ESPN OTL: Terrelle Pryor made $20-$40k autographing memorabilia

Submitted by Jivas on

Per Michael Kim's Twitter:

http://twitter.com/#!/MKimESPNAmerica/status/78260918198353921

I don't see anything on their main page, and shockingly this hasn't created a Twitterstorm as of yet.  I'll update with links if/when they become available.

One has to think Pryor's decision to leave OSU is related to this forthcoming story.  Unfortunately, since he's no longer a student-athlete, he technically doesn't have to cooperate with the NCAA.

Edit: I'm an idiot who can't re-size an image.  Was going to post this here.

EDIT #2: Link courtesy of Erik_in_Dayton.  Gracias.

EDIT #3: More info coming out, this one by SportsbyBrooks (HT: TomVH on Twitter).

Erik_in_Dayton

June 7th, 2011 at 10:14 PM ^

"The former friend said Pryor would spend his money lavishly at times, that the player had a "shoe fetish" and bought many expensive hats, belts and pieces of jewelry. He said he was particularly fond of Gucci items. ESPN independently confirmed Pryor made multiple such purchases."

"Pryor may not have been the first active Buckeye player to collect cash for signatures from Talbott. The parent of one former Ohio State player told "Outside the Lines" that he saw Talbott provide what he called "stacks of money" to active Buckeye players, including a player now in the NFL."
_________________________________________________
The first paragraph gives you facts that back up the former friend's allegations. The second paragraph gives you a whole new set of violations.

Indiana Blue

June 7th, 2011 at 10:02 PM ^

TERRELLE PRYOR OHIO STATE SIGNED 8X10 PHOTO GAI

Expedited shipping available

Opening Bid - just $9.95 The perfect gift for your best buddy from tsio !

Go Blue !

Maizedout1982

June 7th, 2011 at 10:05 PM ^

Can't see that much money being made from Pryor. I have seen anywhere between 20K and up. I guess we shall wait and see.  If so, what could the NCAA do? That is alot of damn money!! Some people do not even make 40K a year. Tressel has to feel like he sold to get Pryor. 

samsoccer7

June 7th, 2011 at 10:17 PM ^

The friend says TP got $500-$1000 each time he signed items, and the friend saw him sign 35-40 items.  He also says other football players were getting paid for things.  This is going to end badly (for OSU).

fatbastard

June 7th, 2011 at 11:26 PM ^

I am to the point where I'm a bit scared for the rivalry, honestly.   If they get hammered the way it looks now, there may not be a team in columbus.   I'm not sure I want to beat there soccer team on the football field by 50 points for the next ten years.   This is serious shit.  2x what they proved for USC and there's stil more comin'. 

Blue in Yarmouth

June 8th, 2011 at 7:48 AM ^

I still can't see the death penalty happening. In SMU's case they were on probation for paying players and then got caught doing the exact same thing while on said probation. If OSU gets caught doing the same things while on probation for this offense then yes, I can see it. This being their first major offense, I can't see the death penalty being an option.

fatbastard

June 7th, 2011 at 10:45 PM ^

It's a shit whad o bucks.  Free cars when wanted for four years (yes, I'm including the high school vette (20,000), free tats (10,000 -- I mean look at that artistry), free beer and food at the tat parlor (3,000), free weed at the tat parlor (3,000), stolen OSU equipment (stolen with a wink, wink, 20,000), cash for signed stuff (30,000), who knows what goddamelse (5,000).  That's tax free money, btw.  The IRS is gonna be awfully interested in a lot of that.   We're talkin 80k in three years, probably more.  That doesn't include tuition and board for an out of state student.  All tax free.  I think he might have made annual net wages more than most OSU grads! 

smwilliams

June 7th, 2011 at 11:04 PM ^

I believe most drug dealers fill out the pretty standard "self-employed, independent contractor" 1099 form reporting all earnings.

Shame on Pryor. His accountant should know better.

fatbastard

June 7th, 2011 at 11:21 PM ^

Just wait til they count the free weed he got valued at the Michigan Medical Marijuana buy rate.  Then he's really screwed!  He better hope it doesn't come out that he was the guy who took 2 pounds or whatever it was.  Cause somebody sold that for actual cash. Bet TP didn't even file a retun while at osu. 

clarkiefromcanada

June 7th, 2011 at 10:05 PM ^

So apparently TPeezy got him 20 or 40k over a few years at Ohio while he was getting free tattoos, cars and, oh yes...a free god damned "education". How the fcuk much more has to come out of Ohio after Clarett, after Troy Smith's $500 handshake, after their knowledge of playing the Tat5, after playing Delany for a fool in December, after literally years of Tressel clearly manipulating recruiting, after the fake news conference in March "gee I hope he doesn't fire me", after Sarniak, after the school looking the other way for years just happy to rake in millions all the while whoring their legit student athletes and, sadly, spoiling whatever good will players like Chris Spielman built.

