LANSING (WWJ) - Michigan's highest elected official is demanding answers in the wake of sexual harassment allegations against Spartans head football coach, Mel Tucker, came to light over the weekend.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who earned a bachelor’s degree and law degree at Michigan State and was sexually assaulted while attending the university, released a statement on Monday evening expressing her shock and disappointment over the developments, stating "we deserve better."
The governor said as follows:
"As a survivor, I’m shocked. As a Spartan, I’m disappointed. As Governor, I want answers.
I know the pain that so many feel when allegations like this come to light because I live it too. It’s retraumatizing. MSU holds a special place in so many of our hearts—which is what makes this hurt more.
We deserve to know when the university knew about these allegations and why they made the decisions they did. We need to ensure that one of our state’s flagship universities, one that carries so much weight around the world, is learning from the past and not recreating it.
Spartans, survivors, and Michiganders—we deserve better."
Whitmer's comments come after Tucker was suspended without pay pending a hearing next month regarding sexual harassment allegations that came to light in a USA Today report published Sunday morning.
While Tucker is accused of making sexual comments to Brenda Tracy – a rape victim who made sexual assault prevention and education her life’s work – and masturbating during a phone call in April 2022, the coach called the allegations “completely false" in his own statement released on Monday afternoon.
According to Tucker, he had what he calls an “intimate, adult relationship” between himself and Tracy after she came to the MSU campus in the summer of 2021 to talk to the Spartans program.
Tucker was critical of the investigation, saying it “has not been fair or unbiased.
When details of the Tracy's claims came to light, MSU officials said during a press conference that they were not aware of the details of the allegations until they were published on Sunday.
University officials said they did know a complaint was made against Tucker back in December. The school then had hired a third-party Title IX attorney to look into the complaint. The conclusion of that investigation was submitted on July 25.
It was recommended the case be brought to a formal hearing, which has been set for October 5 and 6 during the Spartans football team's bye week.
As the investigation was ongoing, Tucker was allowed to continue his coaching duties, which has drawn the ire of many -- including those still reeling in the aftermath of the Larry Nassar scandal.