College Football 2011: What People Are Saying About Ohio State and Jim Tressel
For the past week Jim Tressel has jumped right into the crosshairs of the NCAA, as their notice of allegations has pinned him at fault for the recent violations at Ohio State.
Covering up emails from an attorney about his players trading memorabilia for tattoos has turned into quite the scandal, and one that could ultimately put one of the greatest coaches in OSU football history into the unemployment line.
And in the past week, nearly everyone has been throwing their opinions out about what will happen to Tressel and whether or not his legacy is completely tarnished.
Here is a summary of what some of college football's most renown columnists and experts had to say about Tressel in the past week.
Stewart Mandel, Sports Illustrated
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One of SI.com's most prominent writers, Stewart Mandel wrote in an April 25 column that he believes the NCAA will go after Tressel more so than the university itself.
His reasoning was that the NCAA did not use the dreaded phrase, "lack of institutional control" since Tressel kept the information from his bosses:
"The main reason broader penalties against the school appear unlikely is because the NCAA appears to be pinning the blame for the situation almost entirely on Tressel."
"Long story short: Tressel made a colossal mistake, and he's about to pay the price. In the end, it will inflict an even greater wound on the very players he cares about so deeply."
Read Mandel's full column here.
Bruce Feldman, ESPN
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Unlike Mandel who thinks the end result of the Tressel situation will most likely be isolated to the Buckeyes coach, ESPN's Bruce Feldman is more fatalistic, saying the program as a whole could get hammered.
According to his April 26 piece, he believes OSU could get hit with a penalty on the grounds of not creating a, "culture of compliance," something that falls more on head coaches than ever before:
"At the very least, I suspect Ohio State will be forced to vacate all wins from the 2010 season and its share of the Big Ten title and that Tressel's suspension will be extended beyond just five games for lying to the NCAA, a violation of Bylaw 10.1.
"And, given that OSU AD Gene Smith and Gee knew much of what has come out since that news conference and had only deemed Tressel's moves worthy of a two-game suspension -- against Toledo and Akron -- who knows how the NCAA will weigh that in all of this."
Read Feldman's full post here.
Dennis Dodd, CBS Sports
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Since the notice of allegations has come out, nobody has been as merciless as CBS Sports, particularly Dennis Dodd.
Dodd has been relentless at going after Jim Tressel in several articles since word came out about his suspensions and criticizing Buckeye fans as well:
"In the two biggest developments of this scandal, Tressel has tried to work the system in his favor. First, trading "promises" from the draft-eligible Buckeye Five so that they would return in 2011, in exchange for Sugar Bowl playing time. Then, on Thursday, staging some kind of non-violent revolution with his players against injustices by The Man."
Read Dodd's full article here.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Jason Whitlock, Fox Sports
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If Buckeye Nation needed to hear their side of the story, that the school is being punished by unfair rules, Jason Whitlock of Fox Sports has exactly what they wanted to hear.
Unlike Dodd who has been very critical of Tressel (which almost everyone has too), Whitlock decided to take the different route. He attacked the NCAA for an archaic system and believes The Vest can be a martyr for systematic change.
He does admit that Tressel may be as good as gone, but he also chastised the NCAA for having rules that appear to be extremely convoluted and lacking substance in 21st Century college athletics:
"Gee, Smith and Tressel know there’s too much money being made by adults to crack down on kids looking for tiny perks.
"By ending shamateurism, by giving the kids a real financial stake in football and men’s basketball, you give the adults the moral authority to demand the kids and their families abide by NCAA rules.
"No new rules. No peace."
Read Whitlock's full article here.
Bruce Hooley, Fox Sports Ohio
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Oddly enough, the people who have been the most radically negative throughout this situation have been columnists or experts who either worked at or went to Ohio State.
One of those is Bruce Hooley, a former Columbus talk show host who was criticized heavily for his anti-Tressel remarks the past few months.
In an article from April 20, Hooley, as he has done in several articles before this, ripped apart Buckeye fans for blindly supporting Tressel throughout his troubles:
"Those "Tressel is God" T-shirts apparently aren't just a fashion statement for some.
"The man can do no wrong in many eyes, even when the school for which he works makes it clear he did, in this case, repeatedly violate the most hallowed bylaw in the entire NCAA rule book—the one that requires coaches and athletes to be truthful to the governing body of collegiate athletics."
Read Hooley's full article here.
Kirk Herbstreit, ESPN
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If ever there was anyone who has done more, intentional or not, to draw the ire of fans from his former alma mater, Kirk Herbstreit is without question at the top of the list.
Herbstreit, a former OSU QB, was incredibly critical of QB Terrelle Pryor upon the initial announcement of the players' suspensions. This prompted the senior to tweet that Herbie was a "fake Buckeye."
Most of his recent comments have angered so many fans, that Herbstreit and his family moved out of Central Ohio and down to Nashville.
But the most inciting comments he made came after the notice of allegations, where he criticized Tressel for even recruiting players like Pryor and Maurice Clarett.
Herbstreit recently deleted his Twitter account due to some of the comments made by Buckeye fans.
My Two Cents
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Rarely on this website or anywhere do I offer my true personal opinions, but I'll deliver some as a response to some of the experts' opinions.
First of all, there is a major problem with Herbstreit's comments about recruiting players like Pryor.
Most college coaches will tell anyone that you need to take chances on kids because odds are they can be the difference in getting a team to the next level.
The route of going for clean personalities only at the sacrifice of some talent is something that Eric Mangini notoriously tried to do in Cleveland in his short tenure as coach of the Browns.
As for the Tressel situation, I believe he will be fired, especially if the NCAA levies the show-cause penalty.
Remember though, the NCAA cannot fire Tressel because he is an employee of the university, not the NCAA. They can certainly influence such matters, but they physically can't fire Jim Tressel.
Ultimately, I feel the school will be put in a position where Tressel has to be let go for the sake of the program.
But whatever his fate, it's a shame that the third-greatest coach in OSU history behind Woody Hayes and Paul Brown could have his career end under such a black cloud.
And in the end, I agree with Whitlock in that no matter what happens, the NCAA seriously needs to reexamine some of its rules and go through a full-blown reevaluation.
Will it happen? No. I believe the ego of the NCAA is too great for them to look at the real problems going on all around the country.
This type of scandal has happened decades ago, and it will happen for decades after.
For more college football updates and news, visit The BCS Blitz and follow me on Twitter @bielik_tim.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
