2014 Michigan State Spartans football team

2014 Michigan State Spartans football
Cotton Bowl Classic champion
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
DivisionEast Division
Ranking
CoachesNo. 5
APNo. 5
Record11–2 (7–1 Big Ten)
Head coach
Co-offensive coordinatorDave Warner (2nd season)
Co-offensive coordinatorJim Bollman (2nd season)
Offensive schemePro-style
Defensive coordinatorPat Narduzzi (8th season)
Base defense4–3
CaptainShilique Calhoun
Kurtis Drummond
Travis Jackson
Home stadiumSpartan Stadium
Seasons
← 2013
2015 →
2014 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
East Division
No. 1 Ohio State x$#^   8 0     14 1  
No. T–5 Michigan State   7 1     11 2  
Maryland   4 4     7 6  
Rutgers   3 5     8 5  
Michigan   3 5     5 7  
Penn State   2 6     7 6  
Indiana   1 7     4 8  
West Division
No. 13 Wisconsin x   7 1     11 3  
Minnesota   5 3     8 5  
Nebraska   5 3     9 4  
Iowa   4 4     7 6  
Illinois   3 5     6 7  
Northwestern   3 5     5 7  
Purdue   1 7     3 9  
Championship: Ohio State 59, Wisconsin 0
  • # – College Football Playoff champion
  • ^ – College Football Playoff participant
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2014 Michigan State Spartans football team represented Michigan State University in the East Division of the Big Ten Conference during the 2014 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Michigan State played their home games at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan and were led by eighth-year head coach Mark Dantonio. The season marked a new division organization and the Spartans were members of the East Division.[1][2]

The Spartans finished the season 11–2, 7–1 in Big Ten play to finish in second place in the East Division behind Ohio State who went on win the Inaugural College Football Playoff. Michigan State faced Baylor in the 2015 Cotton Bowl, which was part of the new New Year's Six Bowls, where they overcame a 20-point deficit in the fourth quarter to defeat Baylor 42–41.[3][4]

  1. ^ "Big Ten announces it will switch to East and West divisions". SI.com. Retrieved September 18, 2017.
  2. ^ "Big Ten announces East, West divisions, nine-game schedule". CBSSports.com. Retrieved September 18, 2017.
  3. ^ "Michigan State vs. Baylor – Game Recap – January 1, 2015 – ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 18, 2017.
  4. ^ "Cotton Bowl 2015: Michigan State Rallies in Fourth to Beat Baylor". The New York Times. Associated Press. 2015. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 18, 2017.