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1951 Michigan State Spartans football team

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1951 Michigan State Spartans football
National champion (Billingsley, Helms, Poling)
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
CoachesNo. 2
APNo. 2
Record9–0
Head coach
MVPDon Coleman
CaptainLeRoy R. Crane
Home stadiumMacklin Stadium
Seasons
← 1950
1952 →
Program for the 1951 season opener.
1951 Midwestern college football independents records
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 2 Michigan State   –   9 – 0 – 0
Xavier   –   9 – 0 – 1
Wabash   –   7 – 0 – 1
No. 13 Notre Dame   –   7 – 2 – 1
Dayton   –   7 – 3 – 0
Toledo   –   6 – 4 – 0
Washington University   –   5 – 4 – 0
Wayne   –   5 – 4 – 0
Bowling Green   –   4 – 4 – 1
Marquette   –   4 – 6 – 1
Baldwin–Wallace   –   3 – 5 – 0
John Carroll   –   3 – 6 – 0
Rose Poly   –   2 – 5 – 0
Youngstown   –   2 – 6 – 1
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1951 Michigan State Spartans football team was an American football team that represented Michigan State College as an independent during the 1951 college football season. In their fifth season under head coach Clarence Munn, the Spartans compiled a perfect 9–0 record and outscored opponents by a total of 270 to 114.[1][2] The Spartans played their home games at Macklin Stadium (now known as Spartan Stadium) in East Lansing, Michigan.

In the final AP and UPI coaches polls, both released on December 3, 1951, Michigan State was ranked No. 2 behind No. 1 Tennessee. Tennessee went on to lose to No. 3 Maryland in the 1952 Sugar Bowl. However, neither the AP nor UPI took post-bowl poll in this time period. In later rankings and analyses, Michigan State was recognized as the 1951 national champion by three NCAA-recognized selectors: Billingsley Report, Helms Athletic Foundation, and Poling System. Other selectors have designated Maryland as the national champion.[3]

Two Michigan State players, end Bob Carey and tackle Don Coleman, were recognized as consensus first-team players on the 1951 College Football All-America Team.[4] Two other Spartans were designated as first-team All-Americans by one or more selectors: Al Dorow (first-team defensive back selected by the International News Service) and Jim Ellis (first-team defensive back selected by the Chicago Tribune.[5][6]

Schedule

[edit]
DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 22Oregon StateNo. 2
W 6–033,373[7]
September 29at MichiganNo. 2
W 25–097,239[8]
October 6at No. 7 Ohio StateNo. 1
W 24–2082,640[9]
October 13MarquetteNo. 1
  • Macklin Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI
W 20–1439,251[10]
October 20at Penn StateNo. 3
W 32–2130,684[11]
October 27PittsburghdaggerNo. 2
  • Macklin Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI
W 53–2642,163[12]
November 10No. 11 Notre DameNo. 5
  • Macklin Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI (rivalry)
W 35–051,296[13]
November 17at IndianaNo. 1
W 30–2616,000[14]
November 24ColoradoNo. 2
  • Macklin Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI
W 45–729,987[15]
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

[16]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "2016 Football Media Guide" (PDF). Michigan State University. pp. 146, 154. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 17, 2017. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  2. ^ "1951 Michigan State Spartans Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  3. ^ 2018 NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision Records (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association. August 2018. p. 113. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  4. ^ "Football Award Winners" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). 2016. p. 8. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
  5. ^ "Wheat, Lauricella, Daffer Named on INS All-America Team". Rome News-Tribune. INS. November 26, 1951.
  6. ^ Arch Ward (December 9, 1951). "Players Name 1951 All-American Teams: Football Stars Who Rate as Nation's Best Offensive Group". Chicago Daily Tribune. Archived from the original on March 3, 2012. Retrieved September 24, 2010.
  7. ^ George S. Alderton (September 23, 1951). "Spartans Edge Past OSC To Win 1951 Opener, 6-0: Ellis Paces Team With Long Runs". Lansing State Journal. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ George S. Alderton (September 30, 1951). "Spartan Power Crushes Wolverine Hopes, 25-0: MSC's Defense Is Rock-Ribbed; Ellis, Benson and Dorow Spark Win; Widest Margin Over Michigan". Lansing State Journal. pp. 1, IV-1 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Tommy Devine (October 7, 1951). "Never-Say-Die Spartans Tip OSU". Detroit Free Press. pp. C1, C3 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Late Rally by Michigan State Turns Back Marquette, 20-14: Spartans Overcome 8-Point Deficit". The Pittsburgh Press. October 14, 1951. p. 63 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Carl Hughes (October 21, 1951). "Michigan State's Second-Half Rally Beats Lions, 32-21". The Pittsburgh Press. p. 61 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ George S. Alderton (October 28, 1951). "Spartans Gladden Old Grads, 53-26: Pitt Passes Scare MSC In 1st Half; Munn's Team Outscores Panthers in Last Two Periods, 33-7". Lansing State Journal. pp. 51, 52 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ George S. Alderton (November 11, 1951). "Rout of Notre Dame Bolsters M.S.C. Bid for National Title: Near-Record Crowd Sees Stunned Irish Humbled by State". Lansing State Journal. pp. 1, IV-1 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ George S. Alderton (November 18, 1951). "MSC Teeters, Then Indiana Bows, 30-26". Lansing State Journal. pp. 51–52 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ George S. Alderton (November 25, 1951). "Spartans Complete Unbeaten Season: MSC Eleven Rips Past Colorado For 9th Victory". Lansing State Journal. pp. 53, 54 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Football Statistics Summary for 1951". msuspartans.com. Retrieved July 26, 2013.


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