Brian Manzullo

Detroit Free Press

LSU is looking for its next head football coach after firing Les Miles on Sunday.

Could Mark Dantonio be on its list?

Let's be clear before getting into the meat of this: No, the Michigan State head coach is not rumored to be considering the job. No, we don't know for sure if LSU has him on its list. No, it's not at all likely Dantonio would pull a Nick Saban and leave the Spartans to coach the Tigers.

But as writers begin speculating on possible LSU targets, Dantonio is starting to appear on a few lists, including CBS Sports writer Tom Fornelli's and The Advocate's Scott Rabalais. And why not? Dantonio has done a phenomenal job in East Lansing, winning three Big Ten championships, winning a Rose Bowl and reaching the College Football Playoff last year.

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"OK, here's the theory," Fornelli opined. "Dantonio has been incredibly successful at Michigan State. What he's done there is nothing short of remarkable. But look around him right now. Dantonio, as good as he's been, is sharing a division with Urban Meyer's Ohio State juggernaut and a Michigan program that appears on the verge of becoming a real power again under Jim Harbaugh. Maybe now is the best time for Dantonio to move on. If you combine his ability as a coach with the recruits he can land at LSU, well, just think about what he could possibly do there. Nobody expects it to happen, but this would be a home run hire for LSU if it found a way to pull it off."

Moving on because of Meyer and Harbaugh? Doubtful. Dantonio is 2-2 vs. Meyer, which is actually quite good considering the Buckeyes are 53-4 in the Meyer era. And though Harbaugh's only in his second year at U-M, Dantonio owns the 1-0 mark on him so far and gets the Wolverines at home this year.

That said, the recruiting question is legitimate. One big takeaway from the 38-0 Cotton Bowl steamrolling by Alabama last December was that the Crimson Tide -- winners of four of the past seven national titles -- just had too much talent and too much depth for the Spartans in that game. Though you could argue that no one in the country is able to coach the most out of his players better than Dantonio, MSU hasn't recruited at Alabama's level, especially in the South. That level of recruiting, combined with Saban's ability to coach a top-flight program, was on full display in the Cotton Bowl.

Of course, things can change. Remember, there was a time when the thought of MSU being two wins away from a national championship was considered unthinkable. Dantonio has MSU playing among the nation's best year after year, winning 10+ games five of the past six seasons. Why leave with such a good thing going here?

And if that's not enough, here's what Dantonio told Free Press columnist Mitch Albom just last month:

Dantonio admits he's not going anywhere. The NFL has never appealed to him ("I never played in it."). And no other school could turn his head. He likes the honesty of telling a recruit's parents, "I'll be there for your son four years from now" and meaning it.

Other possible targets for LSU include Houston's Tom Herman, Florida State's Jimbo Fisher, Stanford's David Shaw and Louisville's Bobby Petrino.

MSU still on pace for New Year's Six?

The Spartans may have lost 30-6 to Wisconsin on Saturday. But CBS Sports writer Jerry Palm apparently hasn't lost the faith.

He still has MSU playing in the Orange Bowl against Louisville in his latest bowl projections. Wisconsin's in the Rose Bowl against UCLA, while Ohio State is in the College Football Playoff with Alabama, Clemson and Stanford.

Palm has Michigan playing in the Outback Bowl vs. Ole Miss.

Contact Brian Manzullo: bmanzullo@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrianManzullo.

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