tOSU Indiscretions of May (Mega Merge)

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

"You've got to send some kind of message that you're not going to tolerate this stuff," said Jim Lachey, who earned all-conference honors as an offensive tackle in 1984 and was named to the Pro Bowl three times in an 11-year NFL career.

"I know coaches treat you as family, and, believe me, that's the way to do it. But there comes a time and place to say 'no' and take that opportunity away."

I have to agree with Lachey and his comments. The bottom line is that Coach Tressel needs to make the punishment fit the crime but also ensure it is severe enough to deter further incidents. I don't believe that is happening right now.

But Logan believes the failure to reign in players could ultimately lead to Tressel's demise.

"Winning takes care of a lot of things, but eventually that wears thin," he said. "Jim is going to have to start showing improvement (off the field), quite frankly."

Although I am not a big Jeff Logan fan, I have to agree with his remarks, Tressel needs to make some changes or eventually he will lose his job. Before everyone blasts me for my opinion, I want to make it clear that I love Coach T and everything that he is doing for the program but the reality is, fair or unfair that he is held responsible for his kids actions in the public eye and by the media, not to mention the athletic director.

This could possibly cost him his job at Ohio State if things do not change quickly in my opinion. I do not believe he should lose his job for these incidents but history has shown that other coaches around the country have faced this situation and it cost them their jobs.

 

[KevinBuck]

Johnson doesn't think the episode should have reached that stage.

"You can't tell me it would have been wrong, if the university police thought one of the guys was doing something, to let the coach know first," he said. "What's morally wrong with that? I think that's what his job was supposed to be."



I agree with PJ here--it wouldn't be "sweeping under the rug" or anything for this campus cop to notify JT that one of his players was under investigation, well before any known crime took place, so that the coach could talk with Skeete and attempt to steer him clear of potential trouble. Campus cops are essentially colleagues of OSU athletic coaches and should be to some degree focused on the same mission of helping students develop into upstanding adult citizens.

 

[gregorylee]

Johnson doesn't think the episode should have reached that stage.

"You can't tell me it would have been wrong, if the university police thought one of the guys was doing something, to let the coach know first," he said. "What's morally wrong with that? I think that's what his job was supposed to be."



I agree with PJ here--it wouldn't be "sweeping under the rug" or anything for this campus cop to notify JT that one of his players was under investigation, well before any known crime took place, so that the coach could talk with Skeete and attempt to steer him clear of potential trouble. Campus cops are essentially colleagues of OSU athletic coaches and should be to some degree focused on the same mission of helping students develop into upstanding adult citizens.

I would dissagree here, I don't think (if the charges are true) Skeete should get any break at all. Trafficking is a serious offense. Haw and Schafer are guilty of being stupid, and I could see a little more lenience in thier cases, but not Skeete, he's screwed.

 

[KevinBuck]

I didn't say he should get a break--I only agreed with Pete Johnson that the campus cop should've let JT know one of his players was involved in an ongoing situation they were investigating, BEFORE any crimes took place. Maybe just a quick note: hey, we're going to be pulling this sting soon, so get your guy's nose clean or he'll be busted too. This is a scholarship student-athlete, and there's no benefit to anyone (including the university) in his arrest. Now he's gone and his lifeplan is pretty well altered, all because of a few ounces of weed.


LightningRod, I think you are incredibly naive if you think more weed busts in the dorms would make it any safer for students, or any more difficult for them to obtain more weed. This is a hardy plant that grows in closets: there's no stopping it, so you'd just be filling up jails with regular kids.

 

[LightningRod]

Then place me in the naive column. There are people who will sell irregardless of the consequences. And there are people who will think twice when clamps start to tighten. I believe there is a duty for university police to do what is in their power to reduce the supplies of illegal drugs. I could care less if students go elsewhere to find it. Finally, I don't want to fill the jails with "regular kids" - only the drug sellers.

