2001 Michigan State Spartans football team

2001 Michigan State Spartans football
2001 Michigan State Spartans football
Silicon Valley Football Classic champion
Silicon Valley Football Classic, W 44–35 vs. Fresno State
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	7–5 (3–5 Big Ten)
Head coach	Bobby Williams (2nd season);
Offensive coordinator	Morris Watts (3rd season)
Defensive coordinator	Bill Miller (3rd season)
Home stadium	Spartan Stadium (c. 71,007 AstroTurf)
	Seasons ← 2000 2002 →

The 2001 Michigan State Spartans football team represented Michigan State University in the 2001 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Spartans played their home games at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan. This was the second year for head coach Bobby Williams, who led the Spartans to a 7-5 record including a 44–35 victory in the 2001 Silicon Valley Football Classic over the Fresno State Bulldogs of the Western Athletic Conference.

2001 Big Ten Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 12 Illinois $	7	–	1	10	–	2
No. 20 Michigan	6	–	2	8	–	4
Ohio State	5	–	3	7	–	5
Iowa	4	–	4	7	–	5
Purdue	4	–	4	6	–	6
Penn State	4	–	4	5	–	6
Indiana	4	–	4	5	–	6
Michigan State	3	–	5	7	–	5
Wisconsin	3	–	5	5	–	7
Minnesota	2	–	6	4	–	7
Northwestern	2	–	6	4	–	7

$ – BCS representative as conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The controversial final play of the home game against Michigan on November 3 led to a change in the official timekeeping policy of the Big Ten Conference. Beginning in 2002, a neutral official appointed by the Big Ten keeps track of the game time on the field.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 8	1:00 p.m.	Central Michigan*		Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI		W 35–21	73,879	^[1]
September 22	2:30 p.m.	at No. 23 Notre Dame*		Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)	NBC	W 17–10	80,795
September 29	3:30 p.m.	at No. 16 Northwestern	No. 23	Ryan Field Evanston, IL	ABC	L 26–27	40,103
October 13	12:00 p.m.	Iowa		Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	ESPN2	W 31–28	73,680
October 20	12:00 p.m.	at Minnesota		Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, MN		L 19–28	47,385
October 27	12:00 p.m.	at Wisconsin		Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	ESPN+	W 42–28	79,108
November 3	3:30 p.m.	No. 6 Michigan		Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI (rivalry)	ABC	W 26–24	75,262	^[2]
November 10	12:00 p.m.	Indiana	No. 22	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI (rivalry)		L 28–37	73,990
November 17	12:00 p.m.	at Purdue		Ross–Ade Stadium West Lafayette, IN	ESPN2	L 14–24	55,660
November 24	3:30 p.m.	Penn State		Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI (rivalry)	ESPN	L 37–42	72,658
December 1	11:00 a.m.	Missouri*		Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	ESPN2	W 55–7	72,823
December 31	3:00 p.m.	vs. No. 20 Fresno State*		Spartan Stadium San Jose, CA (Silicon Valley Football Classic)	FSN	W 44–35	30,456
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Note: The Missouri game originally scheduled for September 15 was rescheduled to December 1 because of the September 11 attacks.

Roster

2001 Michigan State Spartans football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
WR	`1`	Charles Rogers	So
RB	`8`	T. J. Duckett	Sr
QB	`9`	Jeff Smoker	So
G	`76`	Will Whitticker	Fr
TE	`83`	Chris Baker	Sr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
DE	`95`	Matthias Askew	So
LB	`42`	Mike Labinjo	So
LB	`44`	Ronald Stanley	Fr
DT	`95`	Josh Shaw	Sr

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
K	`16`	Dave Rayner	Fr

Head coach

Bobby Williams

Coordinators/assistant coaches

Morris Watts – Offensive Coordinator
Reggie Mitchell – Running backs coach
Don Treadwell – Wide receivers coach
Pat Perles – Tight ends coach
Jeff Stoutland – Offensive line coach
Brad Miller – Defensive Coordinator
Sal Sunseri – Special teams coordinator/Linebackers coach
Troy Douglas – Defensive backs coach
Brad Lawing – Recruiting coordinator
Matt House – Graduate Assistant

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible

Injured
Redshirt

Roster

References

^ Jack Ebling (September 9, 2001). "Miscues don't cost MSU: Despite four blocked punts, three turnovers, Spartans too much for CMU, 35-21". Lansing State Journal. pp. Sports 1, 3 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Michigan vs. Michigan State". USA Today. November 3, 2001. Retrieved January 6, 2014.

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[1] Jack Ebling (September 9, 2001). "Miscues don't cost MSU: Despite four blocked punts, three turnovers, Spartans too much for CMU, 35-21". Lansing State Journal. pp. Sports 1, 3 – via Newspapers.com.

[2] "Michigan vs. Michigan State". USA Today. November 3, 2001. Retrieved January 6, 2014.

[1]