1988 Michigan State Spartans football
Gator Bowl, L 27–34 vs. Georgia
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record6–5–1 (6–1–1 Big Ten)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorMorris Watts (3rd season)
Defensive coordinatorNorm Parker (1st season)
MVPKurt Larson
CaptainKurt Larson, Tony Mandarich, Bobby McAllister, John Miller
Home stadiumSpartan Stadium
Seasons
← 1987
1989 →
1988 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 4 Michigan $ 7 – 0 – 1 9 – 2 – 1
Michigan State 6 – 1 – 1 6 – 5 – 1
Illinois 5 – 2 – 1 6 – 5 – 1
Iowa 4 – 1 – 3 6 – 4 – 3
No. 20 Indiana 5 – 3 – 0 8 – 3 – 1
Purdue 3 – 5 – 0 4 – 7 – 0
Ohio State 2 – 5 – 1 4 – 6 – 1
Northwestern 2 – 5 – 1 2 – 8 – 1
Wisconsin 1 – 7 – 0 1 – 10 – 0
Minnesota 0 – 6 – 2 2 – 7 – 2
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1988 Michigan State Spartans football team represented Michigan State University in the 1988 NCAA Division I-A football season. The Spartans played their home games at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan and were coached by George Perles. The team finished second in the Big Ten Conference with a 6–1–1 conference record, and a 6–5–1 overall record.[1][2] Michigan State was invited to the 1989 Gator Bowl, losing to Georgia 27–34.

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 101:00 p.m.Rutgers*No. 15
L 13–1770,693
September 1712:00 p.m.No. 8 Notre Dame*
  • Spartan Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI (rivalry)
ABCL 3–2077,472
September 244:00 p.m.at No. 9 Florida State*
ESPNL 7–3061,757
October 13:30 p.m.Iowa
  • Spartan Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI
ABCT 10–1076,348
October 812:15 p.m.at No. 17 Michigan
L 3–17106,208
October 151:00 p.m.Northwesterndagger
  • Spartan Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI
W 36–376,952
October 222:00 p.m.at Illinois
W 28–2165,771
October 2912:15 p.m.Ohio State
  • Spartan Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI
W 20–1077,111
November 51:30 p.m.at Purdue
W 48–355,639
November 123:30 p.m.at Indiana
ABCW 38–1250,738
November 191:00 p.m.Wisconsin
  • Spartan Stadium
  • East Lansing, MI
W 36–076,372
January 1, 19898:00 p.m.vs. Georgia*
ESPNL 27–3476,236[3]
  • *Non-conference game
  • daggerHomecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

Roster

1988 Michigan State Spartans football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
WR 17 Willie Bouyer Sr
QB 4 Dan Enos So
RB 26 Blake Ezor Jr
OT 79 Tony Mandarich Sr
OT 77 Eric Moten So
WR 1 Andre Rison Sr
OT 71 Kevin Robbins Sr
FB 29 Duane Young So
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
CB 36 Harlon Barnett Jr
DB 9 Mike Iaquaniello So
LB 51 Carlos Jenkins So
LB 3 Kurt Larson Sr
SS John Miller Sr
LB 48 Percy Snow Jr
DE 91 Jim Szymanski Jr
LB 66 Matt Vanderbeck Jr
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

1989 NFL Draft

The following players were selected in the 1989 NFL Draft.[4]

Player Round Pick Position NFL Team
Tony Mandarich 1 2 Tackle Green Bay Packers
Andre Rison 1 22 Wide receiver Indianapolis Colts
Kevin Robbins 3 75 Tackle Los Angeles Rams
Kurt Larson 8 212 Linebacker Indianapolis Colts

References

  1. ^ "Michigan State Historical Scores".
  2. ^ "Michigan State Yearly Results". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on September 1, 2009. Retrieved November 26, 2011.
  3. ^ "MSU headed off at pass". Detroit Free Press. January 2, 1989. Retrieved November 11, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "1989 NFL Draft". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved November 23, 2019.


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