Published March 8, 2011 - 9:08am
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With the latest report that Jim Tressel knew about the acts of his players such as Terrelle Pryor selling merchandise and memorabilia which of course is an NCAA violation, the sweater vest may have started to unravel.
Until now, Tressel has been essentially a coach without blemish. One of the shining beacons of college football. Success on the field. A traditional sweater vest look week-in and week-out.
On a side note, this is just further evidence that the entire NCAA system of violations needs to be scrapped and re-worked into a more simple, straightforward system of rules. Like the US tax code, it seems like nobody even knows for sure what the rules are. Then when they’re broken, the consequences have zero consistency to them – i.e. Ohio State players playing in the bowl game but missing five games to start the 2011 season.
Jim Tressel is a good coach and a good leader. And this shouldn’t cost him his job. But depending on where this goes, there is one rumor that is sure to begin at some point. That is the rumor of Urban Meyer to Ohio State.
There’s a plethora of anecdotal evidence over the years that Urban Meyer would eventually return to his home state of Ohio – many also speculate on Meyer returning to Notre Dame in the future where he served on the coaching staff early in his career.
I think it’s a bit early, but this is essentially the first chink in the armor, or maybe the first loose thread of the sweater vest of Mr. Jim Tressel. A few more key losses, some NCAA penalties, you could start to hear the rumors get louder. With someone like Urban Meyer possibly available, it can’t help the situation.
The rules clearly need a re-write. They’ve gotten so complex that it’s nearly impossible not to violate one rule or another.
Consider the recent incident with a recruit at Alabama: Nick Saban took Barry Sanders, Jr. and Barry Sander, Sr. to a basketball game, which is not a violation, but then the camera operator showed them on the big screen and that may have been a violation (the jury’s still out). Really? Do we honestly expect every camera operator to know the intracacies of NCAA rules?
Now this is a much more obvious violation, but did the players know that? If the NCAA really wants to prevent things like this, there’s a simple way: stipend.
I tend to agree with you. Where is the fine line?
That’s a question best answered by a committee of NCAA officials and conference representatives. Back in the late 90s, I got $250 a month as part of my scholarship. Start there and debate.
The NCAA is the sports equivalent of the Department of Homeland Security. Tons of worthless rules and regulations that just make everything more difficult and don’t really make anything better.
Let’s scrap both.
The sweater vest has been suspended 2 games. Yawn.
The tOSU tattoo-gate just shows that even the Big Ten schools who are usually perceived to be clean and prestigious are suspect to controversy. As an SEC fan, I sort of feel vindicated because we know how the rest of the nation feels about ethics in our conference. For Tressel to side-step the system, though, actually shows he’s not as much a walk-the-line ethical coach as he’s perceived. This guy knew without those athletes his 2010 team would’ve had a big drop-off. He avoided it prior to the season thinking either it would go away or he could claim ignorance on his part. Then it came out prior to Sugar Bowl and so he blackmails his own athletes in order to have them against Arkansas. They finally get that “big” win against an SEC school on a national stage and all he has to worry about is going through a mostly cupcake 5-game schedule without his 5 stars. And through this it seems tOSU has supported his actions. How many think the 2-game suspension and $250K fine is anything more than a simple slap on the wrist. Look, Tressel isn’t Calipari dirty, but he does expose how desperate he is to just win and maintain Big Ten supremacy. Personally, I’ve never liked the guy and his squeaky-clean image. I also despise tOSU, so I’d honestly love to see them go down for something that in the SEC would be huge news and lead to devastating sanctions. I say to the NCAA give it to them and let’s see which Big Ten team barrels through the ruins of the Buckeye program to take back the Big Ten.