Throw The Book At The Buckeyes

The Ohio State saga has reached its climax. The dramatic play, which originally people thought it was just five players being dumb and trying to make money could not have been farther from the truth.  Jim Tressel knew what happened and took over six months to inform the NCAA about the issue which means there is some real trouble.  Here are the specifics according to ESPN

In a 13-page indictment of Tressel's behavior, the NCAA alleged that Tressel had "permitted football student-athletes to participate in intercollegiate athletics while ineligible." It also said he "failed to deport himself ... [with] honesty and integrity" and said he was lying when he filled out a compliance form in September which said he had no knowledge of any NCAA violations by any of his players.

All this time, I felt Tressel had class in college football, but I could not have been more wrong as he is a snake just like others in the college sports profession. With the latest case against Tressel, I think we need to start looking at college coaches the way we looked at baseball players when we got the idea that everyone took steroids.  All of these guys are cheaters. They lie, cheat, and steal in order to make their teams collectively better. The way Major League Baseball shut down steroids is they punish the players in a harsh, and made these players out to be pariahs of the sport.

The NCAA gave USC the business for having one illegal player (Reggie Bush) on the field therefore if Ohio State doesn't get a three-year bowl ban, I find it ridiculous.  Even if Terrelle Pryor and friends did not deliver the National Championship to Columbus, it doesn't excuse the fact these guys should not have been playing, and Tressel should have been suspended from the get-go.  People are calling for a year-long suspension for Tressel, but it's clear to me that he needs to be fired.

Remember when Eric posted a poll asking if Tressel needed to get fired a couple months ago?  An overwhelming amount of people said he would not get fired. I do wonder if things are different today, and it's funny to hear every Ohio State fan make up excuses for this why this happened.  If you want to find the truest form of how someone feels, it's ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit. Here are some of his comments via USA Today 

Just like I did, Kirk thought his alma mater had one of the good guys in college football when in reality, Tressel is no different than the other snakes lying in the weeds.

-Charlie.

What The Hell? (UPDATED)

This might be one of the slowest sports news day of the sports year so far. This is my only idea so if this is the last you hear from us today, I apologize but that's sometimes how the blog day works when it's slow around the nation.  For the next couple paragraphs, come with me on a rant about polls (one of my favorite topics as my diehard readers know).

I heard on PTI yesterday that someone voted for Ohio State Buckeyes at number one, instead of being an unanimous decision for the Connecticut Huskies. Did this joker think that college basketball all the sudden adopted the BCS?  It is an indefensible move, and of course, this is the only secret poll of the season. Therefore no one will come out and defend why Ohio State is deserving of the number one spot. There are only two ways where I  could see a coach making this decision.



One would be that VCU won it all, it's hard to believe a team with a 11 losses deserved to be number one at the end of the year.  People spoke out how they took advantage of being in the tournament, but I agree with most that they did not belong based on their resume. The other would have been if Ohio State lost in the Final Four because then they put a good run together beating Kentucky and North Carolina, so I could see someone giving them some credit for their body of work.

I hope this coach defending his decision because I would honestly love to hear his or her thoughts on why the Buckeyes deserved to be number one when they lost in the round of 16. Are we sure my buddy and Big 10 loyalist, Doz doesn't have a vote?  By the way, Marquette finished 20th which made me smile.

Update: Found it was Northern Arizona's coach Mike Adras who casted the vote for Ohio State. Still don't agree with his decisions. 

-Charlie.

The Good, The Bad, and The Rebecca Black

I liked the format that I used for the games yesterday so much, I thought I would use it again. Also since Marquette's first half was the ugliest thing on Friday, I decided to use Rebecca Black's name instead. Hit me with the cyberbullying charges!

The Good

-So far this March Madness had brought us Mr. Onions, Brandon Knight. He is a stone cold assassin in the late game situations. Knight struggled mightily all game, but nailed the shot when it mattered   

-Josh Harrellson has become the centerpiece of the Kentucky Wildcats offense, and my favorite white center since Kevin Pittsnoggle. I also loved that he spiked a ball off Jared Sullinger. 

-The Fightin' Shakas live for another day!  Even though Florida State threw a block party, the Rams were able to survive to face Kansas. David meet Goliath. 

-Tyler Zeller had another great game and played tough defense all game. We all should forget that asshole who said he couldn't play defense, whoops.  

-If you review my predictions, I basically laid out the Kansas game for you.

-The Dwight Buycks Era is over!  (Yes I know he did some nice things, but bad outweighs the good)

-Pumped that Robert Forenza hit a three in his final game of his career. Beyond awesome ending to a great Marquette season.   

The Bad 

-Florida State not getting a shot off in regulation or overtime.  The Noles late game situation troubles made Marquette's look minor.    

-The ref who gave Jae Crowder a T when Marquette is down 26. Don't worry that cushion is big enough for the Heels to win, stripes.  

-Marquette's three point performance was horrendous especially after they fueled the three-point goggles phenomenon this week. Embarrassing. 

