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This is Defector, a new sports blog and media company. We made this place together, we own it together, we run it together. Without access, without favor, without discretion, and without interference.

Defector

Giri Nathan

UCLA men's basketball coach Mick Cronin in a postgame scrum after UCLA's blowout loss to Michigan State on Feb. 17

Media Meltdowns

Mick Cronin Is Stuck In Baby Mode

Tom Ley

Head coach Tom Izzo of the Michigan State Spartans reacts during the game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena on January 2, 2026 in Lincoln, Nebraska.

College Basketball

Former Michigan State Player Makes Too Much Of A Scene For Even Tom Izzo To Tolerate

Dave McKenna

Head coach Pat Fitzgerald of the Northwestern Wildcats is seen during the 2022 Big Ten Conference Football Media Days at Lucas Oil Stadium on July 26, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

College Football

Scandal-Plagued Michigan State Hires Scandal-Plagued Pat Fitzgerald

<div>David Covucci is the editor-in-chief of <a href="https://foiaball.beehiiv.com/p/foiaball-football-for-the-people">FOIAball</a>, a new publication utilizing public records to report on college football.</div>


Dave Covucci

Sparty showing the incorrect way to lay on the field

How College Mascots Conceal Their Identity And Their Ass


<p><a href="https://twitter.com/kenpomeroy" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ken</a> has been cranking out college basketball statistics at <a href="http://kenpom.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">kenpom.com</a> since 2004. He’s written at The Athletic, Slate, the late <em>ESPN The Magazine</em>, and the late Basketball Prospectus. He hopes to live long enough to see the men&#8217;s game start using quarters, like every other basketball league in the world.</p>


Ken Pomeroy

Head coach Rick Pitino of the St. John's Red Storm speaks with Deivon Smith #5 of the St. John's Red Storm during the first half of the game against the Connecticut Huskies on February 23, 2025.

Tom Izzo And Rick Pitino Are Up Against One Of March’s Weirdest Curses


<p>Dan McQuade was a founding member of Defector. He died in January 2026.</p>


Dan McQuade

An image of a jumbotron at Michigan State university before a football game. It has a giant photo of Hitler on it, as part of a trivia video.

Michigan State: Sorry For Putting Hitler On Our Jumbotron


<p>Diana Moskovitz is Defector&#8217;s investigations editor. You can contact her at diana@defector.com or dfmoskovitz@protonmail.com. She&#8217;s also on Signal @dmoskovitz.99</p>


Diana Moskovitz

A photo of former Michigan State coach Mel Tucker on the left and former Northwestern football coach Pat Fitzgerald on the right.

The Football Coach Always Gets Paid

Head coach Mel Tucker of the Michigan State Spartans reacts during the first half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Beaver Stadium on November 26, 2022 in State College, Pennsylvania. He's wearing a green jacket and a headset.

Mel Tucker Officially Fired From Michigan State

Patrick Redford

EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN - SEPTEMBER 09: Head coach Mel Tucker of the Michigan State Spartans looks on prior to a game against the Richmond Spiders at Spartan Stadium on September 09, 2023 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Mike Mulholland/Getty Images)

Mel Tucker Isn’t Going Quietly

Head coach Mel Tucker of the Michigan State Spartans looks on in the fourth quarter of a game agains the Richmond Spiders at Spartan Stadium on September 09, 2023 in East Lansing, Michigan.

Michigan State Has Begun The Process Of Firing Mel Tucker

A general view of Spartan Stadium during the game between Notre Dame and Michigan State Spartans on September 23, 2017 in East Lansing, Michigan. The stadium is packed.

13 Years After Lizzy Seeberg, Going Up Against College Football Remains A Fraught Idea

Head coach Mel Tucker of the Michigan State Spartans during a game against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at SHI Stadium on October 9, 2021 in Piscataway, New Jersey. Michigan State

Michigan State Suspends Football Coach After Sexual Harassment Investigation Goes Public

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MARCH 23: Markquis Nowell #1 of the Kansas State Wildcats reacts during the second half of the game against the Michigan State Spartans during the Sweet Sixteen round of the 2023 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament held at Madison Square Garden on March 23, 2023 in New York City.

Markquis Nowell Returned Home And Put On A Show At MSG

Lauren Theisen

Michigan State University students evacuate to a safe area

Politics

Michigan State Students Learned Who They Can Count On

Hunter Dickinson Promises No More “Hitler Comments” About Tom Izzo

Report: Robert Sarver To Sell Suns To Mat Ishbia For $4 Billion

Jim Harbaugh shakes hands with Mel Tucker

MSU Football Player’s Lawyer: My Girlfriend Was Attacked By A Cup Of Phlegm In 1995

Samer Kalaf

Michigan State players fight Michigan cornerback Ja'Den McBurrows in the tunnel after Saturday's game.

Michigan State Suspends Four Players For Postgame Tunnel Attack

Kenneth Walker Doesn’t Waste His Chances

Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo argues with his player Gabe Brown at halftime of Thursday's game against UCLA.

Tom Izzo Manhandles His Own Player Then Chokes Away Lead, Presented By Some Mortgage Company

The Team Formerly Known As The MSU Spartans Request That Everyone Stop Making Fun Of Their Awful Sponsored Name

Judge Rosemarie Aquilina watches as Former Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar listens to impact statements during the sentencing phase in Ingham County Circuit Court on January 24, 2018 in Lansing, Michigan.

Gymnastics

Larry Nassar’s Prison Sentence Stands, But The Judge’s Words Still Rankle

The Washington Huskies and the Baylor Bears play in the first half of their game during the #VegasBubble basketball tournament in an empty T-Mobile Arena