Michigan State oh boy

What I don't get is that he was so close to making the right decision. Which was to not cross any lines and just rub one out by himself behind closed doors.

Or he could take it one step further, and have her on the phone while he did it, but risk $80 million while committing sexual misconduct? Hard to figure.
 
Grady said:
I'm not typically a conspiracy kind of guy, but is it coincidence that two BTen coaches -- Fitzgerald and Tucker -- have abuse allegations suddenly appear out of nowhere when it's obvious the higher-ups in their administrations want to get rid of them for poor on-field performance, without paying their hefty buy-outs?
This sounds like it's quickly moving to a 'he said/she said' situation about whether it was consensual or not. If that's the case, MSU will probably buy him out at a reduced rate.
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Not saying it's impossible, but do you really think the higher ups at a university would want allegations like this associated with their universities? I think if this was some sort of deliberate plot by higher ups to avoid buy outs I think they'd take a much different approach that doesn't negatively affect the universities they represent.
 
kicker22 said:
Not saying it's impossible, but do you really think the higher ups at a university would want allegations like this associated with their universities? I think if this was some sort of deliberate plot by higher ups to avoid buy outs I think they'd take a much different approach that doesn't negatively affect the universities they represent.
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Like I said, I don't necessarily believe in conspiracies. But it IS a helluva coincidence. I don't know that firing a sexist, irresponsible coach is that bad of a look for a university. And if Tucker's buyout is close to $80 million, you can do a helluva media campaign to polish your university's image!
 
Grady said:
Like I said, I don't necessarily believe in conspiracies. But it IS a helluva coincidence. I don't know that firing a sexist, irresponsible coach is that bad of a look for a university. And if Tucker's buyout is close to $80 million, you can do a helluva media campaign to polish your university's image!
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I don't think it's conspiracy at all and see where your coming from. I think the difference is if the universities were content with the performance of these coaches they'd take a different approach and play the look the other way card or wait until things totally blow up. I agree that you can do a hell of lot with 80 million in buy out money. I just find it laughable that both coaches knew they were under a microscope as well as being on the hot seat and found a way for their employer to pull the plug.
 
Grady said:
Like I said, I don't necessarily believe in conspiracies. But it IS a helluva coincidence. I don't know that firing a sexist, irresponsible coach is that bad of a look for a university. And if Tucker's buyout is close to $80 million, you can do a helluva media campaign to polish your university's image!
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The university didn't fund the big contract though, did they? It was the two rich donors. If we are going the conspiracy route, I think I'd go with those two having buyer's remorse, wanting a new coach, but not wanting to cut Tucker a check for $80M. So through some shady third parties, they get in contact with Tracy and float her like $250k to take him down, with the promise of another $500k once she delivers.

But that still seems like a stretch.
 
SwirlinLingerie said:
What I don't get is that he was so close to making the right decision. Which was to not cross any lines and just rub one out by himself behind closed doors.

Or he could take it one step further, and have her on the phone while he did it, but risk $80 million while committing sexual misconduct? Hard to figure.
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This made me chuckle. If all you wanted to do was have phone sex and rub one out, there are 1-900 numbers for that stuff. Guy could have paid $30 and kept his guaranteed 80 mill......

Remember during the pandemic when Jeff Toobin from CNN rubbed one out during a zoom conference call while some woman was talking? Idiot forget to turn his camera off and 25 people got to watch that.
 
M1911A1Hawkeye said:
Mark Dantonio returning as associate head coach.
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Which is ironic as hell for those that paid attention to what all was going on with his program when he 'retired'

This whole thing is wild. Imagine having $80 something million more coming your way. All you have to do is not do that... Just don't be a total sexual deviant or criminal conspirer like other MSU folks had been. Now he's gonna lose his job and his wife and half of what he's got. He's going to pay $ to lawyers to try and get more of what he's got coming by trying to save his job or get a severance. Hope he's saved up some of what he's already made geesh
 
NorthKCHawk said:
This made me chuckle. If all you wanted to do was have phone sex and rub one out, there are 1-900 numbers for that stuff. Guy could have paid $30 and kept his guaranteed 80 mill......

