Suspended Michigan State head coach Mel Tucker released a statement via his attorney Tuesday morning condemning the University's decision to serve him notice of its intent to terminate his employment agreement next Tuesday, Sept. 26. The news of that decision and letter issued to Tucker by MSU was first broke by Spartans Illustrated yesterday, and it laid out several reasons why MSU concluded Tucker was in breach of his employment agreement, providing him the required notice and response period mandated in his amended contract signed in 2021.
Tucker's response issued today accuses Michigan State of an ulterior motive in its decision. He argues that the administration was fully aware of the allegation details made against him since at least March of 2023. Based on this claim, Tucker is alleging the decision to terminate his employment agreement before his final hearing into the allegations of sexual harassment made against him in December 2022 by Brenda Tracey is not the real reason for his pending termination.
MSU has been investigating the claim through its Office of Civil Rights since then and has a hearing scheduled for Oct. 5 and 6 to make a final determination in the claim against Tucker. He was since then suspended without pay by MSU Vice President and Athletic Direct Alan Haller on Sept. 10 after those allegations were made public by Tracey in a USA Today interview and subsequent article detailing her allegations.
Tracey has made a statement that she chose to do so only after her name was leaked to media as the claimant in the harassment allegations. Despite these claims regarding her name being leaked by an outside party, Tucker is accusing MSU of mishandling the investigation as a result of it becoming public. He further accuses Tracey of being at fault for revealing his name and the allegations as a result of her interview with USA Today.
Tucker also accuses MSU of ignoring concerns he claims to have raised on Aug. 25 with the administration regarding Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests submitted to the University by media outlets. The FOIA requests were attempting to obtain details about the ongoing investigation into the claim against him.
Tucker further accuses Michigan State of a double standard because the University announced an independent investigation into the leaks only after her attorney accused an outside party of leaking Tracey's name rather than when he raised the issue several weeks prior.
Finally, Tucker also states that he emailed Haller requesting medical leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act claiming a serious health condition just days before he received the notice of intent letter from Haller. Tucker offered no further details regarding his medical condition in his statement or the exact date he filed for leave.
In his conclusion, Tucker insinuates a clear intent to pursue legal action against Michigan State. He cites an intent for pre-trial discovery aimed at obtaining what MSU knew and said about the allegations against him, along with the motives behind the administration's decisions during the process.
You can find the statement in full below:
You can follow the full timeline of events in the Mel Tucker Investigation Central article.