The face of MSU's football program
Quick, first reaction -- who is the face of the MSU football program?
The current coach, Mark Dantonio? A legend, such as Biggie Munn or Duffy Daugherty? George Webster? Kirk Gibson? Lorenzo White? A current star, such as Javon Ringer?
Click on this link and let your opinion be known.
Biggie Munn? I would guess that most people would have no idea what he even looked like.
There have been many coaches and
players over the years but I don't
think any one particular person really stands out as the face of MSU football.
With U of M it is very easy - most
people would say Bo and rightly so.
Posted by: JRS | May 14, 2008 at 10:11 PM
Bobby McAllister
Posted by: mkirk | May 14, 2008 at 10:41 PM
Sparty. Ever notice the ESPN announcers like calling our teams "sparty", as if it were grammatically correct to label an entire football or basketball team with that singular title?
Posted by: SpartyOn | May 14, 2008 at 11:36 PM
andre rison
Posted by: Matt | May 14, 2008 at 11:41 PM
I have to give some love to those who say Sparty. SpartyOn in particular makes a good point about State being called "Sparty". Frankly I like that because I think a nickname in the singular and that is used across the board for all sports lends a notion of continuity along the lines of what Lou Anna Simon calls "Team MSU".
Izzo is the in-the-flesh version of Sparty. For the purposes of this year, Ringer will be the face of MSU football in the manner of Stanton a couple years ago, unless Hoyer somehow eclipses him.
Posted by: Michael Motta | May 14, 2008 at 11:53 PM
Current Face: Javon Ringer
Past Few Years Face: Drew Stanton
Long time ago: Duffy, Bubba Smith etc.
Posted by: Rob | May 15, 2008 at 12:10 AM
jeff smoker
Posted by: nycspartan | May 15, 2008 at 12:54 AM
My stepdad used to produce the Perles and Heathcote TV shows - and I can tell you that George is still widely associated with MSU fb.
But those of you who bring up the mascot - I have to say, even as a Michigan alum, Sparty is probably the coolest mascot in the NCAA, and probably the national face of MSU - in any sport.
Oh, and for those of you who pointed out that Bo is the face of UM and Biggie is the face of MSU, don't forget, Bo is an OSU alum and Biggie played his college ball at UM. Not that that has any relevance to anything, but I thought it was interesting...
Posted by: MichiganMaestro | May 15, 2008 at 05:31 AM
Win or lose. Carl Banks will forever be the face of MSU Football for me. He played his heart out for losing teams under Muddy Waters and played and starred for maybe the best NFL team and defense ever (NY Giants). Not only that Jud wanted him on the basketball court and above all he is a class act. Just ask anyone in the NFL: Bill Parcells etc. Case closed. Oh, did I mention that he was 6-6 230 and could run like a deer. Thank goodness this rare athlete from Flint was a Spartan and not a Wolverine.
Posted by: David Lane | May 15, 2008 at 07:33 AM
For FB alone it's definately becoming Coach D. For everything else (including FB at this point) Sparty & Izzo.
I know this is fairly off topic, but can we please fix our student ticketing system? Every other big time school (and our own basketball program) does it right. Students should be able to request blocks of tickets with friends and have assigned seats at games with better seats going to season ticket holders according to seniority.
I graduated in 2005 and I have always felt that we'd have a louder student section that stays longer if we did it right.
As an added bonus, you wouldn't have a huge gaping hole in the crowd at the top of the stadium. You'd have a bunch of crazy freshmen. I'm not sure how much it would help the team on the field, but it would be appreciated.
Posted by: Mike | May 15, 2008 at 09:55 AM
Sparty, without a doubt. For those of you saying Izzo, we're talking about football, and all the other names being thrown out are just too old. We can't become Notre Dame and live on the glories of the past. We need to step up and get MSU back on top, and Sparty is recognized nationally already.
Posted by: DoctorWorm | May 15, 2008 at 09:56 AM
Sonny Corleone
Posted by: Shultsy | May 15, 2008 at 10:19 AM
Duffy! Bubba!
Now, it is definitely on Coach D.
He is an alumni and will give it all he has to get MSU back on top. GO GREEN!
Posted by: Marilyn Spindler | May 15, 2008 at 10:30 AM
We are the Spartans, one of the most fearsome and effective fighting units of all time. I am embarrassed to be associated with anyone who would prefer to refer to us as Sparty. The statue is fine but no one outside of the MSU community knows of it, and when they hear Sparty images of gymnastics teams and gay bars come to mind. Sparty sounds junior and weak - that's why scUM fans are so fond of calling us that. I'm part of the Spartans, not part of Sparty.
