Ohio State Football: NCAA Finds No New Violations, Likely to Go Easy on Buckeyes

This afternoon the Ohio State football team received the best news of the offseason to date: the NCAA told Ohio State University officials it has not found any new rules violations, and they will not levy a charge of failure to monitor its football players against the university.

In a recent article published in the Columbus Dispatch, the NCAA confirmed that it has not uncovered any unreported violations of committee rules, including those allegations mentioned in a June article published in Sports Illustrated that led to the resignation of head coach Jim Tressel. Furthermore, the NCAA has concluded that Tressel acted alone when hiding the information regarding "Tattoogate" from NCAA officials, that the only person whom he forwarded the controversial April 2010 emails to was Ted Sarniak, a close personal friend of Terrelle Pryor.

This news comes as a major victory for Ohio State as it prepares for the 2011 season. It means that more than likely the NCAA will accept Ohio State's self imposed punishment, which includes the forced resignation of head coach Jim Tressel and the vacating of the entire 2010 season, to include the Big Ten Championship and the Sugar Bowl victory.

Of course I can already hear the detractors now: the Ohio State University deserves more than a slap on the wrist, and, even if their punishment doesn't match the severity of USC's sanctions, they should at the very least be stripped of several scholarships and banned from postseason play for a year. The masses will argue that Ohio State knowingly fielded ineligible players on their team for an entire season, and for that reason alone they should pay for it.

The reality is, however, that the circumstances facing Ohio State and USC are vastly different, and, as a result, Ohio State will receive a much more lenient penalty. USC was found guilty of lack of institutional control, and as a result, the NCAA concluded the appropriate penalties were the loss of several scholarships over a three-year period and a two-year postseason ban.

In Ohio State's case, since no further violations were found, the NCAA simply did not have the evidence to support a lack of institutional control allegation. It will more than likely accept Tressel's resignation(which is a significant loss in itself), as a just punishment for the university for the rules violations committed by Tressel himself. The NCAA may levy further punishment on Tressel himself, but  that should in no way impact the Buckeye football program.

To the charge that Ohio State played all of 2010 with ineligible players, well, I am not sure what would be more fair than vacating all wins earned that season. Sure they could take away several scholarships, but, at this point, it might be a little overkill. More importantly, the NCAA is not about to derail the money train of what is one of the largest athletic departments in the nation. Why else do you think they originally let the "Tat Five" play in the Sugar Bowl, while they knew all along that those five individuals should have been ruled ineligible?

So, Buckeye fans, you can rejoice in this latest victory for your school. As for the rest of the nation, they will continue to claim that this is unfair, that The Ohio State University is receiving special treatment. At the end of the day, it all goes back to what I said on my blog a couple of weeks ago: Ohio State is hated due to its perceived arrogance and its continued success.