1977 Michigan State Spartans football team
American college football season
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The 1977 Michigan State Spartans football team was an American football team that represented Michigan State University as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1977 Big Ten football season. In their second season under head coach Darryl Rogers, the Spartans compiled a 7–3–1 record (6–1–1 in conference games), finished third in the Big Ten, and outscored opponents by a total of 258 to 162. In two games against ranked opponents, they lost to No. 14 Notre Dame and No. 3 Michigan.[1][2]
- Darryl Rogers (2nd season)
| 1977 Michigan State Spartans football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Big Ten Conference |
| Record | 7–3–1 (6–1–1 Big Ten) |
| Head coach |
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| Defensive coordinator | Bob Padilla (2nd season) |
| MVP | Larry Bethea |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Spartan Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 9 Michigan + | 7 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 11 Ohio State + | 7 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Michigan State | 6 | – | 1 | – | 1 | 7 | – | 3 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana | 4 | – | 3 | – | 1 | 5 | – | 5 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Purdue | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Iowa | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Illinois | 2 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern | 1 | – | 8 | – | 0 | 1 | – | 10 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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On offense, the Spartans gained an average of 197.1 rushing yards and 170.6 passing yards per game. On defense, they gave up 165.3 rushing yards and 160.5 passing yards per game.[3] The individual statistical leaders included quarterback Ed Smith with 1,731 passing yards, Leroy McGee with 720 rushing yards, and flanker Kirk Gibson with 531 receiving yards and 24.1 yards per reception(tops in the Big Ten).[3]
Eight Spartans were selected by either the Associated Press (AP) or the United Press International (UPI) for the 1977 All-Big Ten Conference football teams: defensive tackle Larry Bethea (AP-1, UPI-1); punter Ray Stachowicz (AP-1, UPI-1); center Al Pitts (AP-2, UPI-1); placekicker Hans Nielsen (UPI-1); defensive back Mark Anderson (AP-2, UPI-2); wide receiver Kirk Gibson (UPI-2); tight end Mark Brammer (UPI-2); and linebacker Paul Rudzinski (UPI-2). Bethea was selected as the team's most valuable player.[4][5] [6][7]
The team played its home games at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan.
Schedule
| Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 10 | Purdue | W 19–14 | 53,014 | [8] | |
| September 17 | Washington State* |
| L 21–23 | 50,263 | [9] |
| September 24 | Wyoming* |
| W 34–16 | 56,214 | [10] |
| October 1 | at No. 14 Notre Dame* | L 6–16 | 59,075 | [11] | |
| October 8 | No. 3 Michigan |
| L 14–24 | 78,183 | [12] |
| October 15 | at Indiana | T 13–13 | 36,892 | [13] | |
| October 22 | at Wisconsin | W 9–7 | 79,203 | [14] | |
| October 29 | Illinois |
| W 49–20 | 70,589 | [15] |
| November 5 | at Minnesota | W 29–10 | 30,600 | [16] | |
| November 11 | Northwestern |
| W 44–3 | 61,238 | [17] |
| November 19 | at Iowa | W 22–16 | 43,700 | [18] | |
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Game summaries
Michigan
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| • Michigan | 0 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 24 |
| Michigan St | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
- Date: October 8
- Location: Spartan Stadium, East Lansing, MI
- Game attendance: 78,183
| Q2 | MSU | Gibson 19 yard pass from Smith (Nielsen kick) | MSU 7–0 | |
| Q2 | MICH | White 12 yard pass from Leach (Willner kick) | Tie 7–7 | |
| Q2 | MICH | Willner 50 yard field goal | MICH 10–7 | |
| Q3 | MICH | R. Davis 3 yard run (Willner kick) | MICH 17–7 | |
| Q3 | MICH | Leach 3 yard run (Willner kick) | MICH 24–7 | |
| Q4 | MSU | Earley 11 yard run (Nielsen kick) | MICH 24–14 | |
On October 8, 1977, Michigan State lost to Michigan, 24–14, at Spartan Stadium. Michigan State took a 7–0 lead on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Ed Smith to Kirk Gibson. Michigan responded with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Rick Leach to White and a 50-yard field goal to take a 10–7 lead at halftime. Michigan extended its lead to 24–7 in the third quarter on touchdown runs by Russell Davis and Ed Leach. Harlan Huckleby rushed for 146 yards, and Russell Davis added 96 yards. Ralph Clayton caught three passes for 99 yards. Michigan completed four of 10 passes in the game and threw only one pass in the second half.[19]
Roster
| 1977 Michigan State Spartans football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
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