What sucks fcuking more about all of this is that all the while a god damned complicit media was more than happy to retell the story of "the Senator" who did things "the right way". Fcuk that...it's a lack of intitutional control and should be the death penalty...nothing less.

clarkiefromcanada

June 8th, 2011 at 12:03 AM ^

How many "secondary violations" has Ohio 'self-reported' in the last decade? 

There certainly is a trail at Ohio working through Clarett, Smith, Pryor and Tressel?

Also, have you so quickly forgotten about the O'Brien sanctions and a certain recruit's mom receiving $6 000?

Jeebus...Stevie Wonder could connect the dots here.

 

jmblue

June 8th, 2011 at 12:21 AM ^

But they were never on NCAA probation before.  SMU was repeatedly caught, put on probation, and kept resuming cheating once the probation ended (or sometimes even during it).  If OSU goes on probation, and then 8-10 years from now gets in trouble for the exact same violations, then it starts to become more of a comparison.

clarkiefromcanada

June 8th, 2011 at 8:48 AM ^

Not only is the narrative I described above factual but Ohio was placed on probation in 2006 following the O'Brien decision related to discipline of the men's basketball program.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=ncb&id=2362527

"Other penalties announced included a public reprimand" - to which I say 'only at Ohio' and this is where they must have gotten the Tressel contrition idea for the Gee/Tressel/Smith presser in March

Accordingly, the death penalty may well be in play now...

In 1985, in response to rampant violations at several schools, the NCAA Council passed the "repeat violator" rule. The rule stipulates that if a second major violation occurs at any institution within five years of being on probation in the same sport or another sport, that institution can be barred from competing in the sport involved in the second violation for either one or two seasons. In cases of particularly egregious misconduct, a school can also be stripped of its right to vote at NCAA conventions for four years. The severity of the penalty led the media to dub it "the death penalty," and the nickname has stuck to this day.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_penalty_(NCAA)

Don

June 8th, 2011 at 9:50 AM ^

I still think the death penalty is very unlikely for OSU, but the NCAA regs you reference certainly establish a plausible justification for the NCAA to do so.

What I really love about all this is how it completely and thoroughly undercuts the sanctimonius image of moral rectitude that Tressel has so assiduously cultivated for public consumption.

Jivas

June 7th, 2011 at 11:03 PM ^

What was happening at SMU was *way* beyond what we are currently aware of at OSU.  The Board of Trustees at SMU was aware of players getting paid but kept paying the current players because they "had to meet payroll".  And this was AFTER the first NCAA sanctions against them for paying players.

Given what we can reasonably assume will come out of this for OSU, they obviously deserve to be *heavily* sanctioned.  But the "Death Penalty" should be off the table.

EDIT: There's stuff in the Sports by Brooks article that indicates that OSU should have known of some of this stuff earlier last season.  That's pretty damned bad...but still not "Death Penalty"-worthy IMO.  Lots and lots and lots of penalties, heads rolling (figuratively, of course), vacated wins, etc. ... but not at the level of the "Death Penalty".

bacon

June 8th, 2011 at 5:51 AM ^

Well said Clarkie. I hope they don't get the death penalty, but I hope it's part of the conversation in the media and I hope the NCAA drags this out. A hasty investigation wouldn't let some of this new information come out. Incidentally, how did this former friend arrive at the number 20-40k? Sounds pretty arbitrary unless tp bragged about it in some way.

Njia

June 8th, 2011 at 8:06 AM ^

I've changed my mind. Until this, I've always believed that a few tattoos and game jerseys didn't warrant more than a few years' probation, some lost scholarships and a bowl ban for a while (i.e. USC's punishment) at worst. However, with each passing day, the news just keeps getting worse for them, and given me good reason to hate TSIO for far more than beating my favorite football team 9 of the past 10 years.

Bomb them back to the Stone Age. They've earned it.

Mlaw2010

June 7th, 2011 at 10:14 PM ^

Desmond Howard was just on ESPNEWS. He said that what we are seeing in Columbus right now is the most blatant example of lack of institutional control we've ever seen. Really went after Tressel hard. It was crazy fun to watch.

Tshimanga Cowabunga

June 7th, 2011 at 10:18 PM ^

I like that the headline is that an "ex-friend" is snitching on Pryor and that said friend stopped hanging around with Pryor because he was getting too arrogant. Amazed that it took the guy two years to figure it out, or Pryor dropped him and he is getting his revenge.  This is all good times

bacon1431

June 7th, 2011 at 10:19 PM ^

I'm almost tired of new allegations coming out against tUOS and TP. Then I remember the Freep allegations against us and the entire college football world giving us crap. It's nice to be on the other end of it.