John Macklin took over as head coach in 1911 and owned a winning percentage of .853 (29–5), which is the highest in Michigan State history.

Jim Crowley, one of Notre Dame's immortal Four Horsemen, served as the head football coach at Michigan State from 1929 to 1933.

Charlie Bachman, another Notre Dame alumnus, succeeded Jim Crowley as head football coach at Michigan State, coming to East Lansing after a successful stint at Florida.

A teammate of Knute Rockne, Bachman employed the Notre Dame system and forged 10 winning seasons in 13 years.

Munn retired from coaching in 1953 to assume duties as Michigan State's athletic director, a position he held until 1971.

During the 1950s when Detroit was known as the world's leading automobile manufacturer, Michigan State was often referred to as the nation's "football factory."

Duffy's tenure of 19 seasons at the helm of the Michigan State Spartans football team is the longest of any head coach in the program's history.

During Daugherty's time in East Lansing, he recruited and coached some of the best players in Michigan State's history, including Herb Adderley, Brad Van Pelt, Bubba Smith, George Webster, Joe DeLamielleure, and Billy Joe DuPree who is recognized as the greatest tight end in Michigan State history.

In Perles’ first season, the Steelers made the NFL playoffs for the second time in franchise history, the first since 1947, losing to the Miami Dolphins in the AFC Championship Game.

[6] On November 27, 2006, Mark Dantonio was hired from the University of Cincinnati to become Michigan State's new football head coach.

Dantonio served as an assistant coach at MSU from 1995 to 2000 and was Ohio State's defensive coordinator during their 2002 national championship season.

In 2010, Dantonio led MSU to earn a share of the Big Ten Championship after finishing the year in a three-way tie with Ohio State and Wisconsin.

Since leading Michigan State to a College Football Playoff berth in 2015, Dantonio compiled a 24–23 (15–18 in conference games) record.

On September 21, 2019, Dantonio became Michigan State's winningest coach with a 31–10 victory over Northwestern that gave him his 110th win at the program and moved him past Duffy Daugherty.

[9] On February 4, 2020, Dantonio announced that he would be stepping down as head coach and planned to move into a different role in the athletic department.

On February 12, 2020, Mel Tucker was hired from the University of Colorado to become Michigan State's new football head coach.

[21] On September 10, 2023, after the first two games of the 2023 season, Mel Tucker was suspended without pay pending an investigation of allegations of sexual misconduct.

When head coach Mark Dantonio took over the football program in 2006, "Corner Blitz" was united with the normal student section.

In 2007 Michigan State expanded its Duffy Daugherty Football Building with a $15 million expansion and renovation project.

[38] The Megaphone Trophy is awarded each year to the winner of the football game between Notre Dame and Michigan State.

After spending the 2011 to 2013 seasons in opposite Big Ten conference divisions, MSU and PSU resumed playing each other annually for the trophy in 2014.

[45][46] Irish quarterback Terry Hanratty was knocked out after getting sacked in the first quarter by Spartan defensive lineman Bubba Smith.

But the Irish came back, scoring a touchdown right after State's field goal and tied the game on the first play of the fourth quarter.

Notre Dame beat Rose Bowl bound USC 51–0 in Los Angeles the next week, completing an undefeated regular season and moving to No.

For nearly 50 years, Parseghian has defended his end-of-the-game strategy, which left fans feeling disappointed at the game not having some sort of resolution.

College football expert Dan Jenkins lead off his article for Sports Illustrated by saying Parseghian chose to "Tie one for the Gipper."

[48] † Unanimous All-American 14 former Michigan State players and coaches have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, located in Atlanta, Georgia.

[55] Three former Michigan State players have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, located in Canton, Ohio.

Oregon, UCLA, USC, and Washington are set to join the Big Ten beginning with the 2024 season, moving the conference to 18 total teams.

[81] On October 4, 2023, the Big Ten announced a new scheduling structure beginning with the 2024 season to accommodate the four teams joining the conference.