How Rick Barnes, Tom Izzo friendship led to Tennessee matchup vs Michigan State
Tennessee basketball coach Rick Barnes contacted old friend Tom Izzo to add Michigan State to loaded 2026-27 nonconference schedule.
JOHNSON CITY − As Tennessee basketball constructs its schedule for the 2026-27 season, coach Rick Barnes decided to phone an old friend. Barnes announced on April 29 that the Vols would host the front end of a home-and-home series against Michigan State next season. It's an opportunity for Tennessee to test itself against a top Big 10 program, and for Barnes to reconnect with Spartans coach Tom Izzo.
They've coached against each other 10 times, including eight matchups when Barnes was at Texas. In their most recent meeting, Tennessee beat the Spartans, 89-88, in a preseason charity exhibition game in 2023. Their relationship dates back to the 1980s when Barnes was at Ohio State and Izzo at Michigan State as assistant coaches.
"When we first met in Columbus, Ohio, we were at a high school there watching a local player," Barnes said April 30 during the Big Orange Caravan at Meadowview Convention Center. "He was an assistant under Jud (Heathcote), I was under Gary Williams. From that point one we just struck up a friendship.
He's one of the great guys in this business. He's about all the right things. ...