Mark Dantonio

Dantonio attended the University of South Carolina and earned three letters as a defensive back for Coach Jim Carlen for the Gamecocks 1976-78. He earned a bachelor's degree in education from South Carolina in 1979. Dantonio later earned a master's degree in education from Ohio University in 1980.

Dantonio began his coaching career at Ohio University, where he was a graduate assistant. In 1981, he made his first stop in the Big Ten Conference when he moved on to Purdue University as a graduate assistant. He spent two years, in 1983 and 1984, as a graduate assistant at Ohio State University under head coach Earle Bruce. In 1986, he began a five-year stint on Jim Tressel's staff at Youngstown State University as a defensive secondary coach. In 1990, Dantonio led the Penguins' defense to an 11–0 record and a #2 ranking nationally. Glen Mason hired Dantonio in 1991 to be the defensive secondary coach for the Kansas Jayhawks. When Nick Saban was hired at Michigan State in 1995, he hired Dantonio to join his staff in East Lansing where he remained even after Saban left for LSU. After Bobby Williams was named head coach in 1999 following Saban's departure, Dantonio was promoted to associate head coach where he remained through the 2000 season.

Mark Dantonio married his wife, Becky, in 1990. The couple have two daughters, Kristen and Lauren. He is a devout Roman Catholic.

At Ohio State in 2001, Dantonio reunited with his former Youngstown State boss and good friend Jim Tressel when he opted out of East Lansing to serve as defensive coordinator at Ohio State University for three seasons. His defense became known as one of the stingiest in the country. During the Buckeyes' 2002 National Championship season, Ohio State ranked second nationally in scoring defense and third in rushing defense. For his efforts, Dantonio was named a 2002 finalist for the Broyles Award, given annually to the nation's top college football assistant coach. In the 2003 season, his defense ranked number one in the country in rushing defense and ninth in total defense, which led the Buckeyes to an 11–2 record and #4 national ranking. Six Buckeye defenders were named first team All-Big Ten during Dantonio's tenure. Thirteen were drafted into the NFL, including two first round picks in Chris Gamble and Will Smith.

Dantonio was named head coach at Cincinnati on December 23, 2003. He became the first head coach in 23 years to lead the school to a winning season in his first season at UC. The Bearcats' 7–5 record included a 5–3 record in Conference USA, which was good enough for a second-place finish. The Bearcats finished the season on a winning note with a 32–14 win over Marshall in the PlainsCapital Fort Worth Bowl. During Dantonio's time at UC, he led the Bearcats to a bowl game victory and directed the team's transition into the Big East Conference. As head coach, Dantonio had 15 players earn all-conference honors and 25 received conference academic recognition.

Mark Dantonio became the 24th head coach at Michigan State on November 27, 2006. Upon his arrival, Dantonio planned to return the Spartans to a more traditional philosophy on offense and defense, eliminating the spread offense and the "bandit" linebacker/safety position used under previous head coach John L. Smith.

Dantonio began his Michigan State career well at Spartan Stadium when on April 21, 2007, Michigan State drew over 25,000 fans to watch the team's spring scrimmage game. The white team, led by sophomore quarterback Connor Dixon, defeated junior quarterback Brian Hoyer and the green team by a score of 21–8. During the game, Dantonio was seen behind the line of scrimmage watching and coaching the action.

Dantonio won his first game at Michigan State on September 1, 2007, when the Spartans defeated the UAB Blazers, 55–18. His first season at Michigan State was the school's most successful since 2003. Dantonio's Spartans went 7–5, losing all five games by seven points or fewer, and were bowl eligible for the first time in four years. However, the Spartans lost to Boston College in the Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando on December 28.

On September 19, 2010, just hours after a stunning fake field goal touchdown pass gave MSU a 34–31 overtime victory over Notre Dame, Dantonio checked himself into a hospital after noticing chest pains. He later suffered a heart attack. He had a stent implanted in a blocked artery near his heart. His doctor stated that the damage was minimal and that Dantonio was expected to make a full recovery. Offensive coordinator Don Treadwell became acting head coach while Dantonio recovered.

On September 30, after Dantonio had stated that he would be coaching the next game from the press box and just two days before Michigan State played Wisconsin, Dantonio was admitted back into the hospital as a blood clot was found in his leg. Dantonio had to watch the game from his hospital room. He was reportedly released from Sparrow Hospital around noon on October 4, 2010. On October 9, Dantonio coached his first game since his heart attack against rival Michigan. Michigan State won the game, 34–17, in Ann Arbor.

The Spartans under Dantonio continued to win and on November 20 reached 10–1 on the season, winning all home games for the first time during his tenure. It was just the third time in school history that Michigan State had won 10 or more games in a season, the other two seasons being those of 1965 and 1999. On November 27, 2010, Dantonio's Spartans defeated Penn State 28–22 in Happy Valley to finish the season 11–1 and clinch a share of the Big Ten Championship for the first time since 1990. On December 5, 2010, MSU announced that the Spartans were selected to play in the Capital One Bowl on January 1, 2011, against Alabama (ranked 15th in the BCS standings). The Spartans lost to the Crimson Tide 49–7 and finished 11–2.

