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This week's SI cover article

BuckeyeNation27;766648; said:
So nobody cares that it's called "The Program"?

craig_sheffer1.jpg


just asking.

If it gets Mo C to lie down in the middle of I-70 . . .
 
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jwinslow;766673; said:
He's referring to the cheating/steroids used by the team in "The Program"

I know that I was just joking. Lets face it all big time college programs are in some form just like "The Program" there is some form of cheating, drug abuse, etc. that goes on in all big time programs. Sports Illustrated is like anything else they just say something mildly controversial on the cover so that people can take the bait and read their publication. My advice to all is don't take the bait. Besides I like to focus on the positives and there were also great things in "The Program" like Kristy Swanson and Halle Berry.:biggrin:
 
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SI arrived in the mail today and I immediately dove in. All I can say is, Wow! Fair and balanced!

The piece breaks 'The Program' down to nine parts: 1. The Star (Oden), 2. The AD (G Smith), 3. The Student Fan, 4. The Tutor, 5. The Nonrevenue Athlete (A Pistol Team member), 6. The Coach (Matta), 7. The Sponsor (Huntington, National City, Donatos, etc ...), 8. The Booster, and 9. The Vendor.

The obligatory MoC references were always immediately followed by such comments as "his allegations, largely unproven," and the centerpiece on the booster element of 'the program' featured Western Digital CFO Steve Milligan, following how Milligan solely underwrote Troy Smith's entire college scholarship, yet never met Troy or used his influence to arrange meeting Troy or any other student athletes. Robert Q Baker's name was mentioned once in a throw-away line about bad booster behavior, and mentions he was promptly banned from all OSU athletic participation indefinitely.

The piece on Matta detailed how his teams' graduation rate is better than at any time since the 80s, and a sidebar on Tressel notes the football squads' improving GPA and graduation rate since the Cooper-era decline really peaked around the classes brought in through '97-'00.

It's also one of the few feature pieces I've read that properly states Geiger retired, rather than claiming he resigned.

All in all very good, surprisingly not at all the smear piece I feared when I first saw the cover earlier this week, and paints Ohio State as a model in how Athletic Departments are run in the age where AD's are CEOs and there is more money at stake than ever.

Being such a glowing piece, it should bring all the H8TRs out of the woodwork, so put on your flame retardant vests.
 
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The best thing about this cover is picturing the look on the faces of all the the Florida fans that ordered SI after the MNC game to get their gator gear walking to their mailbox today, and pulling out this magazine less than two months after the game. Although, I'd trade this "title" for theirs in a heartbeat. :(
 
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I want to clarify this is an expose on how big business NCAA ADs are run, and OSU, being the biggest, is the model other schools look at -- proof that grad rates can go up, attendance can go up, revenue can go up, facilities can get better, and that academics and athletic results aren't mutually exclusive when the department has a vision.

It's not a pro-OSU athletics piece, per se, but surprisingly does a good job detailing how big time NCAA athletics work while not throwing a bunch of MoC-era crap at the wall to see how much can stick. There was even an allusion made that the AD staff actually uses the phrase 'post-Clarett' in the office, as they're cogniscient of how things need to be.

Equally surprising is that through the course of all these essays of how things work and these snapshots of coaches and players lives, the articles actually make Wisconsin and IU fans look moronic (Oden threats) and the segments are set up by using Duke (the lacrosse scandal) as the low water mark.
 
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Dryden;767674; said:
I want to clarify this is an expose on how big business NCAA ADs are run, and OSU, being the biggest, is the model other schools look at ... It's not a pro-OSU athletics piece, per se, but surprisingly does a good job detailing how big time NCAA athletics work while not throwing a bunch of MoC-era crap at the wall to see how much can stick.

That may be, you've read the article and I haven't, but that is not how it's going to be interpreted by a majority of college sports fans. Case in point.

After the beatdowns on Dec 23 and Jan 9, this may be the first example of the SI Jinx hitting BEFORE being put on the cover.
The Gators win the NCAA in both football and basketball, including total beat downs of OSU in both sports, and OSU is "The Program"? The losing program perhaps?
In addition, don't we usually finish higher than them in the Directors Cup standings?
They can have the SI covers, we'll take the championships.
Two scores...86-60 and 41-14...that's what needs to be printed on S/I's cover.
There is no "The Program" but us. Check the trophy case.
Florida is THE program right now! THE only program to hold the national title in Football and Basketball at the same time! Head to head we beat Ohio State by 26 and 27 in each sport!

WOW....SI really missed on this one. They should be embarrassed. Ohio State has a lot of money, but we're top 5. Sure, they had a lot of fans in Arizona, but so many yahoos from Ohio retire there they name streets and towns after them. What a joke.
These are the responses I envisioned from people who will look at the cover and the title and not much more.
 
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