| 1978 Michigan State Spartans football | |
|---|---|
Big Ten co-champion | |
| Conference | Big Ten Conference |
| Ranking | |
| AP | No. 12 |
| Record | 8–3 (7–1 Big Ten) |
| Head coach |
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| Defensive coordinator | George Dyer (1st season) |
| MVP | Ed Smith |
| Captain | Mel Land, Ed Smith |
| Home stadium | Spartan Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 5 Michigan + | 7 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 12 Michigan State + | 7 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 13 Purdue | 6 | – | 1 | – | 1 | 9 | – | 2 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ohio State | 6 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Minnesota | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Wisconsin | 3 | – | 4 | – | 2 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana | 3 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Iowa | 2 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 9 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Illinois | 0 | – | 6 | – | 2 | 1 | – | 8 | – | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern | 0 | – | 8 | – | 1 | 0 | – | 10 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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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.
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
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 16 | at Purdue | L 14–21 | 60,365 | |||
| September 23 | Syracuse* | W 49–21 | 74,511 | |||
| September 29 | at No. 3 USC* | L 9–30 | 65,319 | |||
| October 7 | Notre Dame* |
| L 25–29 | 77,087 | ||
| October 14 | at No. 5 Michigan | W 24–15 | 105,132 | [7] [8] | ||
| October 21 |
Indiana |
| W 49–14 | 76,013 | ||
| October 28 | Wisconsin |
| W 55–2 | 70,114 | ||
| November 4 | at Illinois | No. 18 | W 59–19 | 48,077 | ||
| November 11 | Minnesota | No. 17 |
| W 33–9 | 72,122 | |
| November 18 | at Northwestern | No. 16 | W 52–3 | 14,157 | ||
| November 25 | Iowa | No. 14 |
| W 42–7 | 57,007 | |
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Roster
| 1978 Michigan State Spartans football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
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- Jon-Erik Hexum actor known for accidentally fatally shooting himself on the set of Cover Up. [9]
References
- ^ "1978 Michigan State Spartans Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved January 10, 2017.
- ^ Kyle Austin (January 9, 2017). "Kirk Gibson voted into College Football Hall of Fame". Mlive.com.
- ^ "1978 Big Ten Conference Year Summary". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved March 2, 2017.
- ^ Roy Damer (December 25, 1978). "Michigan's Leach wins Tribune Silver Football". Chicago Tribune. p. 5-3.
- ^ "Ticats sign highly-rated passer". Ottawa Journal. February 13, 1979. p. 16.
- ^ Michigan, Notre Dame Test Crucial, web: The Sacramento Bee, 1978, retrieved March 13, 2023
- ^ Tom Henderson (October 15, 1978). "MSU turns the tables, ends 9-year drought; Michigan tumbles, 24-15". Detroit Free Press. pp. 1F, 7F.
- ^ Paul Campbell (October 15, 1978). "State win turns Blue green". The Michigan Daily. pp. 1, 12 – via Bentley Historical Library.
- ^ Jon-Erik Hexum Papers UA.10.3.127 - Michigan State Universityarchive.lib.msu.edu › uahc › FindingAids
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