1972 Michigan State Spartans football team

1972 Michigan State Spartans football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record5–5–1 (5–2–1 Big Ten)
Head coach
Defensive coordinatorDenny Stolz (2nd season)
MVPGail Clark
CaptainBilly Joe DuPree, Brad Van Pelt
Home stadiumSpartan Stadium
Seasons
← 1971
1973 →
1972 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 6 Michigan + 7 1 0 10 1 0
No. 9 Ohio State + 7 1 0 9 2 0
Purdue 6 2 0 6 5 0
Michigan State 5 2 1 5 5 1
Minnesota 4 4 0 4 7 0
Indiana 3 5 0 5 6 0
Illinois 3 5 0 3 8 0
Iowa 2 6 1 3 7 1
Wisconsin 2 6 0 4 7 0
Northwestern 1 8 0 2 9 0
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1972 Michigan State Spartans football team represented Michigan State University in the 1972 Big Ten Conference football season. In their 19th season under head coach Duffy Daugherty, the Spartans compiled a 5–5–1 overall record (5–2–1 against Big Ten opponents) and finished in fourth place in the Big Ten Conference.[1][2]

Five Spartans were selected by either the Associated Press (AP) or the United Press International (UPI) as first-team players on the 1972 All-Big Ten Conference football team: tight end Billy Joe Dupree (AP-2, UPI-1); offensive guard Joe DeLamielleure (AP-1, UPI-1); linebacker Gail Clark (AP-1, UPI-1); and defensive backs Bill Simpson (AP-1, UPI-1) and Brad Van Pelt (AP-1, UPI-1).[3][4]

On November 3, 1972, Duffy Daugherty announced that he would resign as Michigan State's head football coach at the end of the 1972 season.[5] In 19 years as the head coach, he compiled a 109–69–5 record and won two Big Ten championships. Denny Stolz, who had been the Spartans' defensive coordinator for two years, was hired in December 1972 to replace Daugherty.[6]

  1. ^ "Michigan State Yearly Results (1970-1974)". College Football Data Warehouse. David DeLassus. Archived from the original on July 14, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
  2. ^ "2015 Michigan State Football Media Guide" (PDF). Michigan State University. p. 146. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 17, 2016. Retrieved July 4, 2016.
  3. ^ "Wells named to All-Big Ten team". The Pantagraph (Bloomington, Illinois). November 28, 1972.
  4. ^ "UM, State, Buckeyes Dominate UPI's All Big Ten Team". Ludington Daily News (UPI story). November 28, 1972. p. 5.
  5. ^ "Duffy's Last Season With Mich. State: Only One Winner Since '66 Title". The Des Moines Register. November 4, 1972. p. 17.
  6. ^ "Michigan State Selects Stolz as Grid Coach". News-Herald, Panama City, Florida. December 13, 1972. p. 23.