Melvin Tucker II (born January 4, 1972) is an
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
coach and former player. He is currently the head football coach at
Michigan State University
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the fi ...
, a position he has held since 2020. Previously, Tucker served as the head football coach at
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
for the 2019 season.
Tucker was the interim head coach for the
Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team play ...
of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL) for the final five games of the
2011 season. He has worked as the
defensive backs
In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...
coach at
Ohio State
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
and
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
and as the
defensive coordinator
A defensive coordinator is a coach responsible for a gridiron football (American football) team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, the offensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's c ...
for both the
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
of the NFL and the
University of Georgia
, mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things."
, establ ...
.
In November 2021, Mel Tucker became one of the highest-paid coaches in college football history, receiving a guaranteed 10-year, $95 million contract from Michigan State, the third-largest contract ever given to a football coach at a public university.
Early life
Tucker was born in
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
.
He attended
Cleveland Heights High School
Cleveland Heights High School (commonly known as Heights, Heights High or Heights High School) is the senior high school of the Cleveland Heights-University Heights City School District, located in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, United States.
History ...
where he was a football standout. He then attended the
University of Wisconsin–Madison
A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...
, where he played
defensive back
In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...
for the
Wisconsin Badgers football
The Wisconsin Badgers football program represents the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the sport of American football. Wisconsin competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the W ...
team. He graduated in 1995 with a degree in
agricultural business
Agribusiness is the industry, enterprises, and the field of study of value chains in agriculture and in the bio-economy,
in which case it is also called bio-business or bio-enterprise.
The primary goal of agribusiness is to maximize profit w ...
management.
He signed a contract with the
Hamilton Tiger-Cats
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a professional Canadian football team based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. They are currently members of the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The Tiger-Cats play their home games at Tim Hortons Fiel ...
of the
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
after graduation but fell ill during training camp due to
chickenpox
Chickenpox, also known as varicella, is a highly contagious disease caused by the initial infection with varicella zoster virus (VZV). The disease results in a characteristic skin rash that forms small, itchy blisters, which eventually scab ...
and was cut from the team. After the CFL, he sold meat from the trunk of his car as a job after college.
Coaching career
NCAA
Tucker began his coaching career in 1997 as a graduate assistant for Michigan State under head coach
Nick Saban
Nicholas Lou Saban Jr. (; born October 31, 1951) is an American football coach who has been the head football coach at the University of Alabama since 2007. Saban previously served as head coach of the National Football League's Miami Dolphins ...
.
In 1999, he served as a
defensive backs
In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...
coach for the
Miami University
Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public research university in Oxford, Ohio. The university was founded in 1809, making it the second-oldest university in Ohio (behind Ohio University, founded in 1804) and the 10 ...
Redhawks and then in 2000 followed Saban to
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...
to fill the same position with the
LSU Tigers
The LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers are the athletic teams representing Louisiana State University (LSU), a state university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU competes in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) as a ...
. In 2001, he became defensive backs coach for the Ohio State under coach
Jim Tressel
James Patrick Tressel (born December 5, 1952) is an American college football coach and university administrator who is currently the president of Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio. Before becoming an administrator, Tressel was the ...
. In 2002, Tucker was the defensive backs coach as Ohio State won a
national championship
A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or competition, contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the be ...
, and in 2004 he was made co-
defensive coordinator
A defensive coordinator is a coach responsible for a gridiron football (American football) team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, the offensive coordinator and the special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's c ...
.
[
]
NFL
In 2005, Tucker entered the National Football League (NFL) with the Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...
. He coached defensive backs from 2005 to 2007 and was promoted to defensive coordinator in the 2008 season following the firing of Todd Grantham. Under Tucker, Cleveland consistently ranked fifth in the league, with the defense making 73 interceptions.[ After the firing of Browns' head coach ]Romeo Crennel
Romeo Crennel (born June 18, 1947) is a former American football coach, who was the senior advisor for football performance for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). A former long-time coaching assistant to Bill Parcells, Cre ...
, Melvin was replaced by Rob Ryan
Robert Allen Ryan (born December 13, 1962) is an American football coach who is currently the senior defensive assistant for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL). Ryan has served as a defensive coordinator or assistant co ...
