Michigan State officially fires Mel Tucker for cause after sexual harassment allegations

EAST LANSING — Michigan State University officially fired head football coach Mel Tucker on Wednesday.

In a letter released to the media, MSU athletic director Alan Haller notified Tucker to "terminate the Amended Employment Agreement, dated November 24, 2021."

The letter, dated for Wednesday, said that "(a)fter thoroughly reviewing your response dated September 25, 2023 ("the Response"), the University now terminates the Agreement for cause."

Haller sent Tucker a termination letter Sept. 18 informing him his contract would be terminated with cause. Tucker did not produce sufficient materials within the week to prove he did not violate his contract and MSU officially severed ties with him.

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On Monday, Tucker, via his lawyer, responded with a letter, claiming the school had no basis for firing him.

"This is nothing more than the schools’ (sic) knee-jerk reaction to negative publicity brought on by Ms. Tracy’s release of the 1200-page investigation file to the national media," Jennifer Belveal, Tucker's attorney, wrote in the letter.

Tucker will not be paid the remainder of his contract because he was fired for cause. Tucker was due nearly $80 million through 2032 before being fired for breaking the rules laid out in his contract.

Haller initially suspended the fourth-year head coach Sept. 10 after a USA TODAY story detailed alleged sexual misconduct during an April 2022 phone call with Brenda Tracy, a prominent national sexual assault victims rights advocate and rape survivor. Secondary coach Harlon Barnett took over as the interim head coach for the Spartans.

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In the termination letter sent a week later, MSU cited the coach’s own admissions during the university investigation into the incident as the primary reasons he was being fired. MSU said Tucker did not act with integrity and broke the moral turpitude clause of his contract because of his admitted sexual relationship with a school vendor.

Michigan State made the decision prior to the completion of the university hearing to complete the investigation into Tucker scheduled for October because the university said there was enough publicly-available evidence within Tucker’s testimony to move quicker.

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MSU cited Tucker's admitted actions of masturbating on a phone call with Tracy as reasons that violated the moral turpitude clause in his contract and he materially breached the agreement for not conducting himself “professionally and ethically, with integrity and sportsmanship at all times.”

In Tucker's response letter, Belveal reiterated arguments that Tucker has made throughout the case, including that the university lacked jurisdiction to investigate his "private life."

Haller's letter on Wednesday said: "Simply put, the Response does not provide any information that refutes or undermines the multiple grounds for termination for cause set forth in the Notice."

Tucker brought Tracy in to speak with his team in 2021 and named her honorary captain for the spring April 16, 2022. The phone call in question according to the USA TODAY report is alleged to have taken place 12 days later, on April 28, 2022. Tucker admitted to investigators that he masturbated during the call; Tracy said it was without her consent, but Tucker claimed it was consensual.

In a statement, Tucker called the sexual harassment allegations false, but said he wasn’t surprised to learn MSU moved forward with his firing. Tucker also alluded to a future lawsuit against the university.

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Wednesday's letter spells out MSU's stance on Tucker's behavior.

"It is immaterial if, as you allege, these actions were purportedly consensual and somehow occurred outside of your workplace. As the University previously stated, '(i)t is decidedly unprofessional and unethical to flirt, make sexual comments, and masturbate while on the phone with a University vendor.'"

The letter concludes that Tucker's response on Monday "did not demonstrate any reason not to terminate based upon the grounds stated in the Notice."

Since the USA TODAY story was published, Tracy has accused Michigan State or someone within the university of leaking her name and said she spoke with USA TODAY separately in order to get her story out. The university has said it has hired the law firm Jones Day to investigate the "alleged breaches" of confidentiality.

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Tucker signed a 10-year, $95 million contract Nov. 24, 2021, while leading MSU to an 11-2 season and top-10 finish that season. He was hired Feb. 12, 2020, and amassed a 20-14 career record with the Spartans.

Former MSU head coach Mark Dantonio has returned since Tucker was suspended to serve in an advisory role while Barnett was named acting head coach. The Spartans are 0-2 with losses to Maryland and Washington since the change and are 2-2 on the season.

The school has a Title IX hearing on the investigation into Tracy's allegations against Tucker scheduled for Oct. 5-6. Tucker's dismissal has no impact on the date of the hearing.

USA TODAY reporter Kenny Jacobs contributed to this report.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan State officially fires football coach Mel Tucker for cause