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1961 Michigan State Spartans football
1961 Michigan State Spartans football
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 9
AP	No. 8
Record	7–2 (5–2 Big Ten)
Head coach	Duffy Daugherty (8th season);
MVP	George Saimes
Captain	Ed Ryan
Home stadium	Spartan Stadium
	Seasons ← 1960 1962 →

1961 Big Ten Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 2 Ohio State $	6	–	0	–	0	8	–	0	–	1
No. 6 Minnesota	6	–	1	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
No. 8 Michigan State	5	–	2	–	0	7	–	2	–	0
No. 12 Purdue	4	–	2	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
Wisconsin	4	–	3	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
Michigan	3	–	3	–	0	6	–	3	–	0
Iowa	2	–	4	–	0	5	–	4	–	0
Northwestern	2	–	4	–	0	4	–	5	–	0
Indiana	0	–	6	–	0	2	–	7	–	0
Illinois	0	–	7	–	0	0	–	9	–	0

$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1961 Michigan State Spartans football team was an American football team that represented Michigan State University in the 1961 Big Ten Conference football season. In their eighth season under head coach Duffy Daugherty, the Spartans compiled a 7–2 record (5–2 in conference games), finished in third place in the Big Ten Conference, and were ranked No. 8 in the final AP poll. They outscored opponents by a total of 192 to 50.^[1]^[2]

The team tallied an average of 237.2 passing yards, 83.3 passing yards, and 21.3 points per game. On defense, they gave up an average of 116.1 rushing yards, 78.4 passing yards, and 5.6 points per game.^[3]

The Spartans defeated rivals Michigan (28-0), Notre Dame (17-7), and Indiana (35-0), and were ranked No. 1 in the AP poll in early November. They then lost consecutive games on the road to Minnesota (0–13) and Purdue (6–7), dropping from No. 1 to No. 9.

Fullback George Saimes led the team in both rushing (451 yards, 5.5 yards per carry) and scoring (48 points) and was selected as the team's most valuable player.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 30	at Wisconsin	No. 10	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	W 20–0	50,584	^[4]^[5]
October 7	Stanford*	No. 6	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	W 31–3	61,367	^[6]
October 14	at No. 6 Michigan	No. 5	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)	W 28–0	103,198	^[7]
October 21	No. 6 Notre Dame*	No. 1	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI (rivalry)	W 17–7	76,132	^[8]
October 28	Indiana	No. 1	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI (rivalry)	W 35–0	55,361	^[9]
November 4	at Minnesota	No. 1	Memorial Stadium Minneapolis, MN	L 0–13	59,941	^[10]^[11]
November 11	at Purdue	No. 6	Ross–Ade Stadium West Lafayette, IN	L 6–7	45,638	^[12]
November 18	Northwestern	No. 9	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	W 21–13	51,403	^[13]
November 25	Illinois	No. 8	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	W 34–7	38,344	^[14]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Award winners

Junior fullback George Saimes was selected as the team's most valuable player.^[15] He won first-team honors from the Associated Press (AP) and United Press International (UPI) on the 1961 All-Big Ten Conference football team.^[16]^[17]^[18]^[19] Other notable players on the 1961 team included:

Tackle Dave Behrman was selected by the AP and Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) on the 1961 All-America team.^[20]

Sophomore halfback Sherman Lewis received second-team all-conference honors from the AP.^[21]

Guard Ed Budde received third-team all-conference honors from the AP.^[21]

Statistical leaders

Quarterback Pete Smith led the team in passing, completing 42 of 94 passes for 630 yards with five touchdown passes and seven interceptions.^[3]

George Saimes led the team with 451 rushing yards on 82 carries for an average of 5.5 yards per carry. He also led the team in scoring with 48 yards on eight rushing touchdowns.^[3]

Lonnie Sanders led the team in receiving with 15 catches for 247 yards.^[3]

Sherman Lewis ranked second on the team in both rushing (399 yards) and scoring (30 points).^[3]

Varsity letters

A total of 42 players received varsity letters for their participation on the 1961 Michigan State team.^[15] Players who went on to play professional football are marked with an asterisk.

