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American college football season From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 1981 Michigan State Spartans football team represented Michigan State University in the 1981 Big Ten Conference football season. In their second season under head coach Muddy Waters, the Spartans compiled a 5–6 overall record (4–5 against Big Ten opponents) and finished in a tie for sixth place in the Big Ten Conference.[1][2]
1981 Michigan State Spartans football | |
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Conference | Big Ten Conference |
Record | 5–6 (4–5 Big Ten) |
Head coach |
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Offensive coordinator | Joe Pendry (2nd season) |
MVP | Bryan Clark |
Captain | George Cooper, John Leister |
Home stadium | Spartan Stadium |
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 15 Ohio State + | 6 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 18 Iowa + | 6 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
No. 12 Michigan | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Illinois | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wisconsin | 6 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Minnesota | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Michigan State | 4 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Purdue | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 6 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indiana | 3 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Northwestern | 0 | – | 9 | – | 0 | 0 | – | 11 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Four Spartans were recognized by the Associated Press (AP) and/or the United Press International (UPI) as first-team players on the 1981 All-Big Ten Conference football team: center Tom Piette (AP-2; UPI-1); linebacker Carl Banks (AP-2; UPI-1); defensive back Jim Burroughs (AP-2; UPI-1); and placekicker Morten Andersen (AP-1; UPI-1).[3][4] Several Michigan State players ranked among the Big Ten leaders, including the following:
Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
September 12 | Illinois | L 17–27 | 54,945 | ||
September 19 | at No. 8 Ohio State | L 13–27 | 87,084 | ||
September 26 | Bowling Green* |
| W 10–7 | 64,323 | |
October 3 | at Notre Dame* | L 7–20 | 59,074 | ||
October 10 | No. 6 Michigan |
| L 20–38 | 77,923 | [6][7] |
October 17 | No. 14 Wisconsin |
| W 33–14 | 67,652 | |
October 24 | at Purdue | L 26–27 | 69,877 | ||
October 31 | Indiana |
| W 26–3 | 60,131 | |
November 7 | at Northwestern | W 61–14 | 24,104 | ||
November 14 | Minnesota |
| W 43–36 | 56,571 | |
November 21 | at No. 19 Iowa | L 7–36 | 60,103 | ||
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1981 Michigan State Spartans football team roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
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