Remember during the pandemic when Jeff Toobin from CNN rubbed one out during a zoom conference call while some woman was talking? Idiot forget to turn his camera off and 25 people got to watch that.
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And they didn't fire him!!!! Unreal as all get out. How CNN can put on a public face against any of that stuff now is beyond me. I think they just wrist slap suspended him. I think he's since quit but they had him back for awhile.

I wouldn't show my face in public again man. How's one recover from that? Literally everywhere he goes he's 'that guy'. Then again there's guys like him and Anthony Weiner that just have no shame I suppose. I just can't relate to any of that I guess
 
Hawkfnntn said:
Which is ironic as hell for those that paid attention to what all was going on with his program when he 'retired'

This whole thing is wild. Imagine having $80 something million more coming your way. All you have to do is not do that... Just don't be a total sexual deviant or criminal conspirer like other MSU folks had been. Now he's gonna lose his job and his wife and half of what he's got. He's going to pay $ to lawyers to try and get more of what he's got coming by trying to save his job or get a severance. Hope he's saved up some of what he's already made geesh
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My guess is that within a week a dozen or more former players are going to come out bashing Dantonio and they'll have to re-separate with him.
 
okeefe4prez said:
My guess is that within a week a dozen or more former players are going to come out bashing Dantonio and they'll have to re-separate with him.
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That'd be too funny... We could only be so lucky. They could give TN a run for their $ from a few yrs back with their coaching search fiasco.
 
The thing is that it is so hard to know who is like this and who is not. His reputation was pretty clean coming from CU as I recall. It was a really good hire on paper for MSU. You just don't know what people are like behind closed doors. Such an idiot.
 
This whole shit show situation sure makes me wonder what the hell Kirk had on Barta.
Kudos to Kirk though for being a man of his word and not telling even after the lifetime contracts and son's continued employment were inked. At least Kirk gave Barta the chance to get the hell out clean as there really wasn't anything left for Gary to offer and Kirk probably didn't want Gary to F up and have to accept another contract or 15 points per game requirement for Brian to stay employed. I mean why would you want fans to be skeptical or asking questions at the water basin at work talking conspiracy theories and such.
 
I wouldn't necessarily assume that there will be a buyout.

The letter of Tucker's contract appears to give the university some significant leeway with regards to establishing "cause."

Per the contract (which is public knowledge): "...if the coach engaged in any conduct which constitutes moral turpitude or, which in the university's reasonable judgment, would tend to bring public disrespect, contempt or ridicule."

As others have pointed out, even if Tucker can somehow give the appearance of a consensual relationship (or at least prevent proving it otherwise), the university can still pursue termination for cause by simply presenting the admitted sexual activity with another woman while married as a violation of the above.

Either way, Tucker is screwed.
 
#1DieHardHawk said:
I wouldn't necessarily assume that there will be a buyout.

The letter of Tucker's contract appears to give the university some significant leeway with regards to establishing "cause."

Per the contract (which is public knowledge): "...if the coach engaged in any conduct which constitutes moral turpitude or, which in the university's reasonable judgment, would tend to bring public disrespect, contempt or ridicule."

As others have pointed out, even if Tucker can somehow give the appearance of a consensual relationship (or at least prevent proving it otherwise), the university can still pursue termination for cause by simply presenting the admitted sexual activity with another woman while married as a violation of the above.

Either way, Tucker is screwed.
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I get what you are saying, but there are no guarantees in litigation. If you are the general counsel, and even if you think there is only a 10% chance he would win, would you risk an 80 million dollar judgment against the University if you could settle for 5 mill? Setting aside that he is a scumbag, and just based upon collecting 33% of whatever is recovered, I would take his case. Its just a lot of money. It will get litigated.

Also, regarding that language, my response would be, this isn't the 1950s. People have affairs. Hell, there are TV shows, books and even websites dedicated to people having affairs. My client engaged in what he considered to be a consensual, private relationship, and he was not the one that made it public. What if these actions were taken with his wife and she went public with them? Its a slippery slope of privacy.

