1987 Michigan State Spartans football team

The 1987 Michigan State Spartans football team was an American football team that represented Michigan State University as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their fifth year under head coach George Perles, the Spartans compiled a 9–2–1 record (7–0–1 in conference games), outscored opponents by a total of 241 to 136, and won the Big Ten championship. They defeated USC in the 1988 Rose Bowl and were ranked No. 8 in the final AP and UPI polls. The Spartans gained an average of 218.3 rushing yards and 88.8 passing yards per game. On defense, they held opponents to an average of 56.3 rushing yards and 150.5 passing yards per game.^[1]

Running back Lorenzo White tallied 1,459 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns on 322 attempts, an average of 4.5 yards per carry.^[1] He was a consensus All-American,^[2] finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting, and won the Chicago Tribune Silver Football as the Big Ten's most valuable player.^[3] He was later inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.^[4]

Other statistical leaders included quarterback Bobby McAllister (67 of 132 passing, 50.8%, for 1,042 yards), wide receiver Andre Rison (32 receptions, 694 yards, 21.7 yards per reception), and linebacker Todd Krumm (nine interceptions).^[1] Seven Michigan State players received first-team honors on the 1987 All-Big Ten Conference football team: White; Krumm; offensive tackle Tony Mandarich; center Pat Shurmur; linebacker Percy Snow; defensive back John Miller; and punter Greg Montgomery. Rison was named to the second team.^[5][6] Mandarich was named the Big Ten Offensive Lineman of the Year, and head coach George Perles was selected by the conference coaches as the Big Ten Coach of the Year.^[7]

The team played its home games at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan. The Spartans played the first night game ever at the stadium on September 7, 1987.

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 7	8:00 p.m.	No. 19 USC*		Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI	ABC	W 27–13	77,922	[8]
September 19	7:45 p.m.	at No. 9 Notre Dame*	No. 17	Notre Dame Stadium Notre Dame, IN (rivalry)	ESPN	L 8–31	59,075	[9]
September 26	1:00 p.m.	No. 6 Florida State*		Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI		L 3–31	76,887	[10]
October 3	12:30 p.m.	at No. 17 Iowa		Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA		W 19–14	67,700	[11]
October 10	3:30 p.m.	No. 12 Michigan		Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI (rivalry)	ABC	W 17–11	77,424	[12]
October 17	2:05 p.m.	at Northwestern	No. 19	Ryan Field Evanston, IL		W 38–0	29,113	[13]
October 24	1:00 p.m.	Illinois	No. 14	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI		T 14–14	76,513	[14]
October 31	3:30 p.m.	at No. 15 Ohio State	No. 20	Ohio Stadium Columbus, OH	ABC	W 13–7	89,915	[15]
November 7	1:00 p.m.	Purdue	No. 15	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI		W 45–3	76,933	[16]
November 14	3:30 p.m.	No. 16 Indiana	No. 13	Spartan Stadium East Lansing, MI (rivalry)	ABC	W 27–3	76,411	[17]
November 21	2:05 p.m.	at Wisconsin	No. 11	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI		W 30–9	45,385	[18]
January 1, 1988	5:00 p.m.	vs. No. 16 USC*	No. 8	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA (Rose Bowl)	NBC	W 20–17	103,847	[19]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

^{[20] [21]}

• MICH - Gillette 31 FG
• MSU - White 6 Run (Langeloh kick)
• MSU - White 2 Run (Langeloh kick)
• MICH - Morris 18 D. Brown (pass good)
• MSU - Langeloh 42 FG
• Passing: MICH D. Brown 12/26, 158 Yds, TD, 7 INT, MSU McAllister 5/7, 68 Yds
• Rushing: MICH Morris 31/108, MSU White 34/185, 2 TD
• Receiving: MICH Kolesar 4/65, MSU Bouyer 2/38

^[22]

The following players were selected in the 1988 NFL draft.^[24] Team members Tony Mandarich, Andre Rison and Percy Snow were drafted in later years.