Mel Tucker calls sexual harassment allegations 'completely false,' says he was in consensual relationship

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Michigan State head football coach Mel Tucker is denying all claims that he sexually harassed Brenda Tracy, a noted sexual assault awareness speaker, in a statement Monday.

Tucker, who was suspended without pay by athletic director Alan Haller after a USA Today story detailed the claims against the football coach, called an upcoming hearing on the matter "a sham."

The statement, which was issued through Tucker’s attorney, Jennifer Belveal, said Tucker was in an "intimate, adult relationship" with Tracy and that her claims are "completely false."

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Michigan State head coach Mel Tucker walks the sideline during the second half against Richmond, Sept. 9, 2023, in East Lansing, Michigan. (AP Photo/Al Goldis)

Tracy, a sexual assault prevention advocate and rape survivor who runs a nonprofit focused on raising awareness about sexual misconduct, told Michigan State University investigators that Tucker sent her gifts, asked whether she would date him if he weren’t already married, and masturbated without her consent during a phone call, according to USA Today.

Haller noted that the university knew about the claims since last December when Tracy filed the formal complaint to the school’s Office of Civil Rights. Tucker reportedly did the same, providing a conflicting statement that said it was consensual "phone sex."

MICHIGAN STATE SUSPENDS MEL TUCKER WITHOUT PAY AMID SEXUAL HARASSMENT ALLEGATIONS

"While I am saddened by Ms. Tracy's disclosure of the sensitive nature of this call, let me be perfectly clear – it was an entirely mutual, private event between two adults living at the opposite