- Roy Williams leaving his starters in until the 2 minute mark, I wish Devante Gardner would have leveled that pretty boy Zeller. 

-Dallas Lauderdale bows out in his college career with a five minute performance.  That would be tough to swallow if I were him. 

The Rebecca Black 

-I am very glad I watched the game with my parents because if I watched with my boys, it would have been non-stop jokes. Marquette could not have played more tight.  MU threw up so many breaks in the first half, they could have built an Extreme Home Makeover home. 

-Anyone who scheduled the second round games in Newark. Horrible choice.  

-Darius Johnson-Odom did way too much for my liking. It's okay, he will be great next year.  

-Florida State was 7/18 from the line, which has to bite you in the ass if you are a fan. If I were a Noles fan I would tell myself, 'well at least we got Jenn Sterger.'   

-William Buford missed the final shot and went 2 for 16, yikes. He will be thinking about this one for awhile.  

-Charlie.

Friday Picks (Southwest and East)

Well we went 2 for 4 last night, obviously hoping for better this evening. I'm really not that nervous about the big one, more so excited for it to start. Tacos and Miller Lite are awaiting me after I let the Sno Tap nation in on who I am picking tonight, which is also very exciting.

Southwest


12.) Richmond v. 1.)Kansas: Can someone explain to me why ESPN and others act like this one will be even close? I have seen 1 v. 12 matchups before, and they go a little something like this... the 12 seeded team will give a strong effort for the first 10 minutes playing their asses off and then run out of gas faster than Kristie Alley's treadmill workout. The Spiders do have some good talent in Justin Harper and Kevin Anderson, yet they lack size underneath. The Morris Twins will drain this team, and win in convincing fashion. KU 87-71 

11.) VCU v. 10) Florida State: I guess Shaka Smart needs to stop playing the tapes of all the naysayers because that's long gone. He created the Havoc defense, which I personally love and think most high schools if talented should adopt as their primary system. Florida State has a ton of size, but they fail to score the ball plus they turn the ball over too much. I like the Rams because of their defense and their ability to score. I think they win going away for the third straight game. VCU 71-57 

East
11.) Marquette v. 2.) North Carolina:  Whoa nelly, I have been ready for this game since Sunday night. From everything I've read and heard, the Warriors seem pretty loose and ready to play against the Tar Heels. I really hope Darius Johnson-Odom, a Carolina kid doesn't do too much in the beginning of the game. Marquette needs to be strong on the perimeter or else it will be a long day for the Warriors with Carolina's ability to shoot threes. The Tar Heels have great size, and they need to attack right away down low with Tyler Zeller/Gumby Henson.  I got called out last week for being a biased homer, so why ruin tradition?  MU 79-76 

4.) Kentucky v. 1.) Ohio State- I am eagerly excited for this game because I feel the Buckeyes will get exposed if they do not scorch the earth from three.  Ohio State cannot matchup with both Josh Harrelson and Terrence Jones at the 4 and5. I am assuming that Jared Sullinger will take Harrelson leaving Dallas Lauderdale on Jones, which is more of a mismatch than a war between US and Bangladesh. If last night was the Derrick Williams show, tonight could be Jones'. Also I feel Brandon Knight can tire out Aaron Craft very quickly. The only thing I worry about is Ohio State coming out strong, and Kentucky not responding. The Cats win with a Jones' tip-in at the buzzer.  UK 84-83 

-Charlie.

Someone Take Jim Tressel's Shovel Away

Jim Tressel just won't stop.  He keeps digging himself into a deeper and deeper hole.  As everyone is aware of it came out in the last week or two that Tressel had been tipped off via email about Terrelle Pryor and 4 other Buckeye's illegal merchandise scheme long before the NCAA found out and subsequently suspended the five players for the first five games of 2011.  We all know that if there is one thing the NCAA really doesn't appreciate its being lied to, just ask Bruce Pearl.  These transgressions left Tressel with a $250,000 fine and a 2 game suspension which he later voluntarily increased to 5 games.  Well, today the Columbus Dispatch reported that Tressel forwarded that infamous email on to Terrelle Pryor's "mentor" in an apparent attempt to have him address the issue.  So where does this leave Jim Tressel and The Ohio State University?


In my opinion it results in the two parting ways.  I think you could see a lot of parallels with the Bruce Pearl situation.  OSU has stood firmly behind Tressel to this point and I think they will most likely continue to do so at least through the 2011 season.  At that point, Pryor (the cause of a lot of headaches in the Columbus area the last three years) is gone and it may be time to clean their hands of the entire situation.  Not to mention the fact that the NCAA has yet to weigh in on Tressel and/or OSU's punishment in this case.  Just like Tennessee did, OSU may have to rid themselves of a great coach in order to avoid further sanctions. 

