Dantonio says he'll be here a long time

MSU football head coach Mark Dantonio is a lifer.

The coach that has helped turn around the Spartans football program said in a radio interview this weekend that he has no plans to leave MSU — ever.

“This is our last coaching job as a family,” he told Cleveland’s “The Dugout Sports Show” hosts Glenn Moore and Dan Brock. “This is where I want to be. I’m 53 years old, so … Michigan State’s a great place, I was here for six years prior to coming back here. I try to keep my eyes and focus on what we’re doing here, so I’m here for the long term.”

Dantonio, who also has ties to Ohio State from when he was defensive coordinator and won a national championship in 2002 with Jim Tressel, has developed a faithful following among MSU students, alumni and even from peers for his recruiting success. In his two years at the helm in East Lansing, Dantonio has led the Spartans to two bowl games and compiled this year’s 17th best recruiting class, according to Rivals.com.

It’s reassuring to hear such words from Dantonio. His no-nonsense attitude no doubt will earn him looks from every elite program that has a coaching vacancy from now until he retires. As long as he keeps making statements like the one this weekend, though, Spartans fans can rest easier at night.
But why leave for an elite program when you can make your program elite? That is undoubtedly Dantonio’s logic, and he is building a team mentality that is conducive to joining the upper echelon of college football. The MSU football team first needs to develop the philosophy that it expects to contend for Big Ten titles, and that mind-set has more than taken root — it’s sprouting.

Although the national media seems to think so, MSU men’s basketball head coach Tom Izzo has never been taken for granted in East Lansing. Every time a coaching rumor comes up — whether it be for the NBA or Kentucky — Izzo’s name is brought up. And every single time we cringe, so we pray and hope the rumors are false or that Izzo isn’t interested. And every single time, Izzo publicly says he is not considering the job. It’s a tiresome exercise both for Izzo and the Spartans family.

For as long as Dantonio is at MSU, we likely will deal with the same rumors and discussions with him as we do with Izzo.

But Izzo and Dantonio have developed a friendship, meaning the two are likely to stay in East Lansing, just like they say. They’ve been through similar experiences, and they both can never satiate reporters’ questions as to why they would rather stay in East Lansing rather than flee to a post with more money, more prestige, more “tradition.” And every time, the answer is the same ­— they plan to be at MSU for life.

And remember, this is Mark Dantonio we’re talking about. The only thing people get out of him is the honest-to-God truth.