1996 Michigan State Spartans football team

American college football season

1996 Michigan State Spartans football
Sun Bowl, L 0–38 vs. Stanford
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	6–6 (5–3 Big Ten)
Head coach	Nick Saban (2nd season)
Offensive coordinator	Gary Tranquill (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Pro set
Defensive coordinator	Dean Pees (2nd season)
Base defense	4–3
MVP	Duane Goulbourne
Captain	Duane Goulbourne, Ike Reese, Chris Smith
Home stadium	Spartan Stadium
Seasons← 1995 1997 →

1996 Big Ten Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 2 Ohio State +	7	–	1	11	–	1
No. 15 Northwestern +	7	–	1	9	–	3
No. 7 Penn State	6	–	2	11	–	2
No. 18 Iowa	6	–	2	9	–	3
No. 20 Michigan	5	–	3	8	–	4
Michigan State	5	–	3	6	–	6
Wisconsin	3	–	5	8	–	5
Purdue	2	–	6	3	–	8
Minnesota	1	–	7	4	–	7
Indiana	1	–	7	3	–	8
Illinois	1	–	7	2	–	9

+ – Conference co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 1996 Michigan State Spartans football team competed on behalf of Michigan State University as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by second-year head coach Nick Saban, the Spartans compiled an overall record of 6–6 with a mark of 5–3, tying for fifth place in the Big Ten. Michigan State was invited to the Sun Bowl, where they lost to Stanford, 38–0, on December 31. The team played home games at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 31	12:30 p.m.	Purdue	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	ESPN	W 52–14	72,511
September 7	12:00 p.m.	at No. 1 Nebraska*	Memorial Stadium Lincoln, NE	ABC	L 14–55	75,590
September 21	1:00 p.m.	Louisville*	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI		L 20–30	70,311
September 28	12:30 p.m.	Eastern Michigan*	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	SCD	W 47–0	69,941
October 5	2:00 p.m.	at Iowa	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA		L 30–37	70,397
October 12	12:00 p.m.	Illinois	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	ESPN+	W 42–14	71,639
October 19	4:00 p.m.	at Minnesota	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome Minneapolis, MN		W 27–9	45,434
October 26	12:30 p.m.	Wisconsin	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	ESPN2	W 30–13	69,217
November 2	12:00 p.m.	at No. 9 Michigan	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)	ABC	L 29–45	106,381
November 9	1:00 p.m.	Indiana	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI (rivalry)		W 38–15	64,719
November 23	3:30 p.m.	at No. 7 Penn State	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA (rivalry)	ABC	L 29–32	96,263
December 31	2:30 p.m.	vs. Stanford*	Sun Bowl Stadium El Paso, TX (Sun Bowl)	CBS	L 0–38	42,271
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

1996 Michigan State Spartans football team roster

Players

Coaches

Offense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
OT	`76`	Flozell Adams	Jr
OL	`75`	Shane Adkins	Fr
OT	`60`	Mike Brzezinski	Fr
QB	`16`	Bill Burke	Fr
TE	`83`	Josh Keur	Jr
WR	`80`	Derrick Mason	Sr
WR	`7`	LaVaile Richardson	Fr
QB	`9`	Todd Schultz	Jr
G	`73`	Scott Shaw	Jr

Defense

Pos.	#	Name	Class
LB	`25`	Mike Austin	Fr
LB	`38`	Sean Banks	Fr
CB	`3`	Amp Campbell	So
DT	`96`	Chris Smith	Sr
S	`43`	Scott Ernsberger	So
LB	`22`	Reggie Garnett	Sr
LB	`54`	T.J. Henning	So
CB	`36`	Aldi Henry	Sr
CB	`10`	Ray Hill	Jr
DT	`62`	Robert Newkirk	Fr
LB	`44`	Ike Reese	Jr
DE		Jabbar Threats	Sr
DT	`99`	Dimitrius Underwood	So

Special teams

Pos.	#	Name	Class
K	`1`	Paul Edinger	Fr

The following players were selected in the 1997 NFL draft.

Player	Round	Pick	Position	NFL team
Derrick Mason	4	98	Wide receiver	Tennessee Oilers
Nigea Carter	6	197	Wide receiver	Tampa Bay Buccaneers

v t e Michigan State Spartans football
Venues	Old College Field (1902–1922) Spartan Stadium (1923–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Indiana Michigan Notre Dame Penn State
Culture & lore	Sparty "Victory for MSU" Marching band Zeke the Wonder Dog 1966 "Game of the Century" 2001 Michigan game 2006 Northwestern game Trouble With the Snap
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
National championship seasons in bold

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