Q2		NW	Herbert 18 yard pass from Roberson (Howells kick)	NW 24–3

Q3		NW	Lane 22 yard pass from Bacher (Howells kick)	NW 31–3

Q3		NW	Herbert 5 yard pass from Bacher (Howells kick)	NW 38–3

Q3		MSU	Caulcrick 18 yard pass from Stanton (Swenson kick)	NW 38–10

Q3		MSU	Jimmerson 4 yard run (Swenson kick)	NW 38–17

Q4		MSU	Henderson 31 yard blocked punt return (Swenson kick)	NW 38–24

Q4		MSU	Stanton 12 yard run (Swenson kick)	NW 38–31

Q4		MSU	Williams 9 yard pass from Stanton (Swenson kick)	Tie 38–38

Q4	:13	MSU	Swenson 28 yard field goal	MSU 41–38

^[7]

2007 NFL Draft

The following players were selected in the 2007 NFL Draft.

Player	Round	Pick	Position	NFL Team
Drew Stanton	2	43	Quarterback	Detroit Lions
Clifton Ryan	5	154	Defensive Tackle	St. Louis Rams
Brandon Fields	7	225	Punter	Miami Dolphins

References

↑ John L. Smith Records by Year, College Football Data Warehouse, Retrieved July 24, 2009. Archived July 26, 2009.
1 2 3 Phil Steele's 2009 College Football Preview, volume 15, p. 66, Summer 2009.
1 2 3 4 5 Spartans stun Cats for biggest comeback in I-A history, ESPN, October 21, 2006.
1 2 "Michigan State 2006 Schedule/Results". ESPN. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
↑ Michigan State coach John L. Smith out after season, ESPN, November 1, 2006.
↑ Michigan State hires Dantonio to coach football team, USA Today, November 27, 2006.
↑ "Spartans Stun Cats for Biggest Comeback in I-A History". ESPN. October 21, 2006. Retrieved September 29, 2014.

Michigan State Spartans football

Venues	Old College Field (1902–1922) Spartan Stadium (1923–present)

Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Indiana (Old Brass Spittoon) Michigan (Paul Bunyan Trophy) Notre Dame (Megaphone Trophy) Penn State (Land Grant Trophy)

Culture & lore	Sparty "Victory for MSU" Marching band Zeke the Wonder Dog Winged football helmet 1966 "Game of the Century" Clockgate 2006 Northwestern game

People	Head coaches Statistical leaders NFL draftees

Seasons	1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

National championship seasons in bold

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