OT - Ohio Student Newspaper commentary derides Tressel era as "More Harm than Good"

Submitted by clarkiefromcanada on

The Lantern, student newspaper at Ohio had a commentary on October 4, 2011 by a Ben Axelrod related to the Tressel era. The salient points for the non link followers below:

After Pryor, Posey and four other teammates were suspended for the start of the 2011 season, Tressel made them promise that they would return for their senior seasons before letting them play in the Sugar Bowl. You know, because there's no better way to punish kids who claim they only sold stuff because they were in dire need of the money than by preventing them from making a living for one more whole year?

Had Pryor, Posey and Herron all declared for the draft following Tattoo-gate, Tressel would likely still be out of a college coaching job and the Buckeyes would be just as much of a mess on the field as they are now. But thanks to Tressel demanding players to return to a school that they didn't want to be at, OSU is likely facing charges of a lack of institutional control, as in less than a year, 10 players have been suspended for receiving improper benefits.

People like to pretend that Tressel transformed OSU into the national power that it is, when in reality, he's leaving the football program in worse shape than it was in before he got here, and that's a clear sign of having done more harm than good.

Even during hate week it's awesome to watch Ohio implode. That is a spectacular stat that over the past year 10 players have been suspended for receiving improper benefits. If that's not LOIC I wonder what the hell is...(as does the PAC 10/12 lobby).

http://www.thelantern.com/sports/commentary-jim-tressel-has-done-more-harm-than-good-to-ohio-state-football-1.2630004#.TpQygpvqM7I

Mr Mxyzptlk

October 11th, 2011 at 9:50 AM ^

I read a few pages worth of comments on Bucknuts the other day after Posey's new suspension and the above sentiments are spreading even among the most ardent fans.  I would say their general feelings were "we're sick of it".  When I say sick of it, I mean they are sick of the ongoing investigations, sick of the ham-handed handling of the scandals by Gee and Smith, sick of new allegations that keep coming out and sick of being the poster child for what is wrong with college football.  I would say the fan base in general is almost ready to clean house and throw all the bums out.

I also couldn't help but laugh at all the blame being thrown around.  And I heard quite a few of them say they were done with college football for this year and can't wait for next year to come.  They hate their offensive coordinator (Bollman).  They hate their quarterback Joe Bauserman.  They delusionally think Urban Meyer, Jon Gruden or Tony Dungy might replace Luke Fickell as head coach.

The only thing missing in their complete and utter self destruction is a loss to Michigan.  I hope we can help them with that in six weeks.

Mr Mxyzptlk

October 11th, 2011 at 9:23 AM ^

I don't think so either.  Nor do I think Dungy or Gruden have any interest in the job.  And the latest I've been hearing about Urban Meyer is that he might be interested in taking over for Joe Pa when he finally retires/gets pushed out.

Wolverine 73

October 11th, 2011 at 9:24 AM ^

I guess there is intelligent life in Columbus after all.  But certainly not among the adult fans, who seem only to care about winning, academic reputation be damned.

mGrowOld

October 11th, 2011 at 9:32 AM ^

That will only be true IF the NCAA grows a pair and does something about it. So far all they've had to deal with is a little embarrassment and that's not a bad trade for 10 years of conference domination.

If the program gets buckled (a-la M BBall circa 1999-2009)THEN I'll buy it. Not until.

Evil Empire

October 11th, 2011 at 9:48 AM ^

Also a guy who can get you things:

More Than A Coach

Two months ago Ben Axelrod may have gotten beat up for writing that piece.  I wonder if the fanbase is so beaten down that they will agree with him.

74polSKA

October 11th, 2011 at 9:59 AM ^

I shouldn't be surprised, but it amazes me that some Tressel fans still think he walks on water and that Ohio fans think the NCAA is done with their investigation/punishment.  I think there are going to be some really sad pandas in CBus in the next few months.  I liked this point:

. . . every college coach, including Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari (who's had two Final Fours vacated) does charity work.

