Dot that i....

So as details emerge from Ohio State regarding Jim Tressel and the suspended Buckeye players I wondered what is the big deal…Rules are rules and both parties should be punished for lying to the NCAA, but as I think about it a little more I think some of the items are pretty small. I’ve heard stories from Charles Barkley about magically finding money in magazines while on a recruiting trip and we all know the Cam Newton story by now. First I will address Tressel’s part in this. What is wrong with a coach trying to protect his players? Think about it for a moment, what did Tressel stand to gain from lying to the NCAA? Nothing, this is Ohio State we are talking about it, if the players were suspended they would have just replaced them with equally talented if not more talented players. Yes they may have lost a game here and there, but in the end it would not have been much different. It was coach trying to protect his players from getting in trouble, I mean the guy reached out to Pryor and tried to steer him on the correct path. This is a man who was willing to put all the weight of this on his shoulders and carry on with it. Tressel knew at some point it would come out, how could it not. Tressel is known for his character and how he handles him stuff and the fact that he hired one of the best lawyers to represent him says even more. Usually when the going get’s tough the college coaches get going (see Pete Carrol), but Tressel is standing his ground and will rough it out no matter what the NCAA hands down.

As for the players this one will be much shorter, they all know the rules in regards to accepting gifts, discounts, etc, but where does it say you can not pawn school giving awards for money? I think it is a joke that a player would sell rings or gifts from the school that was awarded to them, but that is another topic.  I mean once you are handed an award isn’t it technically yours? What is the difference with someone selling back their text books?  Taking discounts for items for autographs is a big no-no, but I doubt any major student athlete from any major college sports program has paid for a meal at a local restaurants. The NCAA needs to stop picking and choosing what they go after, either go all in or continue to look the other way…