Tom Izzo talks about his retirement plans in CBS Sports interview

Hall of Fame Michigan State coach Tom Izzo spoke about his retirement plans with CBS Sports and it sounds like he has more in the tank.

This is likely a thought all Michigan State basketball fans have in the back of their minds. Tom Izzo is in his 29th season as head coach and later this month he will turn 69. These two things point toward Izzo closing in on retirement, but just how close is the question.

Izzo sat down with CBS Sports writer and analyst Matt Norlander and discussed many things about college basketball, his team and his future.

Let’s focus in on his future and see what Izzo had to say.

Is Izzo close to retiring?

College basketball has seen a lot of turnover amongst its greatest coaches in recent years. Roy Williams, Jay Wright, Jim Boeheim, and Mike Krzyzewski are all college basketball legends that have retired within the last three years. Even Nick Saban, the greatest college football coach of all time, shockingly announced his retirement a few days ago.

All of this movement has led to speculation on when Izzo will follow suit. Obviously it will be sooner rather than later, but how soon? When asked if he may retire after this season Izzo quickly said “No.” When asked why that is, Izzo shared, “Yesterday, yesterday is what it’s all about.”

Izzo is referring to his son, Steven Izzo, who just scored his first basket as a Spartan against Rutgers. Not only is that exciting to Izzo, he’s also mentioned how the reactions from the fans and the rest of his team make it that much sweeter.

He later went on to discuss when he might retire, and shared, “I’m too stubborn to even think about doing it (retire) in the near future because I almost want to fight the system.”

Izzo hasn’t hidden the fact that he’s not a fan of where college basketball is heading. So it’s no surprise to see that he wants to stick around for potentially many more years to help shape the sport we all love.

Tom Izzo’s motivation

You can just tell that Izzo is just as motivated to keep coaching now than ever before. Whether it be chasing that second national title or wanting to improve college basketball as a whole, Izzo still has a lot of motivation. But it’s this quote here that sums it up perfectly.

“I’m healthy. I love my job. I’m really questioning my profession.” He also added, “There’s so many factors that are involved here that I just got to do a better job of.”

This quote tells us a lot. It shows Tom is healthy and still loves his job, which not a lot of people Izzo’s age can say. But it also shows that he wants to improve college basketball as a whole and the Michigan State program, too.

Tom Izzo is undoubtedly only chasing greatness at this point. He is already a national champion, Hall of Famer, and one of the greatest Spartans of all time. Now all he has left to do is try to climb the ranks of the few other coaches with more success than him.

So there is no need to worry, Spartan fans, about Izzo leaving soon. But one things for sure, when he does decide to retire it likely will come out of the blue. But that just sums up the person Izzo is. He’s always been about his player and this university, so he won’t want some grand finale season like we’ve seen other coaches do.