Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio and players celebrate after their defense gets a big stop to force a turnover, effectively sealing the win, against Stanford at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Cali. on Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2014. 010114 Rosebowl Jh 15 Jarrad Henderson, Detroit Free Press, Detroit Free Press via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Report: Spartans Tabbed Top-25 Program in 2000s Era

Originally posted on Michigan State Spartans on SI
By Tom Cavanaugh | Last updated May 24, 2025 2:00 PM ET

The Michigan State Spartans have been tabbed as one of the top 25 football programs of the 2000s era after Stewart Mandel of The Athletic released a list of the 25 best programs since the turn of the century. The Spartans just made the cut, being named the No. 25 team on the list.

Familiar foes such as Michigan, Notre Dame, Penn State and Iowa are all on the list. You could make the argument that the Spartans deserve to be ahead of some of these programs for less consistent success over a longer period of time.

Do you agree with @slmandel's list of the top 25 college football programs of the 2000s? pic.twitter.com/yVgmOTWM52
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) May 23, 2025

Looking at the perennial powerhouses, it makes sense that team like Ohio State, Alabama, Georgia, and LSU are amongst the top spots, but the Spartans have certainly done enough over the last 25 years to be named as one of the best programs in the country.

Since Bobby Williams became head coach for the 2000 season, taking over for the legendary Nick Saban, the Spartans have seen five head coaches with a combined 14 winning seasons, an 8-7 Bowl game record and a College Football Playoff appearance in 2015.

From what the Spartans have done over the last several seasons during the tail end of Mel Tucker's career and the beginning of the Jonathan Smith era, you could make the argument that the Spartans have faded way out of the Top 25 programs of the century so far because of the severe struggles.

However, the combined 14-22 record over the past three seasons without a bowl game appearance does not take away from what Michigan State was able to accomplish during the Mark Dantonio era.

Dantonio is the highlight piece of the Spartans' program since 2000, bringing the fanbase a 114-57 record, nearly 70 Big Ten victories, a Cotton Bowl and Rose Bowl wins, a 2015 CFB appearance, and finishing within the Top 25 national rankings, seven times in his 13-year tenure as head coach.

Dantonio was recently inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame for what he was able to do with the Spartans, turning them into a well-known program that players want to commit to. He is a major reason why the Spartans are on this Top 25 list and are one of the top programs in history.

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