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Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Eva Geitheim

Tom Izzo's 98-Year-Old Mom Had Heartwarming Reaction to Michigan State Winning Big Ten

Michigan State Spartans head coach Tom Izzo is greeted by his mother and father. (2010). | Scott Rovak-Imagn Images

There was perhaps no one more proud of Michigan State's Big Ten title clinching win than Tom Izzo's mom, Dorothy Izzo. Michigan State defeated Michigan 79-62 on Sunday, earning Izzo's 11th Big Ten regular season title as the coach of the Spartans. Michigan State has gone 26-5 this season and 17-3 in the conference, and will now head to the Big Ten tournament as favorites.

Dorothy, who admitted she originally wanted Tom to be a teacher, could not help but beam over her son's accomplishments after the win over rival Michigan.

"I can't believe it, I can't believe it that he's just done so well," Dorothy said to WILX News 10. "... Now he's gotten so much fame, it's amazing to me. ... Where does he get his energy? I don't know, but it's always there, that's for sure."

Dorothy sweetly added that Tom's father, the late Carl Izzo, would be proud of his accomplishments. "His father would be ecstatic," Dorothy said. "Yup, He'd be very proud of him."

Carl Izzo did get to see his son win the NCAA championship with MSU in 2000, receive Coach of the Year three times, and earn seven of his Big Ten titles before passing away in 2015 at the age or 90.

Since, Dorothy has remained Tom's biggest supporter as he's become a Hall of Famer, and won four more Big Ten regular season titles, this being his first since 2020. She has previously taken part in celebrations for Michigan State wins, including joining the team in the locker room back in 2016.


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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Tom Izzo's 98-Year-Old Mom Had Heartwarming Reaction to Michigan State Winning Big Ten.

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