In 2011, Michigan State had another successful year. The Spartans beat the Ohio State Buckeyes on the road for the first time since 1998, defeated arch-rival Michigan, and upset #6 Wisconsin on a last-second Hail Mary pass from Kirk Cousins to Keith Nichol. The Spartans finished 10–2 (7–1 in Big Ten play), earning the Legends Division championship and a place in the inaugural Big Ten Championship Game. After coming up just short in a rematch with Wisconsin, MSU was selected to play in the Outback Bowl against the Georgia Bulldogs. Dantonio led his team to a triple-overtime victory, his first bowl win at MSU. The Spartans reached the 11-win mark for the second straight season, finishing 11–3.

In 2012, Dantonio led the Spartans to a 7–6 record and a Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl win against Texas Christian University. The season started with promise, when preseason #13 Michigan State beat #24 Boise State; but two games later, the #10 Spartans lost to No. 20 Notre Dame, and went on to suffer four home losses in Big Ten play. The defense finished ninth in FBS points allowed, giving up just 16.3 points per game, but the offense struggled to score in several games. MSU lost a 12–10 decision to Michigan, despite the defense keeping the Wolverines out of the end zone the entire game. In May 2013, four months after the end of the 2012 season, Dantonio filmed himself at the Rose Bowl, predicting a successful 2013.

In 2013, Dantonio's team finished 11–1 in the regular season, including notable victories over Michigan (29–6) and Nebraska (41–28) to secure the third and final Legends Division title. On December 7, 2013, Michigan State, ranked #10 at the time of the game, defeated second-ranked Ohio State 34–24 in the Big Ten Championship Game in Indianapolis. The win snapped Ohio State's 24-game winning streak and sent Michigan State to its first Rose Bowl since the 1987–88 season. Michigan State was ranked #4 in the final BCS standings, its highest rank since the BCS's inception. The Spartans defeated the fifth-ranked Stanford Cardinal 24–20 in the 100th Rose Bowl Game on January 1, 2014. Dantonio was named Big Ten Football Coach of the Year.

In 2014, the Spartans finished the regular season 10–2, finishing second in the East division with a 7–1 record and ranked #8 in the nation. After losing to third-ranked Oregon in the season's second game, the Spartans reeled off nine wins in their next 10 games. The Spartans earned a bid to the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, part of the New Year's Six bowls, and rallied from 20 points down in the fourth quarter to defeat fifth-ranked Baylor 42–41 and finish the season with an overall record of 11–2. The two losses came against Oregon and Ohio State, the teams that would play in the 2015 College Football Playoff National Championship. After the Cotton Bowl game, Dantonio said "It's a feeling of belief in each other, and that's what we have. We don't give up on each other. Consequently, they don't give up in the game. We just keep playing hard. And that's what we've been able to accomplish."

The 2015 season included an unlikely 17–14 road win against then-#2 Ohio State, in which the Spartans played without starting quarterback Connor Cook. This season was also known for its game-changing touchdown in the last 10 seconds of the Michigan game, 27-23. MSU also defeated Oregon, Penn State and Michigan to finish the regular season with an 11–1 record, winning the East division with a 7–1 record. Michigan State went on to beat an undefeated Iowa team in the Big Ten Championship Game, and ended the season ranked #3 in the nation. The #3 ranking earned the Spartans a spot in the NCAA College Football Playoff and the right to play #2 ranked Alabama on New Year's Eve for a spot in the Championship game. They lost to eventual National Champion Alabama in the semi-final game, 38–0.

In 2016, the Spartans had their worst season under Dantonio, going 1–8 in Big Ten play and finishing the season at 3–9, the program's worst overall record in more than 30 years.

The 2017 season featured upset wins over then-#7 Penn State at home and then-#7 Michigan on the road. Dantonio moved to 8–3 all-time against in-state rival Michigan, as the Spartans forced five turnovers and defeated the Wolverines 14–10 in Ann Arbor. They finished the regular season at #16 in the CFP rankings and second in the B1G East Division (7–2). The Spartans were selected to play the 9–3 Washington State Cougars in the Holiday Bowl on December 28. The Spartans routed the Cougars, 42–17, to finish the season 10–3, giving Dantonio his sixth season of 10+ wins at MSU.

The 2018 season featured a number of low-scoring games as MSU's stout defense, ranked in the national top ten in six categories, was offset by an oft-struggling offense that finished in the bottom 20 nationally in six categories.

Despite anemic offensive production in 2018 with scoring offense (18.7 points per game) that ranked 125th out of 129 teams, Dantonio resisted major restructuring of his offense but instead chose to reshuffle the offensive staffs in 2019. Brad Salem, the QB coach in 2018 was promoted to offensive coordinator while Dave Warner and Jim Bollman, the co-offensive coordinators in 2018, were reassigned to be the QB coach and O-line coach respectively.

On February 4, 2020, just weeks after accepting a $4.3 million longevity bonus from the university, Mark Dantonio announced he was retiring as head coach. He left the Michigan State football program as its all-time winningest coach with a record of 114–57 and a .667 winning percentage.

Michigan State Football: 60 reasons to love Coach D on his 60th birthday

Today Michigan State head football coach Mark Dantonio celebrates his 60th birthday. To celebrate along with him, we take a look at 60 reasons to love the Spartan head coach and the program he has created in East Lansing.