Tressel was widely viewed as a squeaky clean, sweater vest wearing, honest abe before this situation manifested itself in the last few weeks.  However, if you examine his past the Vest hasn't exactly ran a tight ship his entire career.  Just to touch on the major scandals: Tressel's then employer, Youngstown State, was hammered with probation in 1991, Maurice Clarett was hit with NCAA ineligibility, Heisman Winner Troy Smith suffered a similar fate, and as mentioned above OSU has found itself in some hot water.

Based on these facts Tressel, like Pearl, can be considered a repeat offender (a label no one going before the NCAA wants anything to do with).  Despite his extremely impressive on field accomplishments Ohio State may have no choice but to part ways with Jim Tressel, if for no other reason than self-preservation. 

I expect Tressel to coach out this next season with Pryor and the Buckeyes and then be forced out of the program he has led for the last 10 years. 

What do you think?  Weigh in on the topic in the SNOtap poll question.

You Can't Spell 'Underground Violations' without OSU

Upon Further Review: Punish Him!!!

Here's another thing that I can't seem to come to terms with.  In a world where professional athletes are lambasted for making more than one mistake on-and-off the field, it appears that Jim Tressel has reached unchartered waters.  Beyond his impressive overall win-loss record of 106-22 in 10 years at Ohio State and a National Championship in 2002, Tressel has been allowed to bring in players with conduct issues that puts a blemish on the program, and get away with little or no punishment.

However, the NCAA has finally cracked down on this sweatervest wearing prick with a two-game suspension to begin next year's ball games and was fined a hefty sum of $250K.  About damn time. Looking into Tressel's past, you'd think that repeat offenders would have a greater degree of punishment for the lack of control of his player's off-the-field conduct.  Let's run down the list of player goofs under Coach T:

2010: Terrelle Pryor and four others suspended 5-games in 2011 for selling or bartaring items and jerseys for tattoos which is a violation of NCAA rules.

2004: Troy Smith suspended for the season ending bowl game and the first two games of the 2005 season for accepting benefits from boosters, before going on to win the Heisman Trophy in 2006.

2002: Maurice Clarett was suspended after the National Championship game for also accepting benefits from the boosters.

Prior to that, when Tressel was at Youngstown State, one of his QBs was punished for accepting cars and other benefits from boosters.

Another interesting stat I found on ESPN's article is that since 2000, Ohio State has reported 375 violations of NCAA conduct, the most out of any of the FBS schools.  The thing that irks me about this particular violation is that Tressel had gathered information about the conduct of his players last April.  This guy said that he was going to take care of the issue with his players and he never did.  Now I do think that $250K is a lot of money, but not really considering this guy makes a few million each and every year.  And only two-games, when the guy had knowledge 5 months before the college football season even began? I just don't understand the justice system for a guy who had this knowledge long before anything had been done about it.

Normal people that withhold information about a crime without telling proper law enforcement are considered heretics and are given prison sentences.  How does this rule not apply in parallel with punishment for college athletics.  Tressel should be suspended just as long as Pryor and the other players, if not longer, and should have to pay upwards of $500K dollars because he obviously, judging by his lack of character in the past, hasn't learned his lesson.

-Pat

Chuck's Corner Flashback On Rushing The Court

I assume PTI and Around The Horn will talk about the Badger student section rushing the court after beating number one Ohio State.  I really have no problem with it, so sit back and enjoy the experience, this was about the Maryland fans rushing after they beat Duke last season.


People are getting all upset about fans rushing the court like if they were in the stands of the Maryland-Duke game last night, they wouldn't have rushed.  This earns a big Chad Ochocinco Child Please. 


I love rushing the court. I think it's an awesome sight to see all the fans on the court with a player or two hoisted on top of the shoulders of the fans. It's worth doing when you win a share of a conference title like Maryland and Ohio State did the last two nights, you beat a rival for the first time in awhile, or it's a monumental upset.  Are there times when the student sections probably shouldn't have rushed the court?  Oh yeah, but thats like saying are there times when I wished I didn't take five shots of vodka.  You are in the moment, really not caring about what people think about your decision making, rather you are having a good time. 

Another thing to add about the Maryland charge in particular, people were stunned the Terps fans charged because they won a National Championship in 2003 meaning they are better than that!" C'mon, these kids were not even close to sniffing college and they won a share of an ACC title, which if you look at the history is hard to come by with the likes of the Duke Blue Devils and North Carolina Tar Heels. 

Rick Reilly's major point today in his column and on the Scott Van Pelt Show was the safety of these kids. "MY GOD, ONE PERSON MAY DIE OMFG!!!!!"  Listen, these college kids put enough crazy shit in their body to kill themselves so why not risk it again by charging the court? No one is thinking in the crowd... "Shit I might die if I rush... I better not man, so scared.." Hell no, they are running faster than Frank the Tank in the quad through the gymnasium to center court to greet their fearless leaders. Like I said above, you live in the moment. 

Because I go to a D3 college atmosphere, I will probably never have the experience to rush the court and I wish I went to a bigger school to have that on my resume of cool things I have done. I hope that every college kid who goes to a big school gets a chance once to rush the court in celebration of their great basketball. 



-Charlie