Mark Dantonio, American football player and coach
Mark Justin Dantonio (born March 9, 1956) is a former American football coach and player. He most recently served as the head football coach at Michigan State University, a position he had held from 2007 to 2019, presiding over one of the most successful eras in the program's history. He led the Michigan State Spartans to three Big Ten Conference championships, and eight victories over archrival Michigan in 13 years. In 2013, he coached Michigan State to its first 13-win season and the program's fifth trip to the Rose Bowl, where they defeated Stanford and finished the season ranked No. 3 in the nation. This was the second time a Big Ten team reached the 13-win mark, the previous being Ohio State's national championship season in 2002, where Dantonio was the defensive coordinator. The 2013 season also marked the first time a Big Ten team won nine conference games each by double digits. In 2015, Dantonio became the first head coach in Big Ten history to achieve at least 11 wins in five of six seasons. On December 6, 2015, Dantonio's Spartans qualified for the College Football Playoff for the first time in the program's history.
In 2006, Dantonio was hired as the Spartans head coach, returning to the school where he served six years as an assistant coach under Nick Saban and Bobby Williams. Known as a defensive-minded coach, Dantonio led the Spartans to the school's first bowl game win since 2001, in the 2012 Outback Bowl, and the school's first Rose Bowl since 1988 in 2014. Dantonio's Spartans hold the active school record with four consecutive bowl wins. On October 8, 2011, Dantonio signed a contract extension that made him a "Spartan for life." In 2014, he earned the second highest salary among college football coaches, due largely to a retention bonus.On September 21, 2019, with his 110th victory, Dantonio became the winningest head coach in MSU football surpassing Duffy Daugherty. Dantonio had compiled a 110–52 record through this date at Michigan State, giving him a .691 winning percentage, the highest of any Michigan State football coach since Clarence Munn, who coached the Spartans from 1947 to 1953.On February 4, 2020, Dantonio announced he would be retiring as the head coach of the Michigan State football team after 13 seasons and 114 wins.