Michael Charles Sanford (born April 20, 1955) is an American high school football coach and former player. He served as the head football coach at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) from 2005 to 2009 and at Indiana State University from 2013 to 2016. He is a graduate of the University of Southern California (USC), where he played quarterback for the Trojans from 1973 through 1976. He is the father of former Western Kentucky head coach and current Colorado offensive coordinator, Mike Sanford Jr.