Tucker denies harassment claims, calls MSU hearing 'ridiculously flawed' - ESPN

Suspended Michigan State coach Mel Tucker adamantly denied claims that he sexually harassed noted sexual assault awareness speaker Brenda Tracy in a statement Monday and called an upcoming hearing about the claims «a sham.»

Tucker, in a statement issued Monday through his attorney Jennifer Belveal, said he developed an «intimate, adult relationship» with Tracy and that her claims that he harassed her are «completely false.» He said an upcoming hearing to assess whether he violated university policy is «ridiculously flawed and not designed to arrive at the truth.»

Michigan State athletic director Alan Haller suspended Tucker without pay Sunday night after details of the claims against the coach were made public in a story written by USA Today. Tracy, who operates a nonprofit company that tries to raise awareness about sexual misconduct, especially among college athletes, told university investigators that Tucker sent her gifts, asked if she would date him if he wasn't married and masturbated while on the phone with her without her consent, according to details reported by USA Today on Sunday.

«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 ends of the country,» Tucker's statement reads. «She initiated the discussion that night, sent me a provocative picture of the two of us together, suggested what she may look like without clothes, and never once during the 36 minutes did she object in any manner, much less hang up the phone.»

Haller said he and other university officials have known about the claims since last December, when Tracy filed a formal complaint to the school's