Board will meet today about hiring new coach

By Steve Highfield (Last updated: 08/28/09 6:26pm) Top MSU officials said late Sunday night an 8 a.m. board meeting was planned for today with only one item on the agenda related to their search for a new football head coach.

University spokesman Terry Denbow would not comment on who is likely to be named to the position late Sunday. Neither would Athletics Director Ron Mason.

Tom Dienhart of sportingnews.com posted an article late Sunday night that said according to an unnamed source, Mark Dantonio, a former MSU assistant coach, would get the job. ESPN.com also reported Sunday that Dantonio had moved to the top of the list over the weekend.

MSU officials would not confirm the report.

They have been tight-lipped about the search over the course of the last month.

"We haven't commented on the process until now, and I don't want to start," Denbow said by phone in an earlier interview Sunday afternoon.

But with MSU's season finished and potential candidates starting to face heavier attention, all signs point to a looming decision. Here's some of the news that surfaced during the long weekend:

After John L. Smith was fired Nov. 1, many coaches were mentioned as possible replacements. Several of those names are still lingering as legitimate coaching candidates. LSU defensive coordinator Bo Pelini, Central Michigan head coach Brian Kelly, Cincinnati head coach Dantonio and Cleveland Browns defensive coordinator Todd Grantham all remain possibilities to become the next MSU football coach.

Iowa State called a press conference for 6 p.m. today to announce its new football coach.

The Cyclones were rumored to be interested in Kelly, and Central Michigan athletics director David Heeke told The Des Moines Register that he gave Iowa State permission to talk to Kelly.

There also was talk that Pelini was on the Cyclones' radar, but he told The Des Moines Register on Sunday that he hasn't "talked to anybody from Iowa State."

The Fayetteville Observer reported on Nov. 21 that New York Jets running backs coach Jimmy Raye was contacted by MSU about the head coaching position.

Raye played for MSU from 1965-67, and many of his former teammates wrote MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon to encourage the hiring committee to consider Raye.

Another new candidate also has emerged. Former Spartan and current Miami Dolphins assistant head coach Charlie Baggett has been interviewed, according to The Detroit News.

Baggett was a quarterback at MSU from 1973-75 and served as the wide receivers/associate head coach at MSU from 1995-98 before joining the NFL.

Kris Turner contributed to the report.

Originally Published: 11/27/06 12:00am