 

 

GunnersApe

October 11th, 2011 at 10:22 AM ^

If no LOIC or FTM charges come in the future I HOPE that the NCAA sets on their asses till after the season to lightly slap them with no Bowl Game NEXT Year to add to their self imposed 5-7 season this year. All bets are off if the NCAA comes down with more charges, No big coach will take that job till the radiation dies down in about five years.

 

Again this is assuming the NCAA has no sack and is just going along with Ohio's self punishment.

 

clarkiefromcanada

October 11th, 2011 at 10:39 AM ^

It seems that new stuff pops up pretty regularly and we don't know that the NCAA still isn't following various leads. That's the interesting thing here; people in Ohio seem to think that the NCAA investigation component is completed but, as we know from the recent DeVier Posey suspension he has now confirmed the relationship with Dennis Talbott and the free golf. 

The beauty of it is that this adds up new dimensions for the NCAA to investigate and new wrong to come out. Well, that and the whole ESPN supreme court of Ohio angle. 

I do enjoy that Ohio has so many balls left in the air to juggle.

Tater

October 11th, 2011 at 10:25 AM ^

If enough people in Columbus turn on Tressel, maybe the entire truth will come out.  It would be great if the full extent of Ohio State's cheating ever made it into the mainstream.  The "sacred brotherhood" can't threaten to kill everybody, can they?

Magnus

October 11th, 2011 at 10:27 AM ^

No fanbase has more knee-jerk reactions than Ohio State, whose fans also had a thread on Bucknuts titled "Joe Bauserman should quit or die" (which was posted on this site yesterday, I think).  They suck in every way.  I almost hate OSU more for their fans than their players, who are also giant dicks.

74polSKA

October 11th, 2011 at 2:31 PM ^

I agree on the quietness.  It's gotten progressively more so as the season has gone on too.  I don't know whether it's an Ohio fan thing or area I work/live thing but the anger with the program has unfortunate side effects.  I've stopped giving some of the guys I work with a hard time about Ohio because they usually come back with some racist comment about the players who've been in trouble.  It's hard to have a respectable back and forth with someone who just has hatred in them. 

08mms

October 11th, 2011 at 10:58 AM ^

I will gladly say all kinds of nasty things about Buckeye fans, but most of the ones I know always took pride that they were a (mostly) clean midwestern program unlike those scumbags down in the SEC.  If I were unfortunate enough to be a part of that fanbase, I would be clamoring for a clean sweep of the house, a rebuilding from the basics, and an AD with the capability and will to flex some muscle against horrible boosters and keep a bunch 18-23 year old kids from doing anything stupid to mess up their chances at pro careers.

bronxblue

October 11th, 2011 at 12:30 PM ^

I know that the end of Tressel's era is a flaming turd, but to say that Tressel didn't return OSU to its previous position as a top-5 program (when it was clearly starting to falter under Cooper) is just insane.  OSU will be fine - they still recruit well, have a wealth of in-state talent, and kids still want to play there.  I love seeing OSU suffer, but this type of reactionary, revisionist BS is the same stuff we saw with Carr and RR, and it was as unseemly then as now.

CompleteLunacy

October 11th, 2011 at 2:15 PM ^

Hint hint, NCAA. You will look like morons to even OSU fans if you don't punish the program for LOIC. 

Today's rhetorical question: How many independent individual incidents does it take to see that maybe they're not independent nor individual, but rather indicitive of something far worse?

I'm hoping the NCAA has an inch of brain to realize that independent incidents don't happen on a routine and predictable basis. Because that kinda flies in teh face of what "independent" means.

Wolverine MD

October 11th, 2011 at 5:16 PM ^

It's all about winning. And nothing else matters. They were fine with Tressel as long as OSU was winning. They drop a couple of games. And they're out for blood. And it doesn't matter whose. (Player, Coach, Former Coach)