Michigan State Spartans The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic team that represent Michigan State University . The school ' s athletic program includes 25 varsity sports teams . Their mascot is a Spartan warrior named Sparty , and the school colors are green and white . The university participates in the NCAA ' s Division I - A and in the Big Ten Conference in all Varsity sports except ice hockey , which competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association . Michigan State offers 12 varsity sports for men and 13 for women . The university ' s athletic director is Mark Hollis , who was promoted to the position on January 1 , 2008 . Hollis replaced Ron Mason , who also served as head hockey coach from 1979 to 2002 , retiring with a 608 – 261 – 64 record at MSU . MSU ' s football team has won or shared six national championships in 1951 , 1952 , 1955 , 1957 , 1965 and 1966 , and has won the Rose Bowl in 1954 , 1956 and 1988 . Its men ' s basketball team won the NCAA National Championship in 1979 and 2000 . The MSU men ' s ice hockey has won national titles in 1966 , 1986 and 2007 . MSU ' s golf team won the Big Ten Championship in 1969 and again in 2005 . History . In 1925 , the institution changed its name to " Michigan State College of Agriculture and Applied Science " , and as an agricultural school , its teams were referred to as the Aggies . Looking to move beyond its agricultural roots , Michigan State held a contest to find a new nickname . They decided to call the teams the " Michigan Staters " . Local sports writers for the " Lansing State Journal " and the " Capital News " went through the losing entries to find a shorter and more heroic name . They decided on the " Spartans " , which had been suggested by a recent immigrant from Sparta , Stephen G . Scofes . By coincidence , Justin Morrill had once compared the Land Grant colleges to the schools of ancient Sparta . With a heroic name and a historic precedent , the " Spartans " quickly caught on as the teams ' new nickname . They later changed the lyrics of the Fight Song to reflect the name change of the College and its sports teams . As the college grew in size , it looked to join a major collegiate conference . When the University of Chicago eliminated varsity football and withdrew from the Western Conference ( now the Big Ten ) in 1946 , Michigan State president John A . Hannah lobbied hard to take its place . Despite opposition from the University of Michigan , the Big Ten finally admitted M . S . C . on May 20 , 1949 . After joining the conference , head football coach Clarence L . " Biggie " Munn led the Spartan football team to the Rose Bowl in the 1953 – 54 season , beating UCLA 28 – 20 . Successor coach Hugh " Duffy " Daugherty carried the football team to a second Rose Bowl where it again defeated UCLA , 17 – 14 . Varsity sports . Michigan State has 23 NCAA Division I - A varsity teams : 11 varsity sports for men and 12 for women . They participate in the Big Ten Conference in all sports except ice hockey , which competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association and fencing , where until 1997 , from the University founding , MSU featured fencing as a varsity sport . During that time , MSU was coached by the first American recognized as a master of fencing , Charles Schmitter , for 45 years , from 1939 to 1984 . Upon his retirement , his student , Fred Freiheit , coached from 1984 until fencing was demoted from varsity status in 1997 . The Michigan State University Fencing Club is a competing member of the Midwest Fencing Conference , which consists of sixteen ( 16 ) schools with varsity or club programs . Basketball . MSU ' s men ' s basketball team has won the National Championship twice : in 1979 and 2000 . In 1979 , Earvin " Magic " Johnson , along with Greg Kelser , Jay Vincent and Mike Brkovich , carried the MSU team to a 75 – 64 win against the Larry Bird - led Indiana State Sycamores . In 2000 , three players from Flint , Morris Peterson , Charlie Bell and Mateen Cleaves , carried the team to its second national title . Dubbed the " Flintstones " , they were the key to the Spartans ' win against the University of Florida . Lost to UNC 89 - 72 in the 2009 NCAA National Championship game . On December 13 , 2003 , Michigan State and Kentucky played at the most - attended basketball game in history , when they played a match