Posted by: lorenzo | May 15, 2008 at 11:23 AM
It is USUALLY the Coach, Bear, Joe Pa, Bo, Holtz, etc. But; Dantonio after only one year? You have got to be kidding.
Posted by: LeeBee | May 15, 2008 at 11:30 AM
Clearly the face of MSU football today is Mark Dantonio.
Just as the face of MICHIGAN football is RR.
Mark Dantonio is building a solid program. The spartans competed in every game last season, which is far more than MICHIGAN can say.
Posted by: sdp00 | May 15, 2008 at 11:45 AM
Sorry MichiganMaestro, can't let that one pass. It's true your cherished Bo was a Buckeye (doesn't that hurt more than a little?), but Biggie played for and graduated from the University of Minnesota (there are OTHER U of Ms!).
Now, beyond my age in remembering him, my reason for nominating Munn first was his role in bringing MSC (at that time) to nation wide prominence for the first time, including our first national championship in football in '51 and again in '52. That has to count for something.
And while I was one of the fans in Spartan Stadium screaming "kill Bubba kill", I don't believe it is possible to identify any one player as the face of Spartan football. I think I'll stick with Sparty, our animated mascot (agreeing the statue is not as well known).
Posted by: Spartan Brother | May 15, 2008 at 11:55 AM
1)Stephen "Batman" Holman
2)James "Sonny Corleone" Caan (no tollboths near the stadium, please)
3)Tony Mandarich
4)Jim Miller
5)Napoleon Outlaw
6)Flozelle Adams
7)Tony Banks
8)Charles "Up in Smoke" Rogers
9)Chris Baker
10)Paul Edinger
Posted by: King Kong Bundy | May 15, 2008 at 11:55 AM
MichiganMaestro, I appreciate the civility, however, I want to clarify something. Biggie indeed "played his college ball at UM" - meaning the University of Minnesota. Also, while Bo is an OSU alum, it is because he earned his Master's there. His undergraduate studies and play took place at Miami University.
Posted by: Michael Motta | May 15, 2008 at 11:56 AM
The first thought in my mind is a poster in my grandfather's bar. I see Percy Snow stuffing a UM runningback at the line of scrimmage.
I see Spartans in the "cut-off mesh" uniforms, with big pads on the hands and arms, hitting opposing players.
After I thought of Percy, I saw Bubba and Webster.
Posted by: AZSparty | May 15, 2008 at 12:03 PM
Funny, I was there from 65' to 70' and I remember the "car" to be an Oldsmobile 98 convert provided by Story
Posted by: tdtimmyd | May 15, 2008 at 12:07 PM
George Webster has already been been selected by MSU fans as the school's "All Time Greatest Player" (See: J.D. McCallum Big Ten Football Since 1895). As for teams, the coaches who played MSU's 1951 and 1952 national champions when in each year they went 9-0 and were uncontested as champions in both news service polls (unlike Daugherty's teams), were of the general opinion that these two years MSU had possibly the greatest teams ever fielded in college football. Yeah, I know how many times has that been said since (and before) about other teams! How about Parseghian for the 10-10 tie which still is talked about today for the publicity it has given us even after the widely agreed-upon forty years of mediocrity.
Posted by: Robert | May 15, 2008 at 01:08 PM
I graduated in 66. And it was a white Buick Riviera. But maybe it was a pink Rambler American 4-dr. sedan now that I think of it. Hmmm....
Posted by: Robert | May 15, 2008 at 01:14 PM
New Blog: What did Bubba drive?
I suggested the Toronado but I have only a general recollection of seeing him driving around campus (yes rg, usually by the Student Union building). But the Olds shared bodies with the Riviera so they looked very similar. Mainly I remember it being white and having his name on the door.
It was most likely to have been some Oldsmobile product and certainly could have been "provided" by Story Olds.
A pink Rambler would have been a hoot!
Posted by: Spartan Brother | May 15, 2008 at 01:53 PM
for me Joe Delameilleure (sp?) was the clearly the man. He was the fastest lineman on the field when he played and provided crushing blocks for Eric the flea. I remember Joe D snapping for a punt and then beating everyone down the field including the wide outs. Any other ex- Spartans in the pro football hall of fame?
Posted by: dr muffin | May 15, 2008 at 03:30 PM