Duffy Daugherty coached his 19th and final MSU team 42 years ago – going 5-5 in 1972. He did not end up with MSU’s greatest win/loss record, but no coach has probably ever received a higher national tribute as when he graced the cover of Time Magazine on this day.
Known for his keen wit, unfailing good humor and wisdom, as well as his fantastic 109-69-5 career record, Duffy Daugherty was Michigan State’s head coach for 19 years, the longest term in the history of Spartan football.
Born in Emeigh, Penn., it was at Syracuse University that he got his first taste of collegiate football. Daugherty played three seasons in the Orangeman line, and captained the team his senior year.
After serving in the U.S. Army during World War II and earning the Bronze Star, Daugherty became the head coach at MSU in 1954. As head coach, Daugherty’s two greatest teams were the 1965 and 1966 editions. Both squads went through undefeated 10-game regular season schedules, won Big Ten Championships, and gained top national recognition. The 1965 Spartans were 10-0-0 before a 14-12 loss to UCLA in the Rose Bowl, and the 1966 Green and White was 9-0-1, including the famous 10-10 tie with arch rival Notre Dame, in what many called “The Game of the Decade.” All told, Daugherty’s Michigan State teams won two outright Big Ten titles, placed second in the conference four times, and ranked among the nation’s top ten teams in final wire service polls on seven occasions. In his 19 years in East Lansing, Daugherty produced 22 first team All Americans and 51 first team All-Big Ten selections.
Sources:
College Football Hall of Fame
Tim Staudt, Lansing State Journal, October 12, 2014.