Skip navigation links

March 14, 2025

WKAR TV special features Izzo and Blanchard in conversation

Tom Izzo
Tom Izzo, MSU Men’s Basketball head coach, featured guest at the Governor Jim Blanchard Public Service Forum

In a new television special from WKAR Public Media, Michigan State University Men’s Basketball Head Coach Tom Izzo sits down with former Michigan governor and MSU alum Jim Blanchard to reflect on the journey leading up to his 30th season.

Blanchard Forum: An Evening with Tom Izzo airs at 9 p.m., March 17 on WKAR-HD 23.1 in Mid-Michigan (check local listings) and streaming in the free PBS app on many streaming devices and smart TVs. The special will be available streaming on demand the next day at video.wkar.org.

Coach Izzo reminisces about Spartan Basketball milestones including the 2009 Final Four in Detroit, playing on an aircraft carrier in front of President Obama and seeing his son Steven, walk-on and fan favorite, make his first collegiate basket to a roaring Breslin Center crowd.

Izzo and Blanchard
Tom Izzo (left) with Jim Blanchard.

Adding another highlight to Coach Izzo’s record-setting 30th year, former governor Blanchard honors him with the Blanchard Spartan Statesmanship Award for Distinguished Public Service. It is a conversation full of celebration, tears, and a lot of laughs from Coach Izzo and the audience alike. You won’t want to miss it.

Presented in partnership with the Governor Jim Blanchard Public Service Forum.

This program was recorded Sept. 24, 2024, at the Wharton Center for Performing Arts on the MSU campus in East Lansing, Michigan.

This story was originally published to WKAR.org

Media Contacts