Michigan State’s ouster of head football coach Mel Tucker last year in the wake of a sexual harassment scandal is now at the heart of Tucker’s civil rights, breach of contract and defamation lawsuit against his former employer.
Last Wednesday, the state of Michigan and members of its administration and board filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, which claims Tucker suffered “hundreds of millions of dollars” in damages. Two days later, U.S. District Judge Paul L. Maloney said he had read the defendants’ motion and, without ruling on the merits of the motion, the Michigan-based judge gave Tucker an “opportunity to remedy alleged deficiencies.” by submitting an amended complaint.
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Tucker sued in July, accusing the school and its leaders of acting against him “based on his race.” The 52-year-old says the defendants destroyed “the career of one of the most prominent and successful black head coaches in college football.” The state of Michigan fired Tucker after he was accused of inappropriate conduct by college salesperson national sexual assault victims rights advocate Brenda Tracy. During a phone call with Tracy in 2022, Tucker allegedly masturbated; Tucker insisted he engaged in consensual “phone sex.”
Through Rita M. Glavin and other attorneys, Tucker alleges that Michigan state leaders conspired to manipulate and disrupt a “supposedly independent” investigation into his alleged misconduct. He says they were motivated to allow the university to “weaponize” investigative procedures and fire him for just cause. The “for cause” designation meant the school was released from paying Tucker approximately $80 million remaining on the 10-year, $95 million contract he signed in 2021. The deal made Tucker, who won the 2021 Big Ten Coach of the Year award, the highest-paid Black coach in college football history.
The contract included a provision that said the school could terminate the deal for cause if Tucker engaged in “any conduct” that constituted “moral turpitude” or that, in the “reasonable judgment” of the state of Michigan “would tend to disrespect, disrespect or ridicule the university.” The school determined that Tucker’s conduct triggered this clause.
But as Tucker sees it, Michigan State used what he described as a “completely consensual, private event between two adults living on opposite sides of the country” to concoct “transparent pretextual grounds” as a ruse to save $80 million . He also claims the school treated its “white counterparts” — specifically former head football coach Mark Dantonio and current head basketball coach Tom Izzo — far more favorably when their programs faced “much more serious allegations.” Tucker referenced sexual assault allegations against Spartan football players while Dantonio was the coach and alleged recruiting violations, but the school stood behind Dantonio and continued to hire him as a consultant after he retired in 2020. Izzo’s show also faced allegations of sexual and violent incidents. , but Izzo was retained.
As argued by Terri L. Chase and other attorneys for Jones Day and Zausmer, Michigan State claims Tucker’s lawsuit fails to make plausible claims. The school contends that Tucker’s due process claims are invalid because his employment contract stipulated the due process he was due. To that point, Michigan State cites precedent from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit for holding that “the availability of a state remedy for breach of contract defeats the due process claim.”
Michigan State also argues that Tucker’s conspiracy claim is preempted by basic legal doctrines. The school insists that conspiracy claims must be specifically pled, while Tucker’s complaint “provides nothing more than conclusive allegations.”
The school also rejects Tucker’s claim that he is a victim of racial discrimination. Michigan State argues that the fact that Tucker is black “by itself” does not imply an inference of discrimination, “especially” when “the most obvious explanation” for his firing was not race, but rather “his own admitted misconduct.” The school also points out that Tucker’s complaint repeatedly refers to the fact that the school fired him “for financial reasons” and not for racial reasons.
Michigan State further contends that Tucker fails to state a plausible breach claim because the termination clause expressly gave the school the authority to use its “reasonable discretion” to determine whether Tucker engaged in misconduct. The school says the provision “does not permit a court to challenge that provision.”
Michigan State adds that even if its determination was reviewable, it was easily justified. Tucker, the school alleges, engaged in “misconduct toward a sexual assault survivor and trainer who was retained to provide sexual misconduct training to the football team he coached.” Tucker also “admitted” (as the school puts it) to making comments about Tracy’s “appearance” and participating in extramarital “flirtations.” Furthermore, the scandal brought “public scorn, scorn and ridicule upon the university.”
The case could remain in the US District Court for the Western District of Michigan for some time. If and when Tucker’s coaching career will resume remains to be seen. He previously spent one season as head coach at the University of Colorado and as defensive coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars and Chicago Bears. Until the scandal, he was considered a rising star in the coaching ranks. The Spartans, now coached by Jonathan Smith, are 4-4 (2-3 in the Big Ten) so far in the 2024 season. The team lost to the Michigan Wolverines on Saturday.
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