Mel Tucker's career at Michigan State: A timeline

LANSING — Michigan State University head football coach Mel Tucker was 2-0 in his fourth season in East Lansing on Sept. 10, having arrived in 2020 after a one-year stint as a head coach at Colorado.

Shortly after the team's second win of the season over Richmond that day, USA Today reported Tucker has been accused of sexually harassing Brenda Tracy, a rape survivor who has developed a national reputation for her efforts to educate athletes about sexual violence.

Tucker has denied the allegations; an investigation by Michigan State is ongoing, and MSU Athletic Director Alan Haller suspended Tucker the same day the story published and named assistant Harlon Barnett as acting head coach. On Sept. 27, about a week after notifying Tucker of the school's intent to fire him, Haller made it official and sent Tucker a termination letter.

Here are five highlights from the MSU career of the man who first coached as a graduate assistant for Nick Saban in East Lansing before working as an assistant coach in the Southeastern Conference and at Ohio State. He also worked 10 seasons in the NFL.

February 2020: Mel Tucker joins MSU

After Luke Fickell announced he was staying put in Cincinnati, Michigan State announced Tucker would take over the program. The 48-year-old had just finished year one of his first head coaching job at Colorado.

Tucker reached a deal on Feb. 12 to become the Spartans' 25th head coach. He was approved by the Board of Trustees the same day, barely four days after he initially interviewed with MSU's search party to replace longtime coach Mark Dantonio, who abruptly retired on Feb. 4 after 13 seasons.

"I love the positives of the Michigan State football legacy," Tucker said at a press conference. "I promise you, we will do everything to prepare, practice and play relentless and accountable football with toughness and integrity. We have much to live up to and much to prove. And I believe the time is right now."

Then-MSU Athletic Director Bill Beekman said at the time that he was looking for a person of character, passion for MSU, a strong recruiter in the Midwest, Big Ten experience and a head coach with a track record of success.

"Fit here is critical," Beekman said, who along with current AD Alan Haller orchestrated the hire. MSU paid Tucker’s $3 million buyout at Colorado and the new coach’s tax liability of $2.5 million. That was above and beyond a salary of at least $5.5 million a year. The football program's assistant coaching pool which had been $4.8 million under Dantonio was raised to $6 million.

July 2020: COVID and the season that almost wasn’t

With the spring game canceled because of COVID and the season in doubt, Tucker was among high-profile MSU officials who took temporary pay cuts from September 2020 to August 2021, along with head basketball coach Tom Izzo and Beekman. The Spartans endured a COVID quarantine and an on-and-off season before eventually playing seven games in what was scheduled to be a nine-game season, finishing 2-5. The shortened season, however, was not without a big highlight.

Oct. 31, 2020: A pair of firsts at Michigan

Tucker became the first coach in school history to get his first win as a Spartan head coach against Michigan and only the third MSU coach to win in his first try at the Big House. Michigan had been favored by three touchdowns. MSU beat the No. 14 Wolverines in Ann Arbor for the second straight year, 27-24, on Halloween.

Fall 2021: A top 10 finish

Tucker turned to the transfer portal early in his tenure at MSU, and the biggest contributor to the 2021 season came from Wake Forest. In a season that saw another win over Michigan and ended with a top 10 ranking, running back Kenneth Walker III ran for 1,636 yards and 18 rushing touchdowns. The Spartans finished 11-2 and won the Peach Bowl in a New Year’s Six game against Pittsburgh.

November 2021: Tucker inks new $95 million deal

In late November, before the Spartans knew they were playing in the Peach Bowl, rumors of Louisiana State University’s interest in Tucker to replace the embattled Ed Orgeron prompted MSU and megadonors to make Tucker the highest paid Black coach in the country. The 10-year, $95 million deal was a $4 million raise. It was funded by former Spartan basketball walk-on Mat Ishbia and Steve St. Andre. It made Tucker the second-highest paid coach in college football, at the time, second only to former Spartan coach Nick Saban. MSU had lost Saban to LSU two decades earlier.

Fall 2022: A disappointing 5-7 campaign

MSU limped to a disappointing 5-7 season and did not play in a bowl game. The offensive line struggled all season. The team had the Big Ten’s worst rush defense and struggled offensively with little run game. In the months after the season, star receiver Jayden Reed was drafted by the Green Bay Packers, starting quarterback Payton Thorne left for Auburn and the SEC and promising receiver Keon Coleman took his services to Florida State.

And here's how his career at MSU ended in a span of less than three weeks.

Sept. 10, 2023: Sexual harassment investigation made public

The USA Today story published on Sept. 10, 2023 detailed the long-running sexual harassment investigation of Tucker, and revealed that the woman who filed the report in late December was Brenda Tracy, a prominent rape survivor and activist hired by Tucker to speak to his team about sexual violence and consent. The university held a news conference later that day and Athletic Director Alan Haller announced Tucker had been suspended without pay.

Sept. 18, 2023: Haller tells Tucker he plans to fire the coach for cause

Haller sent Tucker a letter giving notice, as required by his contract, that he intended to fire him for cause the following week. He cited Tucker's admitted behavior and the "public disrespect, contempt, or ridicule" it brought on the university. By firing Tucker for cause, the university would not have pay the roughly $80 million of guaranteed money left on the 10-year contract extension from two years earlier. "At this point, the University has amassed a body of undisputed evidence of misconduct that warrants termination for cause," Haller wrote to Tucker. The letter also indicated that, as required by his contract, Tucker had seven days to make the case why he should not be fired for case.

Sept. 25, 2023: Tucker responds to Haller's letter

Tucker and his attorneys responded to the university's move to fire him with a 25-page letter, which included a report from a Title IX expert. They said MSU has no basis to fire him and excoriated the university for what they called an unfair and biased investigation into sexual harassment allegations. They also reiterated to Haller that Tucker had requested a leave of absence under the Family and Medical Leave Act for a "serious medical condition."

Sept. 27, 2023: Haller fires Tucker

Haller made good on his promise from the previous week when he sent Tucker a letter, which the university released around noon, that made his termination for cause official. Haller was unmoved by Tucker's letter two days prior. “Your unconvincing rationalizations and misguided attempt to shift responsibility cannot and do not excuse your own behavior,” Haller wrote in the termination letter. “Had you not engaged in this inappropriate and unprofessional conduct, the University would not be subject to public disrespect and ridicule regarding your actions.” Legal experts told the State Journal that an expensive and ugly legal battle was likely to follow.

Compiled from LSJ archives.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Mel Tucker at Michigan State University: A timeline