Denny Stolz obit

Former Michigan State football coach Denny Stolz dies at age 89

 

He was not on the list.

Former Michigan State football coach Denny Stolz died on Thursday at age 89, the program announced Friday afternoon.

Stolz compiled a record of 19-13-1 while leading the program for three seasons (1973-75) and was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year in 1974. He was the defensive coordinator for two seasons under Duffy Daugherty before succeeding the Hall of Fame coach.

In 21 seasons as a college head coach, Stolz posted an overall record of 126-92-2, including stops at Alma College, Bowling Green and San Diego State.

“Our thoughts and prayers go out to Coach Stolz and his family,” former Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio said in a university press release. “I got to know Denny over the years as head coach and always enjoyed our time together. I invited him to practices and he attended games for many years at Spartan Stadium. He really enjoyed seeing his former players at our golf outings. He was a true Spartan.”

Stolz, a graduate of Mason High School and Alma, coached at Haslett High School from 1955-62 and also served as an assistant at Lansing Eastern. He was inducted into the Greater Lansing Sports Hall of Fame in 2001.

Stolz went 35-15 in six seasons at Alma (1965-70) and won a trio of MIAA championships with two unbeaten seasons. He joined the Spartans in 1971 as Daugherty’s defensive coordinator before being named head coach. The Spartans were 5-6 in his first season leading the program in 1973 and went 7-3-1 the following year, including a win over No. 1 Ohio State, as he was named the conference’s coach of the year. Michigan State was 7-4 in his final season and Stolz resigned amid allegations of NCAA violations, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“What people have to realize is that if I had been involved, I never would have been hired at Bowling Green,” Stolz said of the NCAA violations that led to the Spartans being put on probation, in a 1985 Los Angeles Times story. “Don’t think for a minute that the people there didn’t check me out thoroughly.”

Stolz went on to post a 56-45-1 record in nine seasons (1977-85) at Bowling Green and won two MAC titles. He closed out his career by compiling a 16-19 record in three seasons at San Diego State.