ESPN college basketball analyst Dan Dakich last night was "Public Enemy No. 1" at Michigan State's Breslin Center after "comments and replies he made" about and to MSU fans on Twitter following MSU's 86-57 loss at Michigan last week, according to Chris Solari of the DETROIT FREE PRESS. In addition to last night's Ohio State-MSU game, Dakich was on the call for MSU-Michigan last week. His son Andrew is a senior on UM's squad. Dakich on Twitter "called MSU fans whiners." One of the tweets he sent said MSU "always worried about UM.” Then another "accused a Twitter user of only going to MSU because he did not get into Michigan." Solari notes there were "many others." Last night, fans at Breslin Center "repeatedly unleashed venomous chants of 'We hate Dakich' throughout the broadcast." MSU coach Tom Izzo responded to Dakich after last night's game, calling him "unprofessional." Izzo: "Classy broadcasters, like [the Pistons'] George Blaha and everybody else, wouldn’t have even thought to do something like that on TV. But saying our students couldn’t get in there? And he’s doing games for Michigan when his son is there? That is a disappointment, and that is ridiculous. ... I am surprised ESPN would let somebody say something like that, that works for them" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 2/15). In Detroit, Matt Charboneau notes Dakich deleted the tweet referring to MSU fans as whiners "not long after" last week's game, Izzo: "Danny owes our fans and our students an apology. And I probably won’t get it" (DETROIT NEWS, 2/15).
DAN IN REAL LIFE: In Michigan, David Mayo writes Dakich is the "big winner from Izzo's vociferous response." His "self-promotion turned him into the center of attention of a game he was calling -- even moreso than the live microphone already made him -- so that by night's end, he was the story." Mayo: "Score another one for the four-letter network." Whether Dakich "apologizes or not, he already has gotten a lot of mileage out of this strange conclusion to the evening." Mayo: "Maybe Dakich tones it down, or even offers a soft apology to anyone he might have offended. The certain response is that people listen to Izzo's complaint, or read his quoted words, and start paying attention to Dakich on a level never paid previously" (MLIVE.com, 2/15).