.
In 2009, Tucker was hired by the Jacksonville Jaguars as their defensive coordinator. In the 2011 season. Head coach Jack Del Rio
Jack Louis Del Rio Jr. (born April 4, 1963) is an American football coach who is the defensive coordinator for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football as a linebacker at the University of South ...
put Tucker in charge of defensive play-calling, and the team quickly became the fourth highest rated in the NFL. On November 29, 2011, Tucker was named Jacksonville's interim head coach following the firing of Del Rio. He ran the team for their final five games and was under consideration for the job full-time, until Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons are a professional American football team based in Atlanta. The Falcons compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) South division. The Falcons joined th ...
' offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey
Michael Rene Mularkey (born November 19, 1961) is a former American football coach and tight end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the University of Florida, and was drafted in the ninth round of the 1983 NF ...
was named head coach on January 10, 2012. Tucker got his first victory as a head coach in week 14, a 41–14 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
. He went 2–3 as interim head coach. On January 12, 2012, he informed the media he would return to his position as defensive coordinator for the Jaguars. On January 13, 2012, it was announced that Melvin would also be the assistant head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
On January 18, 2013, Tucker was named defensive coordinator of the Chicago Bears. Following one of the worst defensive seasons in Bears' history in 2013, Tucker was criticized by the media. As a result, the team fired two of Tucker's assistant coaches, linebackers coach Tim Tibesar and defensive line coach Mike Phair. The Bears replaced them with Paul Pasqualoni
Paul Lucian Pasqualoni (; born August 16, 1949) is an American football coach. He most recently was the defensive line coach for the Carolina Panthers.
Pasqualoni has served as the defensive coordinator of the NFL's Miami Dolphins and Detroit L ...
as defensive line coach and Reggie Herring
Reginald Wayne Herring (born July 3, 1959) is an American football coach and former player and most recently the linebackers coach for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). A former linebacker at Florida State University, h ...
as linebackers coach.
On January 20, 2015, following another record-setting low defensive season for the Bears in 2014, Tucker was replaced by former San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers (also written as the San Francisco Forty-Niners) are a professional American football team based in the San Francisco Bay Area. The 49ers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the league's National ...
defensive coordinator Vic Fangio
Victor Mick Fangio (born August 22, 1958) is an American football coach who is the defensive consultant for the Philadelphia Eagles of the National Football League (NFL). Fangio most recently served as the head coach of the Denver Broncos of the ...
, under new head coach John Fox.
Return to NCAA
Tucker spent the 2015 season with the Alabama Crimson Tide as assistant head coach and defensive backs coach, during which the team won the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship
The 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship was a bowl game that determined a national champion of NCAA Division I FBS college football for the 2015 season. It was played at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona on Ja ...
.
In 2016, Tucker moved to Georgia as the defensive coordinator, where he remained through 2018.
Colorado
On December 5, 2018, Tucker signed an agreement to become the Colorado Buffaloes football head coach starting in 2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
. In his lone season at the helm, Tucker's Buffaloes posted a 5–7 record (3–6 in the Pac-12).
Michigan State
On February 12, 2020, Tucker resigned as Colorado's head coach to accept the same position at Michigan State. Tucker’s contract at Michigan State was worth $5.5 million annually for six years; more than double his contract at Colorado (five years, $14.8 million) and more than $1 million annually over previous head coach Mark Dantonio
Mark Justin Dantonio (born March 9, 1956) is a former American football coach and player. He most recently served as the head football coach at Michigan State University, a position he had held from 2007 to 2019, presiding over one of the most ...
($4.3 million per annum). At the time of signing, Tucker became the 12th-highest paid head coach in the FBS and fourth in the Big Ten
The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
.
With the COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
forcing a late start for Big Ten teams in the 2020 season, Tucker's Spartans made their debut on October 24, 2020. MSU turned the ball over seven times in Melvin’s head coaching debut and lost to Rutgers
Rutgers University (; RU), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of four campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College, and was a ...
