"I helped bring Ms. Tracy to campus": Suspended MSU coach Mel Tucker denies Brenda Tracy's s*xual allegations in bold statement

Michigan State coach Mel Tucker claims that activist Brenda Tracy's allegations of harassment are false. The suspended football coach issued a statement through his lawyer on Monday in which he questioned the fairness of the proceedings initiated by the activist, citing flaws in the scheduled university hearing.

The controversy surrounding Tucker and Tracy centers around a series of events that unfolded over the past two years. Tucker said that he played a role in bringing Tracy to the school's campus, expressing his support for her mission of sexual misconduct prevention. The statement reads:

"I helped bring Ms. Tracy to campus in the summer of 2021 because I support her mission. This single presentation was her only paid engagement with the University. We developed a mutual friendship that grew into an intimate, adult relationship; at this point, my wife (Jo-Ellyn Tucker) and I had been estranged for a long time."

Tucker added that he and Brenda Tracy engaged in numerous phone calls during the fall of 2021 and winter of 2022, with many conversations initiated by Tracy.

Mel Tucker discusses the April 2022 phone call with Brenda Tracy

Mel Tucker issued a public statement Monday after Michigan State suspended him Sunday.

Mel Tucker's statement also addressed the late-night call that took place in April 2022. He revealed how Brenda Tracy's attorney initially suggested that his job would not be at risk.

"Yes, I did have a late-night intimate conversation with Ms. Tracy in April 2022," Tucker said in the statement. "By the way, while press reports have called this a "Title IX" investigation, that's inaccurate. The University admitted there is no Title IX jurisdiction, so the investigation of my private life was relegated to an alleged policy violation."

Tucker claimed that Tracy manipulated their relationship after its conclusion to benefit her career while harming his life. The 2021 Big Ten Coach of the Year expressed doubts about Tracy's assertion that revealing their relationship would harm her alone, finding it hard to accept.

Tucker also mentioned her recent criticism of Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, which he learned during the ongoing investigation.