Personal brand should have no impact here.
The NCAA laid it down pretty good to USC – largely because of their cavalier attitude and overall approach, from the President to the AD to the Coach to the Players. The perception was that they didn’t care at all about the rules (because they didn’t), and so they got hammered.
Ohio State and Cheaty McSweatervest shouldn’t get lighter treatment because The Vest ‘seems like a good guy’. His knowingly withholding information about violations, and playing ineligible players as a result, is bad. His knowingly withholding information under direct questioning later is really bad. Tressel ‘seems’ like a good guy. He does a good job of presenting that good ole reliable, honest, down-home midwestern brand. It’s great personal brand management, and it may serve him here.
But it’s bunk. The guy obviously isn’t on the up and up. He’s been busted. And while strong brands can often survive this kind of scandal, the NCAA shouldn’t let it go unpunished in a significant way.
The smackdown should come – not so much on the Ohio State program (though the President and the AD’s support of him thus far is a bit slimy), but on the Vest himself. Forget a self-imposed 5-game suspension. That doesn’t hurt Tressel, and it doesn’t hurt the team all that much. He has all week to prep his team, and I’d bet there will be a lot of text messaging going on.
Tressel should be banned from the Program for 5 games. No recruiting, no practice, no meetings, no press, no nada. You want to send a message to coaches that knowingly flaunt the system? That’s how you do it. (If there would be a way to ban him without pay, even better.) Separate a guy from his team, his job, and his livelihood. That may wake him up a bit, and instill some realization that that ‘wholesome guy’ that everyone trusted needs to actually re-earn that trust.
Ohio State is essentially giving up on ethics and honor by supporting the Vest in such a vehement way. I’m glad to see that some big name OSU alums/supporters aren’t fooled.
Let’s hope the NCAA isn’t either.
- (Re)Introducing: DANCING LEPRECHAUNS - August 29, 2019
- Ticket Auction: ND vs USC - August 22, 2019
- No Respect! - December 14, 2018
Samari
It’s not like this was an isolated incident either. OSU players and free Escalades go together like PB&J
E-Man
I can’t remember what website I was on, reading about OSU and Tressel, and one of the people commenting on the article was “everyone makes mistakes”. Really?
I don’t think a lot of OSU fans are aware of how much smoke is around this guy, not just for his forgotten emails, but previously with Prior and Clarett.
DeepTeaKup
Not quite sure how to feel about this. On the one hand anything bad for OSU is just awesome for me personally as a UM fan, but on the other I wanted to see UM turn it around and start beating OSU with Cheety McSeatervest still there. If he gets fired now, I guess I’ll feel the way I imagine ND fans felt when Carroll cut and ran, glad but disappointed that he wasn’t there for some beatings.
IMO, I would not be suprised to see Tresel slapped with a “show cause” penalty, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Show-cause_penalty . He played the NCAA like a fiddle to win that BCS game, if they dont come down hard now why even bother pretending they have control over this game.
Pat
Biscuit, I think your suggestion of five weeks out of the program sounds fair. Unlike USC, the whole program doesn’t really deserve to burn for this. Ohio St. self reported this and the administration seems to be forthcoming. But make Tressel pay, let OSU decide if they want to keep him or not, and then move on. I suppose though there might also be some vacated wins and docked scholarships thrown in there to boot.
Trey
Dtk, good luck buddy. They LOOOOOVE LOVE LOVE Vesty up there. Imo, whatever the NCAA levels on him is all youll get for punishment. Bill Nye the Provost Guy wont do anything further than that.
Brad
I don’t think a 5 week program suspension is nearly enough.
I think what USC was into was far worse than all this. However, there was never any real, concrete evidence against Carroll or the AD themselves (though I don’t even entertain the possibility of the notion that they didn’t know exactly what was going on). The evidence against Cheaty here is brutal, and overwhelming. Especially when you consider that the NCAA basically did him a favor to allow those five guys to play in a bowl game (based on his lies).
With this evidence, they can show that he knowingly lied to the NCAA, knowingly played ineligible players, lied again to the NCAA to get those players into the bowl game, lied AGAIN to the NCAA when they started looking into it, held a press conference where he didn’t even apologize (not hard evidence but that kinda thing pisses off the NCAA), and THEN the AD basically laughs the whole thing off and says he hopes the coach doesn’t fire him for this.
Add that all together, and I think the NCAA needs to break out its whompin’ stick. Loss of scholies, loss of recruiting time, and ban him for at least a year. I think this is a perfect use for the Show Cause penalty. People are correct that the NCAA rarely uses it, but they forget that usually the NCAA doesn’t need to use it, because schools fire the guy first.
The Biscuit
A ban for the whole season would be appropriate maybe…For players and coach.
Ryan
The penalties that I would give if I were able to decide.
1 year bowl ban for OSU. (Seems fair, bowl game for bowl game.)
10 Scholorship reduction over 2-3 years.
That’s it for the program. Ya, it’s penalized, but nothing like USC. Oh ya, but a Show Cause penalty on Tressel. Even if it was just for 2 years. Other schools will shy away from hiring him again. His career is basicly over at that point.
theIrishLion10
I’m just confused as to how the NCAA has a very real chance at making them vacate wins for playing with ineligible players, and yet still had decided to let them play in the bowl game (which would also be vacated). How do you take wins after the season for ineligible players, after letting the players that you KNEW were ineligible play in a bowl game? I think the NCAA knew the $$$ would be down if those five didn’t play…