, 38–27. MSU rebounded the following week to defeat in-state rival Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
, 27–24, for Melvin’s first win as a Spartan. After lopsided losses to Iowa and Indiana, Michigan State upset No. 8-ranked Northwestern, 29–20, handing the Wildcats their first loss of the season. Melvin would finish the abbreviated 2020 season with a 2–5 record.
= 2021 season
=
Unranked to begin the 2021 season, Tucker's Spartans jumped out to a 8–0 start, including a come-from-behind win over in-state rival and No. 6-ranked Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
, causing the Spartans to move up to No. 5 in the AP poll and No. 6 in the Coaches poll. In the process, Tucker became the first MSU head coach to beat Michigan in his first two career meetings. Tucker's Spartans were ranked No. 3 in the initial CFP rankings released Nov. 2.
Following MSU's first loss at Purdue
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
in Week 9, the Spartans dropped to No. 8 in the AP poll and No. 9 in the Coaches' poll. The loss also dropped MSU to No. 7 in the CFP rankings. MSU's 40–21 victory over Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
on November 13, coupled with Oklahoma
Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...
's first loss of the season, moved the Spartans up to No. 7 in the AP poll and No. 8 in the Coaches' poll. Following a crushing 56–7 defeat at the hands of Ohio State
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
, the 9–2 Spartans dropped to No. 12 in the AP poll and No. 13 in the Coaches' poll. MSU closed out the regular season with a 30–27 victory over Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campu ...
, moving them up to No. 11 in the AP poll while remaining at No. 13 in the Coaches' poll. Michigan State reached 10 wins for the first time since 2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
, and went undefeated at home (6–0) for the first time since 2015
File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...
. The Spartans went on to defeat Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
in the Peach Bowl
The Peach Bowl is an annual college football bowl game played in Atlanta, Georgia since December 1968. Since 1997, it has been sponsored by Chick-fil-A and is officially known as the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. From 2006 to 2013, it was officially re ...
31–21, marking MSU's first 11-win season since their Big 10 winning 2015 campaign. MSU finished the season ranked No. 8 in the Coaches Poll and No. 9 in the AP poll, the team's highest rankings since 2015.
On November 24, MSU and Tucker agreed to a 10-year, $95 million contract extension. This decision caused considerable surprise among college football observers, as Tucker had a career record of 16-14 at the time.
On November 30, Tucker won the Big Ten Coach of the Year awards, being named both the Hayes- Schembechler Coach of the Year (coaches' vote) and the Dave McClain Coach of the Year (media vote).
= 2022 season
=
MSU began the 2022 season ranked in both the AP and Coaches' polls. But after opening the season with wins over Western Michigan
West Michigan and Western Michigan are terms for an arbitrary region in the U.S. state of Michigan's Lower Peninsula. Most narrowly it refers to the Grand Rapids- Muskegon-Holland area, and more broadly to most of the region along the Lower Pen ...
and Akron
Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...
, the Spartans lost their next four games, against Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
, Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
, Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
and Ohio State
The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...
, all by double-digit margins. After ending the losing streak with a double-overtime home win against Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
, the Spartans again lost by double-digits, this time to Michigan
Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...
.The season concluded with another double digit loss to Penn State and no bowl game for the second time in three years.Wolverines avenge last season's loss, kick away Spartans to reach 8-0
/ref>
Head coaching record
NFL
* – Interim head coach
College
References
External links
Michigan State profile
Colorado profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tucker, Mel
1972 births
Living people
African-American coaches of American football
African-American players of American football
American football defensive backs
Alabama Crimson Tide football coaches
Chicago Bears coaches
Cleveland Browns coaches
Colorado Buffaloes football coaches
Georgia Bulldogs football coaches
Jacksonville Jaguars head coaches
Jacksonville Jaguars coaches
LSU Tigers football coaches
Miami RedHawks football coaches
Michigan State Spartans football coaches
National Football League defensive coordinators
Ohio State Buckeyes football coaches
Players of American football from Cleveland
Sportspeople from Cleveland
Wisconsin Badgers football players
Cleveland Heights High School alumni
21st-century African-American sportspeople
20th-century African-American sportspeople