1978 Michigan State Spartans football team

Last updated

1978 Michigan State Spartans football
Big Ten co-champion
Conference Big Ten Conference
Ranking
APNo. 12
Record8–3 (7–1 Big Ten)
Head coach
Defensive coordinatorGeorge Dyer (1st season)
MVP Ed Smith
Captains
  • Mel Land
  • Ed Smith
Home stadium Spartan Stadium
Seasons
←  1977
1979  →
1978 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
TeamW L TW L T
No. 5 Michigan + 7 –1 –010 –2 –0
No. 12 Michigan State + 7 –1 –08 –3 –0
No. 13 Purdue 6 –1 –19 –2 –1
Ohio State 6 –2 –07 –4 –1
Minnesota 4 –4 –05 –6 –0
Wisconsin 3 –4 –25 –4 –2
Indiana 3 –5 –04 –7 –0
Iowa 2 –6 –02 –9 –0
Illinois 0 –6 –21 –8 –2
Northwestern 0 –8 –10 –10 –1
  • + – Conference co-champions
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1978 Michigan State Spartans football team represented Michigan State University during the 1978 Big Ten Conference football season. Finishing the season on a seven-game winning streak, the Spartans won their fourth Big Ten Conference championship, which they shared with in-state rival Michigan. The Spartans finished number 12 in the final AP Poll.

Contents

Wide receiver Kirk Gibson caught 42 passes for 806 yard during the 1978 season. [1] Gibson was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2017. [2]

Quarterback Ed Smith led the Big Ten in 1978 with 2,226 passing yards, a 139.0 passing efficiency rating, and 2,247 yards of total offense. [3] He was also selected as the most valuable player on the 1978 Michigan State team. [4] He finished his career as Michigan State's and the Big Ten's all-time leader with 5,706 passing yards. [5]

The team was put on probation during the 1978 season and could not appear in any bowl games. [6]

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 16at Purdue
L 14–2160,365 [7]
September 23 Syracuse *
W 49–2174,511 [8]
September 29at No. 3 USC *
L 9–3065,319 [9]
October 7 Notre Dame *
  • Spartan Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI (rivalry)
L 25–2977,087 [10]
October 14at No. 5 Michigan
W 24–15105,132 [11] [12]
October 21 Indiana Dagger-14-plain.png
  • Spartan Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI (rivalry)
W 49–1476,013 [13]
October 28 Wisconsin
  • Spartan Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI
W 55–270,114 [14]
November 4at Illinois No. 18
W 59–1948,077 [15]
November 11 Minnesota No. 17
  • Spartan Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI
W 33–972,122 [16]
November 18at Northwestern No. 16
W 52–314,157 [17]
November 25 Iowa No. 14
  • Spartan Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI
W 42–757,007 [18]
  • *Non-conference game
  • Dagger-14-plain.pngHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Roster

1978 Michigan State Spartans football team roster
PlayersCoaches
Offense
Pos.#NameClass
QB Ed Smith Jr
WR 23 Kirk Gibson Sr
G James "Jody" McCulloh
Defense
Pos.#NameClass
DB 16Mark AndersonJr
LB 57 Larry Savage
Special teams
Pos.#NameClass
Head coach
    Coordinators/assistant coaches
    • Dan Underwood
    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • Injury icon 2.svg Injured
    • Redshirt.svg Redshirt

References

  1. ↑ "1978 Michigan State Spartans Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
  2. ↑ Kyle Austin (January 9, 2017). "Kirk Gibson voted into College Football Hall of Fame". Mlive.com.
  3. ↑ "1978 Big Ten Conference Year Summary". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 2, 2017.
  4. ↑ Roy Damer (December 25, 1978). "Michigan's Leach wins Tribune Silver Football". Chicago Tribune. p. 5-3.
  5. ↑ "Ticats sign highly-rated passer". Ottawa Journal. February 13, 1979. p. 16.
  6. ↑ Michigan, Notre Dame Test Crucial, web: The Sacramento Bee, 1978, retrieved March 13, 2023
  7. ↑ "Purdue rallies to beat Spartans". Wisconsin State Journal. September 17, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Spartans bomb Syracuse, 49–21". The Buffalo News. September 24, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Trojans roll past Spartans". The Arizona Republic. October 1, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Irish hold off Spartans, 29–25". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. October 8, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ Tom Henderson (October 15, 1978). "MSU turns the tables, ends 9-year drought; Michigan tumbles, 24–15". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1F, 7F.
  12. ↑ Paul Campbell (October 15, 1978). "State win turns Blue green". The Michigan Daily. pp. 1, 12 – via Bentley Historical Library.
  13. ↑ "Michigan State rolls over Indiana, 49–14". The Pantagraph. October 22, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "Spartans crush Badgers". The Reporter. October 29, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  15. ↑ "Michigan State romps past Illinois 59–19". The Muskegon Chronicle. November 5, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ "Michigan State rolls past Minnesota 33–9". The Decatur Daily Review. November 12, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  17. ↑ "MSU routs Wildcats". The Post-Crescent. November 19, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ "Spartans' offense destroys Hawkeyes". The Daily Nonpareil. November 26, 1978. Retrieved October 21, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  19. ↑ Jon-Erik Hexum Papers UA.10.3.127 - Michigan State Universityarchive.lib.msu.edu › uahc › FindingAids
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