The most overused lie told to college football players as recruits and parents is "I promise to look after your boy and take care of him during his time at this university."
Jim Tressel resigned as the Head Football coach of Ohio St. University today. Shocked - Yes, Surprised - NO. All Colleges cheat, or lie every year to some sort of degree. The point is don't get caught. Lets understand this though, taking up for your players and protecting them is NOT Cheating. Those 5 players receiving tattoos didn't help them win any football games nor help bring in superior recruits for the following season. They didn't sell their talents to an agent or to another program, they exchanged memorabilia for some free tattoos. Memorabilia that they earned and won for the university, the same type of memorabilia that every Ohio State player has won the PAST 3 seasons.
Maurice Clarett told on the university a year after winning a national championship and denied entry into the NFL, that he was given cars to drive from a dealership and it wasn't seriously looked into when the statements were made. Is it really the coaches fault that local boosters that own car dealerships allow players to drive THEIR cars free of charge? Should a athlete really be banned for borrowing a car? I understand coaches might know and see that a player driving a car that could be outside their earning means, but coaches also recruit players and track their body size. Why aren't coaches penalized when players decide to use steroids or performance enhancing drugs, when crazy noticeable size differences are seen in the players?
Oklahoma ran into this situation a few years ago and serious actions were taken but none affecting the coach. QB Brett Romar, the number 1 player in the nation coming out H.S. and top offensive lineman D.J. Quinn worked at a local dealership during the summer owned by a Oklahoma booster. The players were overpaid for work and was getting paid for not showing up. Adrian Peterson was given a BMW to test drive for AS LONG AS he needed to test drive free at charge. Romar and Quinn was both getting paid close to $30/hr for their work. They were both investigated by the NCAA and suspended and kicked off the team. Both later transferred to D1-AA schools. The NCAA found NO wrong doing with Adrian Peterson was never suspended. Bob Stoops was never in any trouble for these sanctions. My question is, Why is it fine for athlete to work in a factory during the summers or McDonald's for minimum wage with no say so, but guys lose their Oklahoma degrees and college careers are ended because a job paid two guys what they wanted pay them, who makes the rules on who is getting overpaid or not. Terelle Pryor is about to have his college career ended from the same thing Adrian Peterson did.
At the end of the day, a rule was broken, a broken rule that I believe needs to be fixed in the college world. Memorabilia is earned during the summer workout, in the weight room, late night film study and performance on their field. Why is it such a problem receiving profit on something that they earned. If a player receives books for free from being on scholarship, then at the end of semester is able to trade those same books for cash back, isn't that making a profit. A profit that other student don't get.
If Tressel tells the truth up front, I believe that he still has his job today. I respect 100% what Tressel did. He protected his player. He did what these college coaches tell these players and parents on these in-home recruiting visits that they don't live up to. He promise to look after your boy and take care of him during his time at this university. It just cost him his job. A job I believe he should still have.
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