Michigan State president blocking Tom Izzo as interim athletic director

Submitted by Little Blue in Ohio on August 19th, 2021 at 5:22 PM

Apparently, Michigan State is in search of an Athletic Director.

Many at the University apparently want Tom Izzo to at least be the Interim AD while they search.

Others, like the University President apparently DON'T want Tom Izzo as Interim AD - and apparently has even sped up the search - conceivably to prevent such an Interim AD appointment.

(Lots of the word apparently to highlight how little I normally care about MSU but found this funny)

The major roadblock to that is Stanley, who has nixed that plan and hopes to present a candidate for athletic director to the board, possibly as early as next week. Sources say Stanley does not want to appoint an interim athletic director and has not actively involved the trustees, Izzo or football coach Mel Tucker in the search process.

Doesn't want Izzo, did not include the Trustees, or Football Coach Mel Tucker.

Apparently.

https://www.yahoo.com/sports/sources-michigan-state-president-blocking-180431917.htmlStop Excusing Tom Izzo's Assholery

(If all this was posted already please delete - I didn't see it posted yet.  Apparently.)

ERdocLSA2004

August 19th, 2021 at 9:02 PM ^

Totally agree.  Not only that but a CURRENT coach of a major bball program just can’t be the AD at the same time.  I don’t know anything about Stanley but he’s 100% correct on not letting a current coach also be the AD.  Not at least involving the current coaches and trustees on the search doesn’t seem like a great plan though.

befuggled

August 19th, 2021 at 9:48 PM ^

I don't think it would be such a bad thing. Why, when George Perles was head coach and athletic director at Michigan State they managed to lose two consecutive years to Central Michigan. 

Apropos of nothing, I googled who was MSU's coach in 1991 to make sure I remembered it correctly and got this featured snippet:

kehnonymous

August 19th, 2021 at 5:58 PM ^

Although he is undoubtedly a Hall of Fame coach, at this point in Izzo's career a segueway to interim athletic director would, like most cupboard handles, be a bit of a reach.

bassclefstef

August 19th, 2021 at 6:16 PM ^

This wouldn't be the same Tom Izzo who said, after following the five days of survivor statements at Larry Nassar's sentencing, "I sure hope they got the right guy." That Tom Izzo?

Dean Pelton

August 19th, 2021 at 6:32 PM ^

At least someone has some sense. The whole situation is very bizarre. Beekman is stepping down but will still work at MSU in another position. He knows where all the bodies are buried. Would still like to know what really happened with Dantini’s “retirement.” I think he overplayed his hand and didn’t realize he no longer could call his own shots until it was too late. It was obvious he didn’t go out on his own terms. 

ldd10

August 19th, 2021 at 6:44 PM ^

It's actually pretty straight forward.  Believe he was entitled to $1 million bonus on like 2/1/20.  He conveniently waited a couple weeks after that date to retire instead of after previous season. 

Seems like MSU should have just paid him the bonus in December or whatever so they had a more robust coaching search (though Tucker seems pretty solid).

Dean Pelton

August 19th, 2021 at 7:12 PM ^

Dantini was due a bonus $4.3 million on January 15th. I certainly understand him not leaving without that money. HOWEVA, if he told MSU back in December be wanted to retire but he wasn’t leaving without his bonus they would have cut him a check and wished him well. It is also interesting that Dantini’s “retirement” was a few weeks after he gave a deposition in the Curtis Blackwell lawsuit. The MSU football coaches were out recruiting and everything was business as usual. The timing makes zero sense. There was a lot of smoke around a rumor that Beekman told Dantini he had to make sweeping changes on the offensive side of the ball. Dantini basically told Beekman to suck a fat one. Beekman then told Dantini if he refused to make changes MSU was ready to move on without him. Again this is a rumor but Dantini was not acting like a guy who was contemplating retirement. He told everyone he was going to “complete the circle” and finish what he started. 

ERdocLSA2004

August 19th, 2021 at 9:09 PM ^

Not sure what channel you were watching but Dantonio made out like a bandit.  He left the cupboards bare, left no time for a new coach to recruit, and left little time for a coaching search which forced the university to pay an unproven coach way more money than he was worth at the time.  Dantonio left MSU in a really tight spot.

bsand2053

August 19th, 2021 at 8:08 PM ^

Typical insular Sparty.  There is literally zero reason to want him for the job besides Izzo worship.  If anything it would distract him from locking down Clarkston recruiting 

dragonchild

August 20th, 2021 at 9:09 AM ^

The punchline is that for all the things wrong with the idea of Izzo the AD, he is probably the most qualified candidate MSU could plausibly hire.

Is he an active head coach?  Yes.  Is he a turd?  Yes.  Is this an extremely stupid and corrupt idea?  Oh yeah.  Is it a nothingrumor?  Yep, I realize.  Yet I can't shake the feeling that even an Izzo barely paying attention to the AD job can't possibly be worse than whatever shameless, nepotent, sociopathic narcissist they're inevitably selecting for the permanent hire.  Let's face it, folks, we know MSU is going to somehow find a shit-covered worm under some rock whose incompetence and corruption will shock our expectations even as we can't believe they could possibly get any lower.

matty blue

August 20th, 2021 at 6:11 AM ^

the best reason against making him the interim AD is that it’s an actual, you know, JOB, with, like, responsibilities and stuff.  it’s not just sitting in an office, masturbating to photos of mateen cleaves kissing the floor at breslin and screaming at the cleaning staff to get him a goddamned tuna sandwich and tell them to go light on the fucking mayo this time.  

i mean, if it were, he’d have the job already.