The 2006 Michigan State Spartans football team represented

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...

in the

2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the highest level of college football competition in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The regular season began on August 31, 2006 and ended on ...

. Michigan State competed as a member of the

Big Ten Conference The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

, and played their home games at Spartan Stadium in

East Lansing, Michigan East Lansing is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Most of the city lies within Ingham County, Michigan, Ingham County with a smaller portion extending north into Clinton County, Michigan, Clinton County. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 ...

. 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, and he was fired after the 2006 season in which the team finished 4–8.''

Phil Steele's Phil Steele (c. 1960) is an American sportswriter and analyst who focuses exclusively on college and professional football. He is considered a "highly respected prognosticator" within the sports media. His company, Phil Steele Publications, prod ...

2009 College Football Preview'', volume 15, p. 66, Summer 2009. The Spartans did, however, set the record for the greatest comeback from a deficit in college football history.

Season recap

Michigan State teams during Smith's tenure were "known for their late season collapses". The Spartans started the 2006 season with a 3–0 record with victories over

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

Eastern Michigan Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

, and

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

. The following week, Michigan State led Notre Dame, 37–21, in the third quarter, but surrendered 19 points to lose the game. The Spartans then lost all but one game on the remainder of their schedule. On October 21, Michigan State traveled to

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, Wil ...

to face Northwestern. By the third quarter, Northwestern had extended its lead to a commanding 38–3. Michigan State gained momentum in the fourth quarter when

Devin Thomas Devin Thomas (born November 15, 1986) is a former American football wide receiver. After playing college football for Michigan State, he was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played for the Redskins ...

blocked a Northwestern punt, which was then returned for a

touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent's end zone. In Ameri ...

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. Placekicker

Brett Swenson Brett Swenson (born February 10, 1988) is a former American football placekicker. He was signed by the Indianapolis Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2010. He played college football at Michigan State University. Early life Brett Swenson was bo ...

made good the game-winning

field goal A field goal (FG) is a means of scoring in gridiron football. To score a field goal, the team in possession of the ball must place kick, or drop kick, the ball through the goal, i.e., between the uprights and over the crossbar. The entire ba ...

with 0:13 remaining to play, and Michigan State won the greatest comeback in college football history. After the record-setting victory, it appeared that Smith's job was temporarily secured,Spartans stun Cats for biggest comeback in I-A history
ESPN, October 21, 2006. but the administration fired him shortly after a loss to

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

the following week. The Spartans ended the season with four consecutive losses to finish with a 4–8 overall record and 1–7 against Big Ten opponents. In November,

Mark Dantonio Mark Justin Dantonio (born March 9, 1956) is a former American football coach and player. He most recently served as the head football coach at Michigan State University, a position he had held from 2007 to 2019, presiding over one of the most ...

was hired as the replacement head coach.

Schedule

Game summaries

Northwestern

Coaching staff

* John L. Smith – ''Head Coach'' *

Blaine Bennett Blaine Bennett (born c. 1964) is a former American football player and coach. He is the head football coach at Post Falls High School in Post Falls, Idaho, a position he has held since 2016. Bennett served as the head football coach at Western Or ...

– ''Assistant Head Coach/Wide receivers coach'' * Dave Baldwin – ''Offensive Coordinator/Tight end coach'' *

Dan Enos Daniel Patrick Enos (born July 1, 1968) is an American football coach and former player who currently the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Maryland. He was previously the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks c ...

– ''Quarterbacks coach'' * Ben Sirmans – ''Running backs coach/Special Teams coordinator'' *

Jeff Stoutland Jeff Stoutland (born February 10, 1962) is an American football coach who is the run game coordinator and offensive line coach for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). He served as the interim head football coach for th ...

– ''Offensive line coach'' *Chris Smeland – ''Defensive Coordinator/Safeties'' *Derrick Jackson – ''Defensive line coach'' * Mike Cox – ''Linebackers coach/Recruiting Coordinator'' * Chuck Driesbach – ''Defensive backs coach''

2007 NFL Draft

The following players were selected in the 2007 NFL Draft.

References

{{Michigan State Spartans football navbox

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

Michigan State Spartans football seasons

Michigan State Spartans football The Michigan State Spartans football program represents Michigan State University (MSU) in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level. The Spartans are members of the Big Ten Conference. Michigan State claims a ...