in front of 78 , 130 at Ford Field , a stadium in Detroit . Kentucky won 79 – 74 . Since 1995 , Michigan State has been coached by Tom Izzo , who has a 364 – 146 record . Izzo ' s coaching helped the team make six of twelve NCAA Final Four s from 1999 to 2010 , winning the title in 2000 . Michigan State basketball has been selected for 15 consecutive NCAA tournament bids from 1998 to 2012 , making six final fours during that span . This span has provided every four - year player under Tom Izzo the opportunity to play in a final four . Overall , Michigan State has made it to the final four eight times and has made 25 NCAA Tournament appearances . Spartans formerly or currently in the NBA include Earvin " Magic " Johnson , Shawn Respert , Steve Smith , Greg Kelser , Jay Vincent , Steve Smith , Scott Skiles , Jason Richardson , Mateen Cleaves , Alan Anderson , Zach Randolph , Morris Peterson , Eric Snow , Mike Peplowski , Kevin Willis , Charlie Bell , Shannon Brown , Jamie Feick , Maurice Ager , Paul Davis and Drew Naymick . MSU also has a fairly successful women ' s basketball team , with its greatest accomplishment being a national runner - up finish to Baylor in 2005 . Suzy Merchant took over as head coach in 2007 , and replaced Joanne P . McCallie who left MSU to coach for Duke University . Before coming to Michigan State , Merchant spent nine years as head coach of Eastern Michigan University ' s team , where she won the most games in the school ' s history . During the 2007 – 2008 season , the team won more games , 23 , than any other Big Ten team . Football . Football has a long tradition at Michigan State . Starting as a club sport in 1884 , football gained varsity status in 1896 . During that time , the Spartans had a roster of impressive players , including Lynn Chandnois , Dorne Dibble , Meredith Assaly , and Don McAulliffe . In 1951 , the Spartans finished the season undefeated , and performed the same feat the following year in addition to the nation ' s longest winning streak of 24 games . The team was named the " undisputed national champions by every official poll " . After waiting for several years , the team was finally admitted into the Big Ten Conference as a regular member in 1953 . They promptly went on to capture the league championship ( losing only one game during the season ) and beating UCLA in their first Rose Bowl game . After the 1953 season Biggie Munn , the legendary Spartan coach , turned the team over to his protégé and future legend Duffy Daugherty . Daughtery went on to win the 1956 Rose Bowl . George Perles was the head coach when the Spartans defeated USC in the 1988 Rose Bowl . All told , Michigan State has won six national championships and nine Big Ten championships . Today , the football team competes in Spartan Stadium , a renovated 75 , 005 - person football stadium in the center of campus . The coach is Mark Dantonio , who was hired on November 27 , 2006 . Dantonio has a 33 – 19 ( 20 - 12 ) record in his coaching tenure . Dantonio won the Big Ten Championship in 2010 and was named Big Ten Coach of the Year . MSU ' s traditional archrival is the University of Michigan , against whom they compete for the Paul Bunyan Trophy ; MSU has a 23 – 34 – 1 record in the annual trophy game . The Spartans have won the trophy each of the last four years : 2008 , 2009 2010 , and 2011 . Michigan State is one of three Big Ten teams to have an annual non - conference football game against Notre Dame , with whom they compete for the Megaphone Trophy . MSU ' s record in the trophy series against the Fighting Irish is 26 – 31 – 1 . The one tie , dubbed the " Game of the Century " , occurred in 1966 , when Notre Dame was ranked first and MSU second in the country . The result of the game was a 10 – 10 tie , after Notre Dame elected not to attempt a score when they had the ball late in the game . Michigan State won the Megaphone Trophy in 2010 after beating the Irish 34 – 31 in East Lansing on an OT fake field goal play known as " Little Giants " . In the National Football League , MSU alumni include Morten Andersen , Plaxico Burress , Andre Rison , Derrick Mason , Muhsin Muhammad , T . J . Duckett , Flozell Adams , Julian Peterson , Herb Haygood , Charles Rogers , Jim Miller , Earl Morrall , Wayne Fontes , Bubba Smith , Tony Banks , Percy Snow , Rob Fredrickson , Jeff Smoker , Tony Mandarich , Lorenzo White , Hank Bullough , Drew