EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State head football coach Mel Tucker has been suspended due to sexual harassment allegations, and assistant coach Harlon Barnett will take over on an interim basis, with Mark Dantonio returning to help.
Mel Tucker suspended
MSU athletic director Allan Haller announced during a 5 p.m. Sunday news conference that Tucker has been suspended without pay after a USA TODAY report detailed allegations of sexual harassment brought forward by Brenda Tracy, a rape survivor and prominent advocate against sexual violence.
“As there have been new developments before the hearing, and with the best interests of everyone, including student-athletes and the university community in mind, I have suspended Mel Tucker without pay as a conditional interim measure,” Haller said.
The hearing Haller referenced is scheduled for the week of Oct. 5. Michigan State hired an outside Title IX attorney to investigate the complaint against Tucker, and that hearing is set to determine whether he violated the school’s policy against sexual harassment and exploitation.
The outside attorney finished her investigation in July, and it was submitted to Michigan State on July 25 with a recommendation for a formal hearing. Haller said he was aware of the report in late December, but that the investigation remains active and ongoing.
Haller said MSU wants to be fair and focused and let the process play out.
The decision to suspend Tucker was made with the support of the university and its leadership.
“This morning’s news might sound like the MSU of old,” Michigan State University interim President Teresa K. Woodruff said. “It was not. It was not because an independent, unbiased investigation is and continues to be conducted. That investigative process is not complete and had not been referred to AD Haller or the university. That process will not be complete until there is a hearing and a final decision.”
She said the school’s investigative processes are fair and thorough, and that interim measures are continually being renewed.
“It is not the MSU of old because we maintain the confidence of the claimant and the respondent while respecting and valuing the claimant’s and respondent’s right to share their story,” Woodruff said. “It is not because of the further action we take today.
“This step to place Mel Tucker on an unpaid leave is equally necessary and appropriate for today’s circumstances. These actions are not taken lightly. The MSU of today is creating a culture that is welcoming, supportive, and caring. The bravery and work of our collective community defines our institution and its people, not the action of any single individual.”
Woodruff said anyone who has heard, experienced, or knows of inappropriate behavior has the support and resources of MSU behind them, including the confidential Center for Survivors and the Office for Civil Rights.
Michigan State also offers counseling and psychiatric services to anyone who needs them.
Harlon Barnett named acting head coach; Mark Dantonio returns
Effective immediately, Barnett, Michigan State’s secondary coach, has been named the acting head coach, and Dantonio is the associate head coach.
“Coach Dantonio not only is an exception football coach, he will be a tremendous resource for Harlon,” Haller said. “Both men have a deep love and care for Michigan State football, Spartan athletics, the university, and the East Lansing community.”
He said Dantonio will likely be back with the program by Monday, or Tuesday at the latest.
“We’re still trying to figure out his role, but he definitely will wear a headset, either on the sidelines (or) up in the booth, and he’ll offer his knowledge of his coaching career,” Haller said.
Why now?
Haller was asked why this decision is being made Sunday, after the USA TODAY report made the allegations against Tucker public, and not in July when the university learned the results of the investigation.
“We’re always evaluating the interim measures that were in place, and those interim measures have been updated,” Haller said. “Initially, they were no contact with the complainant and then also increased oversight from me of the program, but then also the coach. It’s an ongoing process and we update those interim measures as we receive information.”
Was there consideration to suspend Tucker in July?
“For me, it was working and waiting on the university as it relates to their investigative process and making sure that they were allowed to complete their investigation, and so although the investigation was complete on the 25th, there’s still ongoing processes that still needed to be played out,” Haller said.
Details of allegations
Tracy works with athletes to raise awareness about sexual violence. She has been working closely with the Michigan State football program during Tucker’s tenure.
Tucker and Tracy developed a professional relationship because of her advocacy, and he invited her to campus twice to speak to players and a third time to be the honorary captain at the team’s spring game in 2022, according to the report.
Tracy said Tucker made sexual comments about her and masturbated during a phone call on April 28, 2022. She filed an official complaint with the university’s Title IX office in December.
“The idea that someone could know me and say they understand my trauma but then re-inflict that trauma on me is so disgusting to me, it’s hard for me to even wrap my mind around it,” she told USA TODAY. “It’s like he sought me out just to betray me.”
Tucker acknowledged masturbating on the call, but claims it was consensual, the report says.
“Ms. Tracy’s distortion of our mutually consensual and intimate relationship into allegations of sexual exploitation has really affected me,” Tucker wrote in a March 22 letter to the investigator, according to USA TODAY. “I am not proud of my judgment and I am having difficulty forgiving myself for getting into this situation, but I did not engage in misconduct by any definition.”
Tucker’s tenure on the field
Tucker took over for Dantonio before the 2020 season. He is 20-14 in parts of four seasons.
Tucker’s best year on the field came in 2021, when he won 11 games and defeated Pittsburgh in the Peach Bowl.
The Spartans went 2-5 under Tucker during the 2020 COVID season, and a disappointing 5-7 in 2022. They are 2-0 to start the 2023 season.
Watch full news conference
You can watch Sunday’s full news conference below.
