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Tom Izzo calls on fans to stop bashing outgoing transfers
By Paul Harvey
Published:
Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo has been adamant about his disdain for the current system involving the college sports transfer portal. However, he made some strong comments at an offseason press conference regarding the reaction of certain fans.
This offseason, the Spartans have had a busy string of departures with the trio of Xavier Booker, Tre Holloman and Gehrig Normand exiting East Lansing. While Izzo has admitted each player had their own reasons for moving on, he does not like the reaction from fans who feel the need to be critical of that group.
“I’m asking you to ask our fans to quit bashing our players on social media. If they left to go to another school, if they left to go to the NBA, if they left to go to war,” said Izzo to the press.
He later described people choosing to criticize Holloman on social media as “ridiculous.”
While every player leaving is a bit different, Izzo was particularly vulnerable when talking about Booker. A former 5-star recruit, the head coach admitted he failed Booker at Michigan State to some degree but still believes in the talent within the lanky southpaw.
“I failed. I love Book. The day he came in with his family was a difficult day for all of us,” said Izzo. “We made him stronger. As a student-athlete, he’s done an unbelievable job. I just couldn’t get enough out of him.”
Now, Izzo faces the prospect of reloading his roster for the 2025-26 season, and the head coach must use the portal to find some pieces after the departures from his roster. So far, the Spartans have added former FAU star Kaleb Glenn, but they will need more pieces before calling it complete.
Paul is a lifelong fan and student of all things college football. He has been covering college football since 2017 and the B1G since 2018.