Mike Tressel Hometown: St. Paul, Minn. Position: Special Teams/Linebackers Experience: Fourth Year

In his role as linebackers coach over the last three seasons, Mike Tressel has mentored two of the top linebackers in the Big Ten, in Greg Jones and Eric Gordon. Jones and Gordon, who have each started 27 consecutive games at linebacker, have combined for 598 tackles, 59 tackles for loss and 23 sacks in their careers.

A consensus All-American, Jones became the first Spartan to win Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year accolades after collecting 154 tackles in 2009, the most in the conference and third nationally. He also led the team and ranked among the national leaders in tackles for loss (14 for 69 yards) and sacks (9 for 53 yards). Jones was rated the No. 1 linebacker in the nation by CollegeFootballNews.com and earned the Linebacker Trophy (Linebacker of the Year) by the College Football Performance Awards.

Preceding his All-America campaign, Jones earned first-team All-Big Ten honors in 2008, the first Spartan linebacker to do so since 2001. He led the team in tackles for the second straight season with 127 and his 89 tackles in conference play ranked first in the Big Ten. Jones earned consensus Freshman All-America honors in 2007 after leading the team and all Big Ten freshmen with 78 tackles, becoming the first true freshman to lead Michigan State in tackles since 1976.

Gordon, who garnered Big Ten All-Freshman honors in 2007, improved his productivity as a sophomore to rank second on the team and 13th in the Big Ten with 85 tackles. As a junior in 2009, Gordon set a career high in tackles with 92, which totaled the 11th most in the conference.

In addition to Jones and Gordon, Tressel mentored former walk-on Brandon Denson in his first year as a starting linebacker. Denso had a career year, collecting 68 tackles to rank third on the team.

Tressel also oversees a successful special teams unit that has been one of the best in the Big Ten since his arrival. First-team All-Big Ten placekicker Brett Swenson became MSU's all-time leader in field goals (71), points scored (377) and extra points (164) during the 2009 season. Swenson, who was named a Lou Groza Award semifinalist, finished his career tied for third in Big Ten history with his 71 field goals. Swenson tied a school record in 2008 with 22 field goals en route to being named second-team All-Big Ten.

Keshawn Martin anchored the kick return team, which ranked eighth nationally, averaging 25.9 yards per return. Martin was the 11th-ranked return man in the nation (28.9-yard avg.). He ran back the opening kickoff of the second half at Minnesota 93 yards for a touchdown, MSU's first kick return for a TD since 2005, and accumulated 176 kick return yards in the game, the third-highest single-game figure in MSU history. Martin also recorded an 85-yard return at Purdue in compiling 166 kick return yards against the Boilermakers for the seventh-best total in school history.

Punter Aaron Bates was a second-team all-conference pick in 2008, as he ranked fourth in the Big Ten and 30th in the nation with his 42.0-yard punting average. In 2007, Devin Thomas established a Big Ten record with 1,135 kick return yards.

Tressel arrived at Michigan State following the 2006 regular season, as he was one of eight assistants to follow Coach Dantonio to MSU from Cincinnati.

The 36-year-old Tressel played a key role in Cincinnati's success over his three seasons, as the Bearcats earned two bowl invitations. During the 2006 regular season, UC ranked among the national leaders in rushing defense (No. 27 at 107.5 yards per game), total defense (No. 31 at 304.3 ypg.) and scoring defense (No. 34 at 19.3 points per game). In addition, the Bearcats held seven of its 12 regular-season opponents to less than 100 yards rushing. In 2006, Tressel coached linebacker Kevin McCullough, who received first-team All-BIG EAST honors after leading the team in tackles (72) and tackles for losses (14.5 for 36 yards).

In 2005, he helped develop Corey Smith into a third-team Freshman All-American and second-team All-BIG EAST selection. In his first season at Cincinnati, Tressel's starting linebackers ranked first, third and fifth on the team in tackles, with both Jamar Enzor (second team) and Tyjuan Hagler (third team) garnering All-Conference USA honors. Hagler was taken by the Indianapolis Colts in the fifth round of the 2005 NFL Draft.

Prior to joining Dantonio's staff at Cincinnati, Tressel spent two seasons as a graduate assistant coach at Ohio State (2002-03), where he contributed to the Buckeyes' National Championship team in 2002. Tressel previously coached at Wartburg (Iowa) College for four seasons (1998-01), helping the school to a combined record of 36-4 including one conference title. At Wartburg, he served as offensive line coach for three years before assuming the role of offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the 2001 season.

A four-year starter in the secondary at Cornell (Iowa) College, Tressel became a two-time Academic All-American. Following graduation in 1996, he launched his coaching career at South Dakota as a graduate assistant for two seasons (1996-97), working on the offensive side of the football.

He earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Cornell (Iowa) College in 1996 and received a master's degree in sports administration from South Dakota in 1998.

Tressel comes from a bloodline of successful coaches, as his uncle Jim Tressel won four NCAA I-AA championships at Youngstown State before leading Ohio State to the 2002 National Championship. His grandfather, Lee Tressel, ranked as one of the winningest coaches in Division III history and won a National Championship at Baldwin-Wallace College. His father Richard, who spent 23 seasons as head coach at Hamline, is in his eighth season at Ohio State, his fifth year as running backs coach.

He and his wife Megan have two children: Logan and Quincy.

THE TRESSEL FILE

YEARS AT MICHIGAN STATE: Fourth. Joined staff on Dec. 1, 2006, from Cincinnati.

PREVIOUS COACHING EXPERIENCE: College - Graduate assistant coach at South Dakota (1996-97); offensive line coach (1998-2000) and offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach (2001) at Wartburg (Iowa) College; graduate assistant linebackers coach at Ohio State (2002-03); linebackers and special teams coach at Cincinnati (2004-06).

EDUCATION: Bachelor's degree in mathematics from Cornell (Iowa) College in 1996; master's degree in sports administration at South Dakota in 1998.

PLAYING EXPERIENCE: College - Four-year starter in the secondary at Cornell (Iowa) College (1992-95).

POSTSEASON EXPERIENCE: Coach - 1999 NCAA Division III Playoffs, 2003 Fiesta Bowl, 2004 Fiesta Bowl, 2004 Fort Worth Bowl, 2007 Champs Sports Bowl, 2009 Capital One Bowl, 2010 Valero Alamo Bowl.