Not saying it is a winner, but all he will need is just a little bit of leverage to collect more money than a lot of people earn in a lifetime. Sad but reality.
 
guffus said:
His only defense is that that they had consensual phone sex, which if even it is true, still represents extremely poor judgement.
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This. Is this guy like a teenager or something? Keep the snake in its cage, mister.
Hawkfnntn said:
And they didn't fire him!!!! Unreal as all get out. How CNN can put on a public face against any of that stuff now is beyond me. I think they just wrist slap suspended him. I think he's since quit but they had him back for awhile.

I wouldn't show my face in public again man. How's one recover from that? Literally everywhere he goes he's 'that guy'. Then again there's guys like him and Anthony Weiner that just have no shame I suppose. I just can't relate to any of that I guess
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The good news is CNN is dying. It's the canary in the coal mine for first ABC and the parent, Disney.

Yes, they have no shame.
 
NorthKCHawk said:
I get what you are saying, but there are no guarantees in litigation. If you are the general counsel, and even if you think there is only a 10% chance he would win, would you risk an 80 million dollar judgment against the University if you could settle for 5 mill? Setting aside that he is a scumbag, and just based upon collecting 33% of whatever is recovered, I would take his case. Its just a lot of money. It will get litigated.

Also, regarding that language, my response would be, this isn't the 1950s. People have affairs. Hell, there are TV shows, books and even websites dedicated to people having affairs. My client engaged in what he considered to be a consensual, private relationship, and he was not the one that made it public. What if these actions were taken with his wife and she went public with them? Its a slippery slope of privacy.

Not saying it is a winner, but all he will need is just a little bit of leverage to collect more money than a lot of people earn in a lifetime. Sad but reality.
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Oh, I'm sure it will get litigated as well. Just pointing out that the university certainly has a contractual case if it wanted to dig its heals in. 1950s or not, Tucker's actions could easily be interpreted as bringing significant and potentially damaging embarrassment to MSU.

As you well know as an attorney, though, there is a lot of money to be made by getting those with the resources to fork out huge sums to avoid the time, hastle, and legal fees - and the small chance that they would lose substantially more money by not agreeing to a settlement - to simply settle a case. That's an unfortunate bed rock of our civil legal world.

Just curious, but, given the language of the contract, and how this has made the university look from a national perspective, do you think this would get litigated in a country that doesn't allow contingency fees?
 
Ben Rumson said:
This whole shit show situation sure makes me wonder what the hell Kirk had on Barta.
Kudos to Kirk though for being a man of his word and not telling even after the lifetime contracts and son's continued employment were inked. At least Kirk gave Barta the chance to get the hell out clean as there really wasn't anything left for Gary to offer and Kirk probably didn't want Gary to F up and have to accept another contract or 15 points per game requirement for Brian to stay employed. I mean why would you want fans to be skeptical or asking questions at the water basin at work talking conspiracy theories and such.
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Right. And the earth is only 3000 years old.
 
#1DieHardHawk said:
Just curious, but, given the language of the contract, and how this has made the university look from a national perspective, do you think this would get litigated in a country that doesn't allow contingency fees?
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Tucker's case will turn on it's granular details. If the allegations are true then Tucker's morality and public conduct cause will make it easy for the University to pay him a little money based on cost of defense. When I say granular details, I mean more than just Tucker jerking off. For example, if he did that and she didn't know, she could not have been harmed. What precisely is the nature of the "consensual defense"? Did Tucker have a reason to believe she'd object if she knew? Lots of questions to be asked.

So when you become paralyzed from a doctor and the other guy won't pay, you'd have the resources to hire the experts, conduct the multi state expert depositions, and to hire the experts in the first place? Then, of top of that would you have the money to pay $300-$600 and hour for a lawyer who will spend hundreds of hours on your case.

You are a fortunate man if you have that kind of money. Most people aren't. So, the injured or damaged could rarely hope to maintain that kind of litigation. Or the guy that gets defamed by a patently false sexual misconduct case? Or the bank illegally forecloses a house? There would be no recovery for those people. I would add that almost all contingent fee cases have some merit-only the outrageous cases get media attention.​
 
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