Stanton , Devin Thomas , Tupe Peko , Domata Peko , Chris Morris , Javon Ringer , Chris L . Rucker and Greg Jones . Ice hockey . Michigan State has two varsity hockey teams : a men ' s ice hockey team and a women ' s field hockey team . Helen Knull is the head coach of the women ' s field hockey team . The men ' s ice hockey team plays at the Munn Ice Arena . The head coach was Rick Comley , who had a 116 – 73 – 19 record at MSU . The current head coach is Tom Anastos . Since the Big Ten Conference does not cover Division I ice hockey , Michigan State competes in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association . Along with the University of Michigan ( U - M ) and the Ohio State University , it is one of three Big Ten schools in the CCHA . On October 6 , 2001 , the team was involved in what was then the most - attended hockey game in history : The Cold War . The Spartans set up a hockey rink in the middle of their football stadium , Spartan Stadium and played U - M before a crowd of 74 , 554 . The game ended in a 3 – 3 tie . A decade later , the same two teams were involved again in the most - attended ice hockey game in history . This time , Michigan hosted the rivalry game at its own Michigan Stadium . The Big Chill at the Big House set the current record with an officially certified crowd of 104 , 173 . The MSU ice hockey program has seven CCHA regular season championships and 11 CCHA Tournament titles . MSU has also won 11 Great Lakes Invitational titles . The Spartans have been in the NCAA tournament 23 times , with nine Frozen Four appearances and three national titles ( 1966 , 1986 and 2007 ) . On April 7 , 2007 , the Michigan State Spartans won their third Collegiate Championship by beating the Boston College Eagles 3 – 1 . Former Michigan State players in the National Hockey League include Rod Brind ' Amour , Anson Carter , Donald McSween , Adam Hall , John - Michael Liles , Shawn Horcoff , Justin Abdelkader , Jim Slater , brothers Kelly Miller and Kip Miller , as well as their cousins , brothers Ryan Miller and Drew Miller . Two players for MSU have won the Hobey Baker Award : Kip Miller in 1990 and Ryan Miller in 2001 . Few other players also excelling in other leagues including forward Brock Radunske and defenseman Brad Fast . Cross country . Historically , the Michigan State Cross Country men ' s team has been one of the school ' s most successful programs . Between World War I and World War II , Michigan State College competed in the Central Collegiate Conference , winning titles in 1926 - 1929 , 1932 , 1933 and 1935 . Michigan State also experienced success in the IC4A , at New York ’ s Van Cortlandt Park , winning 15 team titles ( 1933 – 1937 , 1949 , 1953 , 1956 – 1960 , 1962 , 1963 and 1968 ) . Since entering the Big Ten in 1950 , Michigan State has won 14 men ’ s titles ( 1951 – 1953 , 1955 – 1960 , 1962 , 1963 , 1968 , 1970 and 1971 ) . Michigan State hosted the inaugural NCAA cross country championships in 1938 and every year thereafter through 1964 ( except a one - year vacation in 1943 due to war ) . The Spartans won eight NCAA championships from 1930 to 1959 , including 1939 , 1948 , 1949 , 1952 , and 1955 - 1959 ( minus 1957 ) . Walt Drenth is the current director of both the men ' s and women ' s cross country and track and field programs . After joining MSU in 2004 , Drenth led the men ' s cross country team to a NCAA Championship bid during the 2004 season . The women ' s cross country team also advanced to the NCAA Championship Meet after winning the Great Lakes Regional race . Other varsity sports . MSU has a number of other team sports . As in many other NCAA institutions , Michigan State has a baseball team for men and a softball team for women . Jake Boss Jr . is head coach of the MSU baseball team . Former Michigan State players in Major League Baseball include Kirk Gibson , Steve Garvey , John Smoltz , Robin Roberts and Mark Mulder . Since 2007 , the baseball team plays a popular annual exhibition game against the nearby minor - league Lansing Lugnuts . The MSU women ' s fastpitch softball team won the Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women ( AIAW ) Division I national title in 1976 . Its coach , Jacquie Joseph , has headed the program since 1994 . Since taking over the program , Joseph has helped bring MSU to a record of 445 – 372 – 1 and four NCAA Regional appearances . The Spartans