Michigan State football: Mel Tucker’s rumored contract means war on Ohio State

Michigan State football is 9-1 with a shot to win the Big Ten East, go to the Rose Bowl, and go to the College Football Playoff. Whether that will actually happen has yet to be seen.

All Michigan State needs to do is win its games. It’s not impossible. They control destiny, already with the tiebreaker against Michigan.

The current contract extension rumors for Tucker, as reported by the Detroit Free Press, are these: 10 years, $95 million total, $9.5 million per year. The deal would make Mel Tucker the highest-paid African-American head coach in the United States, in any sport.

Michigan State football committing to Mel Tucker means the Spartans are legit

The betting line on Michigan State’s upcoming game against Ohio State in Columbus has varied between 17 and 21 all week long, which is what makes this sort of ironic. But if Michigan State is serious about keeping Mel Tucker, that means war on Ohio State.

At this point, Michigan State fans seem done with Michigan. I know I am. I don’t even like to compare the two; the Spartans have won 10 of the last 14 meetings. It’s time for a new challenge.

That challenge is the king of the Big Ten: Ohio State.

It wouldn’t be surprising if Michigan State gets run over this weekend, but this is a process. Let’s travel back in time and revisit two college football programs: Oregon and Clemson.

For years, USC ran the Pac-12 (or Pac-10, I suppose). That is, until the NCAA bit when they were penalized and set back several dozens of years. Before 2009, Oregon had only had two good seasons, 2000 and 2001. Oregon finished the 2000 season at No. 7 in the AP Poll, they finished 2001 at No. 2 while finishing off the season with a Fiesta Bowl win against Colorado.

In 2008, Oregon promoted head coach Mike Bellotti to Athletic Director. As a result, Chip Kelly was promoted to head coach. Bellotti’s success with Oregon got him into the College Football Hall of Fame.

From 2008 to 2012, Oregon made four consecutive BCS bowl appearances, including a National Championship loss to Auburn in 2011. Since losing to Ohio State in the 2014 College Football Playoff semi-final, Oregon has been mostly mediocre. However, in 2019, they finished No. 5 in the AP Poll, capping off with a Rose Bowl win against Wisconsin.

Let’s look at Clemson. Do you think Clemson was always a major football power? You’d be wrong. From 1992 to 2008, Clemson struggled to win more than seven games most seasons. That’s when Dabo Swinney came in, who led the Tigers to eight ACC victories in eleven seasons.

Clemson was far more fortunate than Oregon, winning two National Championships as a result. Until this season, Clemson was a top program and I would expect them to have success next year.

So it’s possible. The days of competing with Michigan are long gone. Michigan State is trying to elevate itself from a regional competitor into a national competitor.

You’re seeing it in the recruiting, Tucker’s approach to the transfer portal. This has been done before at other programs. Teams can lift themselves into that top tier along with Alabama, Ohio State, and others. For Michigan State, they don’t want to just try to get bowl appearances, just to end up losing them.

An expanded playoff is coming, whether it’s eight or twelve teams. The Spartans are doing everything from marketing to recruiting aggressively and it starts with keeping Mel Tucker.