Tom Izzo has two kids named Raquel Izzo and Steven Izzo. Steven is a college basketball point guard for the Michigan Spartans in the NCAA.
The legendary Michigan State basketball coach is a proud father who shaped a bright future for his offspring.
Izzo ranks at the top of the list as the longest-tenured coach in the Big Ten Conference. He has been serving as the head coach of the Michigan State basketball team for 28 years now. Before that, he served twelve years as an assistant coach for the Spartans from 1983-95.
The vastly experienced coach recently led Michigan to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament after creating an upset over the no. 2 seeded Marquette Golden Eagles by a score of 69-60. They will face the Kansas State Wildcats led by Jerome Tang this Friday.
Quite understandably, Izzo got very emotional after the match. He breathed a sigh of relief and said, "It's been a tough year." After everything the team has gone through this year, the morale-boosting victory probably came at the right time for the Spartans.
Coach Tom Izzo Children
Tom has a daughter named Raquel Izzo and a son named Steven Izzo. Raquel is the eldest and Steven is the younger one.
The Spartans guru remained busy primarily due to his rigorous work schedule and match pressure while his children were growing up.
Reminiscing about the day, he sometimes feels bad for missing out on being a typical father like everyone else. He said, "Most people are lucky enough to raise their little ones, and I get to see mine from afar because I’m raising everyone else’s kids."
However, despite everything at work, Tom made every effort to ensure that Raquel and Steven grew up in a healthy environment. He tried to find as much time out of his busy schedule to spend with them during their childhood.
Raquel Izzo is Married
Raquel was born on August 8, 1994. Her household members and acquaintances also call her Rocky.
The elder child of the household attended Lansing Catholic High School from 2009 to 2013. She later graduated in advertising with a concentration in media management from Michigan State University in 2017.
According to her LinkedIn profile, she also went abroad for a year to study mass communication and media at Regent's University in London.
Rocky is the Med Spa Coordinator at Skin Boss Med Spa in Haslett. On top of that, she is also the Executive Director of the Izzo Legacy Family Fund since January 2019.
Raquel married her childhood friend and long-time partner Matthew McDonald, on July 2020. She is pregnant with McDonald's baby.
On May 25, 2019, Matt proposed to her with a ring. Raquel took to Instagram to share the special moment with beautiful pictures.
Since they walked down the aisle during the COVID period, they could not have a grand ceremony. However, they made up for it a couple of years later as they went through all the rituals again and rejoiced the day of their lives.
Rocky is pretty active on social media platforms. Her Instagram profile @raquelizzo15 provides a glimpse into her life full of significant moments, celebrations, and special occasions with her loved ones.
Steven Izzo Followed Into His Dad's Footsteps
Steven was born on June 16, 2020 in East Lansing, Michigan. The Izzo couple adopted him the same year. Recalling back to the adoption day, Tom calls it a magical memory.
The Michigan State coach recently opened up in an interview with Graham Bensinger about the fertility issues they faced after their first child's birth. They wanted to adopt a baby and had to go through a long process before Nick Saban helped them with the adoption of Steven.
In his school days, Little Steve won a prize for writing a poem about the World’s Greatest Dad. It is more than enough to signify the relationship between Tom and his son.
The younger Izzo went to Lansing Catholic High School, where he was a two-year letter winner. He played 24 games as a senior for the Lansing basketball team before joining the Spartans.
The legendary NBA player Mateen Cleaves is his sports hero. He so inspires Steven that he has Matten as his middle name.
Head Coach Tom initially had promised to bring Steve-O onto the Spartans team if he managed to make it to the senior level in his high school basketball career.
The 5 feet 8 inches tall Steve joined the Michigan State basketball team as a walk-on in the summer of 2019. Playing in the guard position, he has made his reputation as a solid catch-and-shoot player.
Mateen Izzo appeared in a total of 12 games in his freshman season and 8 games in his sophomore season. He made it to the Academic All-Big Ten selection in his junior season in 2021/22.
He was also recognized as the Scholar-Athlete Award winner for the team at the Spartan Academic Excellence Gala. Steven has returned for one last ride with the Spartans utilizing his extra year of eligibility due to COVID.
Tom Izzo Wife
Tom Izzo married wife Lupe Marinez Izzo on May 30, 1992. Tom recently celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary.
There's an exciting story about how Izzo met Lupe for the first time. She disclosed the details in an interview with Graham Bensinger.
Following an invitation from her sister-in-law, who was working as a secretariat for the basketball team back then, Marinez went to a party at Tom's house to celebrate a big victory.
Tom swirled around her at the party and tried to make an early impression. However, a friend of Lupe informed her about the Spartan's assistant coach having a girlfriend.
When Tom called her later asking out, she hung up the phone, saying, "Why don't you call me sometime when you don't have a girlfriend?"
However, Marinez decided to give him a chance after some insistence from her mom and sister-in-law. They went out on a date, and their relationship blossomed as they started understanding each other more.
Lupe Izzo is an Entrepreneur
Lupe was born in Texas and raised in East Lansing, Michigan. She celebrates her birthday on December 2, and her descendants never miss out on wishing her via social media on this day.
Mrs. Izzo grew up in a large family of 12; she has seven brothers and three sisters. After graduating from Michigan State University, she embarked on her entrepreneurial journey in Lansing.
She operated as the owner of the Rain Soft Water Treatment Systems Dealership for more than two decades. The 1990 Young Entrepreneur of the Year award recognized her magnificent work in the state.
Marinez is also involved in the philanthropy side by side. She has volunteered to raise funds for various local charities over the years. She also served as the chairperson of the 2005–2006 Tri-County United Way Campaign.
To further solidify her contributions to the community, she established the Izoo Legacy Family Fund in 2019 alongside her life partner Tom. The foundation aims to unify the MSU and greater Lansing communities and look after them for years to come.
