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News bulletin
Dantonio appears set for MSU
November 26, 2006
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BY SHANNON SHELTON
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER
Indications are that Michigan State will hire University of Cincinnati coach Mark Dantonio to replace John L. Smith as its head football coach, perhaps as soon as today.
ESPN, the Sporting News, and Bearcat Insider, a subsidiary of the Scout.com network, all reported late Sunday that Dantonio was ready to accept the job in East Lansing.
MSU officials declined to comment on the coaching search.
Dantonio was the defensive coordinator of Ohio State's 2002 national championship team. Prior to his stint at OSU, Dantonio spent six seasons (1995-2000) as secondary coach at Michigan State, five under Nick Saban and one under Bobby Williams. He was promoted to associate head coach in 2000.
Cincinnati is 7-5 this season, Dantonio's third at the helm.
The reports of Dantonio's hiring capped off a wild Sunday, during which a report out of Cleveland pegged Browns defensive coordinator Todd Grantham as the Spartans' top target.
A Cleveland television station announced that Grantham, a former MSU assistant, had accepted the position.
But the Associated Press reported that Grantham gave a "no comment" through Browns officials to questions about MSU.
WILX-TV, a Lansing television station, then reported that Dantonio was likely to be hired. The station stated that Dantonio interviewed with the search committee for a second time during the weekend.
The Cincinnati Enquirer reported on Sunday that Bearcats athletic director Mike Thomas said Dantonio was a strong possibility for the position.
"I would guess that he's a leading candidate," Thomas said Sunday. "Now how those things play out and who else is in the mix in addition to Mark, I couldn't tell you."
As an assistant, Dantonio contributed to Michigan State's successful 1999 season, during which the Spartans posted a 10-2 record, won the Citrus Bowl and were ranked No. 7 in the final polls. The MSU defense was ranked 12th nationally and led the Big Ten in total defense.
Michigan State's secondary under Dantonio was regarded as one of the best in the nation. The Spartans were ranked 10th in pass efficiency defense in 1998 and seventh in 2000.
MSU's next head coach isn't expected to be Central Michigan's Brian Kelly. Iowa State announced on Sunday that it would introduce its new head coach at a news conference this evening, but did not release a name. Kelly, however, reportedly interviewed with the Cyclones on Saturday, and CMU athletic director Dave Heeke said that ISU contacted him for permission to talk to Kelly that morning.
"We are not confirming or denying any of those reports," said CMU sports information director Don Helinski.
Helinski said Kelly led practice at CMU on Sunday and was expected to be at today's practice between 3:15-5 p.m. The ISU news conference takes place at 7 p.m. Eastern time.