George Azar
Gary Ballman*, halfback and wide receiver
Dave Behrman*, center and tackle
James Bobbitt
Arthur Bandstatter
Charles Brown
Ed Budde*, guard
Carl Charon*, defensive back and fullback
Ernie Clark*, linebacker
James Corgiat
Michael Currie
Wayne Fontes*, defensive back
Ron Hatcher*, fullback
Dave Herman*, guard
Larry Hudas
Herman Johnston
Thomas Jordan
Peter Kakela
Jim Kanicki*, defensive tackle
Anthony Kumiega
Earl Latimer
Sherman Lewis*, halfback
Dewey Lincoln
Roger Lopes
Dave Manders*, centr
Stephen Mellinger
Mitchell Newman
Roy Parrott
Richard Proebstle
Ronald Rubick
Edward Ryan
George Saimes*, fullback
Lonnie Sanders*, cornerback
John Sharp
Peter Smith
Matt Snorton*, tight end
Donald Stewart
Bob Suci*, defensive back
Robert Swast
Dan Underwood
Thomas Winiecki
Edward Youngs

^[15]

References

^ "2016 Football Media Guide" (PDF). Michigan State University. pp. 146, 155. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 17, 2017. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
^ "1961 Michigan State Spartans Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 18, 2017.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "1961 Michigan State Spartans Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved August 10, 2024.
^ George S. Alderton (October 1, 1961). "State Power Crunches Badgers, 20-0". Lansing State Journal. pp. 49, 54 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Monte McCormick (October 1, 1961). "Spartans Rout Sputtering Badgers: Wisconsin Eleven 'Boots' Numerous Chances". Wisconsin State Journal. pp. 1, 4 (sports) – via Newspapers.com.
^ George S. Alderton (October 8, 1961). "Fumble-Plagued Michigan State Stifles Stubborn Stanford, 31-3". Lansing State Journal. pp. 53, 58 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Lyall Smith (October 15, 1961). "It's Michigan State: C-R-U-N-C-H, 28-0: Spartan Defense Ruins U-M". Detroit Free Press. pp. D1, D3 – via Newspapers.com.
^ George S. Alderton (October 22, 1961). "Spartans' Rousing Rally Downs Irish". Lansing State Journal. pp. 49, 51 – via Newspapers.com.
^ George S. Alderton (October 29, 1961). "State's TD Cascade Swamps Hoosiers". Lansing State Journal. pp. 49, 54 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Dick Gordon (November 5, 1961). "Gophers Shock Spartans 13-0". Minneapolis Sunday Tribune. pp. 1, 2 (sports) – via Newspapers.com.
^ George S. Alderton (November 5, 1961). "State Dreams Dimmed in Gopherland". Lansing State Journal. pp. 55, 56 – via Newspapers.com.
^ Bob Hoerner (November 12, 1961). "Purdue Kills Slim State Title Hope, 7-6". Lansing State Journal. pp. 55, 56 – via Newspapers.com.
^ George S. Alderton (November 19, 1961). "Spartans Back on Victory Road, 21-13". Lansing State Journal. pp. 53, 54 – via Newspapers.com.
^ George S. Alderton (November 26, 1961). "Spartans Outclass Illinois, 34 to 7". Lansing State Journal. pp. 57, 58 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b ^c George S. Alderton (November 28, 1961). "Duffy Is 'Fed Up' With Griping Fans". Lansing State Journal. pp. 21, 22 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Big Line Tops Classy AP All-America Team". AP.
^ "Miami's Bill Miller Chosen As All-American". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. December 8, 1961. p. 36.
^ "Stephens Unanimous Choice on Big Ten". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. November 28, 1961.
^ "Saimes and MacRae Selected on All-Big Ten Football Team". The Holland, Michigan, Evening Sentinel. November 29, 1961. p. 16.
^ Ted Gangi (ed.). "FWAA All-America Since 1944: The All-Time Team" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 12, 2015. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
^ ^a ^b "OSU's Bob Ferguson Heads All-Big Ten Football Team". Battle Creek Enquirer and News. November 28, 1961. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.