also have a men ' s soccer team , which won two back - to - back championships in 1967 and 1968 . They shared the 1968 title with the University of Maryland , College Park . The men ' s coach is Joe Baum , who is in his 31st year as head coach at Michigan State . The men ' s soccer team battles Michigan annually in the Big Bear Trophy game , a series in which the Spartans lead 7 - 1 - 1 against their in - state rival . Coaching the women ' s team is Baum ' s former assistant , Tom Saxton . There is also a volleyball team ; Cathy George has been the head coach of the women ' s volleyball team since 2005 . During her first year at Michigan State , she led her team to a 12 – 18 record , including a 5 – 15 , ninth - place finish in the conference standings . There are a number of contact sports at MSU , including boxing and wrestling . MSU ' s boxing team won national titles in 1951 and 1955 , although it is no longer an NCAA varsity sport . Wrestling was one of the earliest sports formed at the Michigan Agricultural College . While the sport was dropped in 1906 , it was reformed by the college 15 years later . The school ' s wrestling team has won the NCAA Division I championship once , in 1967 . Its current coach , Tom Minkel , has produced 33 All - American s , 11 Big Ten Champions and one NCAA Champion . Water sports at MSU include rowing and swimming . MSU ' s women ' s rowing crew coach is Matt Weise . In his third year as MSU head coach , Weise coached the Spartans to a program - best sixth - place team finish at the NCAA Championship . He has continued to be a great coach for the sport . Matt Gianiodis is the head coach of both the men and women ' s swimming and diving . In his four years as head coach , Spartan swimmers and divers have broken 14 varsity records . Other sports at MSU include golf , gymnastics and tennis . Golf has had a long tradition at MSU . Hall of Fame Coach Bruce Fossum helped carry MSU to its first Big Ten title in 1969 . The Big Ten title would elude the Spartans until 2005 , when arguably , the best team ever assembled , took home the rings in stellar fashion . Not only did the Spartans win the Big Ten Championship in 2005 , but they captured two other titles along the way and rose all the way to # 5 in the U . S . Sam Puryear coaches the men ' s golf team . A former assistant coach at Stanford University , this is his first year as a head coach . Stacy Slobodnik - Stoll coaches the women ' s team . In the last ten seasons , she has brought the Spartans to nine straight NCAA regional appearances . The men ' s gymnastics team at MSU won one national title , which they shared with the University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign in 1958 . In 2001 , the MSU Board of Trustees disbanded the team in order to comply with Title IX regulations . The women ' s team retained its varsity status . Its coach is Kathie Klages , who has had 16 winning seasons in a row . In 2008 , the team ranked 17th in the nation in the final season standings , the highest placement in program history . Gene Orlando is the coach of the men ' s tennis team . In his 17 years as MSU head coach , Orlando has taken the Spartan men to four NCAA Championship singles qualifiers . Coaching the women ' s team is Erica Perkins , a second - year head coach who , in her first year , led the Spartan women to a 12 – 11 record ( 2 – 8 , Big Ten . ) Notable non varsity sports . Rugby . The Michigan State University Rugby Football Club was founded in 1964 . Michigan State rugby has been steadily improving in college rugby in recent years . During the 2010 - 11 season , the Spartans played in Division 2 , finishing with a 10 - 3 record and qualifying for the playoffs . The Spartans ' success led to them moving up to Division 1 - AA for the 2011 - 12 season . For the 2012 - 13 season , the Spartans once again moved to a higher level of competition - - the Big Ten Universities D1 - A conference , against traditional Big 10 rivals such as Michigan . The Spartans are led by head coach Dave Poquette , who has been coaching at Michigan State since 1992 . MSU Athletics Hall of Fame . In 1992 , thirty former Spartan athlete s , coaches , and administrators were inducted into the MSU Athletics Hall of Fame as its charter class . On October 1 , 1999 , the University opened its new Athletics Hall of Fame , in the Clara Bell Smith Student - Athlete Academic Center .