Mark Dantonio will be grand marshal of Michigan NASCAR race
We're adding Mark Dantonio to the list of college football coaches who have gotten prominent roles at NASCAR races recently.
The Michigan State coach will be the grand marshal of the Sprint Cup Series race at Michigan on June 14.
“I’m both thrilled and honored to have been named grand marshal of the Quicken Loans 400,” Dantonio said in a statement. “I’m looking forward to witnessing one of the premier events in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series. It will be very exciting to visit Michigan International Speedway, NASCAR’s fastest track and one of racing’s top venues, and experience the race-day atmosphere. MIS is a valuable asset to the state, both in terms of providing a boost to the state’s economy as well as great media exposure."
We're guessing that Dantonio had some help from track officials in coming up with that quote. Or if he didn't, he's ready to be a NASCAR driver himself with the complimentary shoutouts of important things.
While Michigan's races are important because they're not too far from the headquarters of General Motors and Ford, the races aren't close to the level of the Daytona 500 or many Chase for the Sprint Cup races.
Hopefully Jim Harbaugh is named the grand marshal of the Michigan race in August. As part of Dantonio's duties, he'll give the command for drivers to start their engines.
Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze drove the pace car at Talladega in May. North Carolina coach Larry Fedora drove the pace car at Martinsville last year and Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer preceded him in those duties.
Jeff Gordon is keeping the college theme going on Sunday at Pocono as well. The four-time Sprint Cup Series champion, who is exiting the car after the season to head to the broadcast booth, is driving a Penn State car at Pocono.
For more Michigan State news, visit SpartanMag.com.
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
