Michigan State HC Tom Izzo, on anniversary of last year's campus shootings: 'Please don't ever forget'

East Lansing, Mich. – Tom Izzo briefly removed his coaching whistle and took on his unsought role as community leader in calling for Michigan State students, townspeople, Michiganders and Americans to remember and reflect upon the tragic events of Feb. 13, 2023 during Tuesday’s one-year anniversary of last year’s tragic shootings.

Three Michigan State students – Arielle Anderson, Alexandria Verner and Brian Fraser, – lost their lives during last year’s random shootings at Berkey Hall and the MSU Union building on the north end of campus. Five others were severely injured. 

Izzo began Monday’s press conference with a statement of remembrance, and also addressed the subject during his weekly radio show. 

“I want to start out with reality instead of the Disney World that I live in,” Izzo said. “The reality is, (Tuesday) we are observing the one-year anniversary of the violence our community had to deal with last Feb. 13. I hope everybody pauses and remembers the lives of the three we lost – Arielle, Brian and Alexandria – and the others that were injured. It’s a time to reflect and to grieve and honor the people that lost their lives. 

“By all means, I encourage everybody to take a pause, remember it, think about what you could do to help make the situation better in our world.

“And I hope we do grieve and I hope we do honor them and I hope we do remember them because so many times life just goes on and you forget about the things that are really important.”

Michigan State’s classes will be closed on Tuesday. The university is staging several events around campus for reflection and support.

The Michigan State community is invited to attend a remembrance gathering in Lot 62 north of Spartan Stadium from 7:30-9:30 p.m.

A short program will begin around 8:10 p.m., with a prerecorded reflective message, playing of MSU Shadows, moments of silence and ringing of the Beaumont Tower bells at 8:18 p.m. and 8:25 p.m.

Berkey Hall and the MSU Union will be lit up green in honor of the Spartans lost in those buildings. 

“Going through something like this, in this selfish world we live in, it was all about everybody helping each other get through tough times,” Izzo said. “And I think that could be used every day of our lives, whether it’s your family, personally, whether it’s people that are our Spartan family or whether it’s our country.

“One of the things I learned last year is the grieving process is different for everybody. It’s different when you’re kind of involved. I was, in my mind, on the inside looking out, not the outside looking in, just because my son had been over there (to the MSU Union) to pick up his girlfriend, just because I was given the honor of speaking to our whole student body, and really the whole community. But in our own unique way, everybody can grieve how they grieve. That’s going to be the case again (on Tuesday).”

Two days after the tragedy, Izzo was asked to be one of the speakers at a vigil held at The Rock in front of the Michigan State Auditorium. Izzo said later that he felt unworthy to speak at an event of such solemn magnitude. Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer also spoke, as did the chair of the Board of Trustees, student leaders and Michigan State president Teresa Woodruff.

“A lot of people say to me, well it’s not the head coach’s job to speak,” Izzo said on Monday, recalling last year’s events. “There’s certain things you get to do in this job that are burdens that are problems that you say, God I wish I didn’t have to do that. And then there are certain things you do in this job that are a privilege and an honor. That day, as I look back, scared to death when I got up there because there were so many people – I don’t get scared that easy – It was an honor. 

“I’ve been here through some incredible experiences, a parade with a couple hundred thousand people, I’ve been through some welcome homes with everybody, but walking out in front of the number of people, was amazing to me. I met a 91-year-old woman and I talked to a 12-year-old boy. I saw white people, Black people, Hispanic people, Korean people. I saw every nationality. They were all there. There were old people from our community, there were young people from our school systems and there were students from our university. And it just made me appreciate that if we all work together, we all help each other, we’ll be a better university, we’ll be a better city, we’ll be a better state and we’ll be a better country.”

John Hao, a Michigan State student who was severely injured and paralyzed as a result of the shooting, has forged a relationship with Izzo and the Spartan basketball team. Hao, an international student from China, is majoring in sports management.

Izzo said during his radio show that Hao plans to return to Michigan State next year.

“To the men and women who were injured, I hope we see them all on campus again soon,” Izzo said on his radio show. “I stayed more in touch with John because I had a chance to visit with him in the hospital numerous times before he left. He’s been a motivation to me.

“We had John here again not long ago. It makes you realize there are so many more important things in life. 

“When John came back and came in our locker room in his wheelchair, he was so upbeat, it was so incredible. It humbled me to my knees of what impact we can all have on each other. 

“God bless the ones that we lost, the ones that have been affected, and please don’t ever forget. Hopefully, Tuesday will help bring us even closer together by remembering. 

“I remember after it, the incredible job Michigan did (in our first game after the tragedy), the incredible job people did here in our first home game. That’s what you do. You don’t forget. You try to help heal. And that’s where we are.”

Program details (times are approximate)

7:30 p.m. – Gathering begins at Lot 62 north of Spartan Stadium
8 p.m. – Luminary lighting
8:12 p.m. – Prerecorded message from Emily Hoyumpa, president of the Associated Students of Michigan State University
8:15 p.m. – Beaumont Tower plays MSU Shadows
8:17 p.m. – Moment of silence
8:18 p.m. – Beaumont Tower tolls twice in honor of Arielle Anderson and Alexandria Verner
8:19 p.m. – Musical interlude
8:22 p.m. – Beaumont Tower plays MSU Shadows
8:25 p.m. – Beaumont Tower tolls in honor of Brian Fraser
8:26 p.m. – Prerecorded message
9:30 p.m. – Gathering concludes

Tom Izzo, shown here speaking at the Feb. 15, 2023 vigil near The Rock on the campus of Michigan State University, is asking today that people pause and remember those who were lost a year ago to the random campus shootings of Feb. 13, 2023. (Photo by Nick King | USA Today Network)