OT - SweaterVest Speech at Halftime Last Saturday

Submitted by True Blue in CO on

 

JT/SweaterVest Halftime speech vs. PSU on 11/13/2010

Sharing this with the MGoBlog community to give insight on what changed last Saturday's game between PSU and tOSU last weekend.
 



Having spoken to a number of people who were present during the halftime speech of the PSU game, I have a really good feel for how things went down.  JT used language that is NOT JT LIKE and he called some people out in front of the team....definately NOT something he does.  I am going to do my very best to outline what happened at halftime, but posting about it does not do it any justice....you'd really have to hear it from those that were there:
 
Once the team got into the locker, he politely asked all recruits to step outside for a few minutes.  He asked a student assistant to get a cup of water.  The assistant comes back 30 seconds later with Gatorade.  JT flipped and screamed:  "I've got a room full of football players that are not doing much right, dont tell me I have student assistants not doing things right...GET ME A GLASS OF WATER NOW."  Student assistant comes back 10 seconds later with a cup of water and a face more red than a stop sign.  More on that later.  
 
JT asked the captains to walk to the center of the room and face a mirror (the locker room is full of mirrors).  Once the captains were standing and facing a mirror, he asked them if the coaching staff did a good enough job preparing the team last week for the game. "Captains, if we failed as a coaching staff, I want to know right here, right now.  C'mon...tell me.  We have 20 minutes to get things fixed, but I need to know."  Silence.  "OK, silence is consent.  So now I ask you this:  look in the mirror and tell me what you see."  Silence.  "OK, maybe I did not make myself clear...that was a QUESTION that requires an ANSWER."  Still silence....finally, Cam said, "coach, I see a guy that is not playing his best football."  JT shot back, "Its November, Cam....its God d*** November!  This isnt the God d*** spring game...ITS NOVEMBER and we are playing at home with the Big Ten Championship in our hands!  Hey B-Rolle, what do you see?"  Rolle:  Coach, we are not doing a good enough job of leading this fooball team right now and I accept full responsibility, sir."  JT:  "B-Rolle, how many Big Ten Championships have you won and how many of those were handed to you?"  I've won 3 and none of them were handed to me, sir."  JT:  "NONE....NOT A GOD D*** ONE OF THEM.  Captains, please sit down with the rest of your teammates."  
 
Next, JT went on about a 7-8 minute tirade...here are some of the highlights:
 
"This is NOT Ohio State football right now...this looks like a rag tag operation that's looking to skate by because of what they've done in season's past.  2008 and 2009 are not going to help you in 2010."
"ESPN is not here because of you, they are here because of HIM (Paterno)."  
"That team is not on the same level as you, but they are good enough to take the game unless something is done about it."
"We spent all week with brave men & women that have served our country and made the ultimate sacrifice...they are here today as guests and we honor their service with a horse (bleep) performace like that?"
"We are not losing this game.  Absolutely not.  Every single time we lose tothat team, t-shirts are made.  Not here, not today."
"If you play for 30 minutes, we will coach for 30 minutes and we will not let up until the clock reads zero."
 
At the conlusion of his speech, he looks at the captains sitting in the front and says, "thanks, guys...now I have to go to church twice tomorrow."  
 
After the game in the locker room, JT called the student assistant to the middle of the room in front of the team and apologized to her and presented her with the game ball
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UM2k1

November 19th, 2010 at 2:33 PM ^

(I can't believe I'm actually going to say this) The sweatervest actually seems like a decent human.  I was somewhat inspired by the retelling of his speech, and I wanted OSU to lose.  If only he approached the Michigan game more like Cooper, I wouldn't feel so bad for feeling this way.

Joined: 01/29/2009

MGoPoints: 3294

itauditbill

November 19th, 2010 at 3:44 PM ^

In 2004, Jim Tressel allowed the Michigan football team to be detained and had all of it's baggage and players went over by bomb sniffing dogs. Tressel seems classy but he's not.

When asked during the Maurice Clarret issue if he was aware of the ariticles published about the issue his response was "I have not read the article." As one writer at the time pointed out, he never said he didn't know what was in the article.

Please also check out this article: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/03/sports/ncaafootball/03tressel.html?_r=1&ref=jim_tressel&pagewanted=print

So let's not talk about how wonderful he is. He is like so many politicians out there, carefully parsing his language and operating often just barely inside the rules.

Joined: 06/30/2010

MGoPoints: 1656

AMazinBlue

November 19th, 2010 at 5:42 PM ^

As much as I hate to admit it, he is classy and respectful to others.  I am sure behind closed doors he can be mean and rude just like anyone else.  I hat ethe school he represents and the team he coaches, alway have and always will, but I find myself liking the person that is the coach of that team down south.

Any coach that can turn around a piss-poor effort like OSU's 1st half last week deserves some respect.  I also think he respects Michigan and The Game.  So much so, I don't think he would tarnish it's legacy by running up the score or embarassing Michigan or its coach.  I think the 42-7 drubbing the was the most lopsided score he has put up on Michigan since he's been at OSU.   I was at last year's Game and it seemd like he took his foot off the gas a little in the second half.  I think he knows that there can be no rivalry if there's no competition.   He would never do what Bielema did the last couple of weeks.

I think Bielema would try to bury us if he got the chance.  He would go for two in the fourth quarter up by three scores if he got the chance.  I want to beat Wisconsin so bad tomorrow, so there is more attention on The Game and not just another game for OSU at home.

These two games are a perfect opportunity for this team to show how good of a coach RR is and what these players are made of.   Winning the last two might send MSU to the Rose Bowl, but it would be awesome to have the chance for a 10-win season in a bowl game, a News Years Day bowl game.

Go Blue     Bo IS watching

Joined: 10/12/2008

MGoPoints: 7197

UMxWolverines

November 19th, 2010 at 6:42 PM ^

Doesn't surprise me this is fake. It doesn't sound like something Tressel would say at all. The guy is not as nice a guy as you think. Total douche move in (02 not 04 itauditbill) with the dogs. I hate the guy as a person, but also because he actually does a good job at getting his team motivated for the michigan game, unlike jc did. See the "Michigan is nothing" quote by Terry Glenn. You'd never hear that today.

Joined: 03/01/2009

MGoPoints: 65294

Chad Sexington Henne

November 20th, 2010 at 3:21 PM ^

My friend's brother was a back up placekicker at OSU and I've gotten to talk with him a few times. Tressel wrote the guy a recommendation for a post in the Navy Seals. From what I've heard from him Tressel sounds like a class act. He did admit, though, that allowing Devin Barclay on the team was "probably illegal."

Joined: 10/24/2009

MGoPoints: 227

Ghost of Bo

November 20th, 2010 at 5:13 PM ^

I'll probably lose several hundred (or thousand) MGoPoints for this, but here goes...

Fuck Jim Tressel.

Many of our faithful are trying to appear "cultured" and "sophisticated" by complimenting him. There are likely many Michiganders who think that simple human decency should take precendent over our longstanding rivarly.

Fuck that noise.

I hate JIm Tressel with every fiber of my being. He could exhibit the spirit of Christ incarnate, and as long as he is coaching the scarlet and gray he is naught but a cancer upon the Big Ten and mankind in general.

Fuck Jim Tressel. Fuck his team. Fuck his philosophy. Fuck his insistence on "Big Ten ball" and "power wins". Fuck his entire family and the state in which he lives.

I am as educated and as 'sophisticated' as anyone on this board, but I wish nothing but the worst for the state of Ohio and their head football coach.

Go Blue.

Joined: 01/28/2010

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