Mel Tucker says 'other motives at play' in Michigan State decision - ESPN

Suspended Michigan State football coach Mel Tucker responded Tuesday to the school's notice that it intends to fire him for cause, saying in a statement that «other motives are at play» and there's been a «bias» against him throughout the process.

After getting notified of the school's intention to fire him on Monday, Tucker was given seven days, per his contract, to respond to the notification in the wake of a pending sexual misconduct case brought by Brenda Tracy, a sexual awareness speaker.

In Tucker's statement to ESPN on Tuesday morning, he claimed his firing is a «miscarriage of justice» and came because of «Ms. Tracy's improper public disclosure of the entire 1,200-page investigation file regarding her baseless complaint against me.

»… Let's be clear. I don't believe MSU plans to fire me because I admitted to an entirely consensual, private relationship with another adult who gave one presentation at MSU, at my behest, over two years ago."

By firing him for cause, Michigan State is aiming to avoid paying Tucker the more than $79 million remaining on his contract. The statement by Tucker portends litigation to claim that money, as it says he looks forward to «one day obtaining discovery against MSU, including the Trustees and the Athletic Department.»

In his statement, Tucker points out what he perceives as multiple flaws in how MSU handled his case, including the recent decision to fire him for cause after initially suspending him as an «interim measure» last week.

One of Tucker's biggest issues is the timeline of when MSU officials knew about the allegations. The complaint was filed in December 2022.

«MSU knew about the information on which it supposedly relies to end my contract since at least March 2023,»