Football has a long tradition at Michigan State. Starting as a club sport in 1884, football gained varsity status in 1896. MSU football teams won the Rose Bowl in 1954, 1956, 1988, and 2014. They won national championships in 1951, 1952, 1955, 1957, 1965 and 1966. The Spartans accounted for four of the top eight selections in the 1967 NFL Draft, the only time a college football program has accomplished such a feat. As of 2020, MSU is one of only four schools to have at least 1 player selected in every NFL Draft in the common draft era, starting in 1967.