 

[BB73]

I didn't say he should get a break--I only agreed with Pete Johnson that the campus cop should've let JT know one of his players was involved in an ongoing situation they were investigating, BEFORE any crimes took place. Maybe just a quick note: hey, we're going to be pulling this sting soon, so get your guy's nose clean or he'll be busted too. This is a scholarship student-athlete, and there's no benefit to anyone (including the university) in his arrest. Now he's gone and his lifeplan is pretty well altered, all because of a few ounces of weed.

LightningRod, I think you are incredibly naive if you think more weed busts in the dorms would make it any safer for students, or any more difficult for them to obtain more weed. This is a hardy plant that grows in closets: there's no stopping it, so you'd just be filling up jails with regular kids.

My opinion is that the word naive is a more appropriate description of the opinion that undercover police should or would notify someone outside of law enforcement before they're ready to make their arrests. That sounds like a great way to blow the cover off their operation, and waste a few months of police work.

 

[KevinBuck]

You're certainly not alone in your views, but really, that's beside the point here. I just think JT's mission of helping young people develop, along with the university's mission and their scholarship given to Skeete, he could be the type of student that gets the same kind of scrutiny before an arrest as after. These campus "cops" knew for quite some time he was potentially involved, and they could have "protected and served" him better by alerting JT to that potential. I think cops could likewise warn parents when their minor children are in similar jeopardy: the point is to help people, not just to fill arrest quotas and make headlines.

My opinion is that the word naive is a more appropriate description of the opinion that undercover police should or would notify someone outside of law enforcement before they're ready to make their arrests. That sounds like a great way to blow the cover off their operation, and waste a few months of police work.

I don't really count several months of these pseudo-cops living in dorms as real police work, especially when the net result is a couple baggies' worth of weed: even "21 Jump Street" went after real bad guys...

 

[LloydSev]

Gee.. following your thinking.. cops should put up a big sign that reads "HEY SLOW THE FUCK DOWN I'M CLOCKING YOU ABOUT 1/4 MILE DOWN THE ROAD" on a big road construction sign so that he doesn't need to needlessly pull you over...

 

[stxbuck]

IMO, a lot of the problems stem from Tressel's penchant for secrecy. He does not like the public to know what is going on in his program except for academics and the product on Saturday afternoon. Tressel could help himself immensely if he issues a public code of conduct, and holds players to it. This situation is going to force Tessel's hand-he will not be able to operate in the shadows-and will have to be more forthcoming about disciplinary issues. Getting publicly called out by two prominent ex-Buckeyes is not good-it is the first criticism I have heard by former players.
As far as Rudzinski's comments-it is the player's fault, get off the coach's back-I think everyone has to understand where he is coming from-Rudzinski was a responsible player under Coop, and enjoyed the freedom he had. I think he is mad, because he realizes that the actions of a few will take away/place scrutiny on the partying of the majority of players who manage to do so under the radar. Players like him support the coach,IMO, because they do not need the foot in the rear, and constant supervision, that, unfortunately, other players do, and are disappointed when the heat comes down on them unfairly.

Gee.. following your thinking.. cops should put up a big sign that reads "HEY SLOW THE FUCK DOWN I'M CLOCKING YOU ABOUT 1/4 MILE DOWN THE ROAD" on a big road construction sign so that he doesn't need to needlessly pull you over...

Actually, they do do that-enforcement zone signs, unmanned radar signs,etc. Don't know about drug stings tho......

 

[BB73]

A response from AD Gene Smith, per the Cincinnati Enquirer:

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050525/SPT01/505250366/1063/SPT

Bucks' new AD promises stern measures
Smith to tackle law-breaking players

By Dustin Dow
Enquirer staff writer

Since he arrived at Ohio State in 2001, football coach Jim Tressel has delivered a national championship and has defeated Michigan three times in four seasons, establishing himself as an impeccable figure to OSU fans.
His time in Columbus also has coincided with a rash of players running afoul of the law, a dark side of the program that new Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith is determined to clean up. The first step toward doing that will begin today, Smith said, with a press conference in Columbus to address the behavioral issues within the football program.

Three players in the past two weeks have been criminally charged, each of the cases involving substance abuse or drug trafficking. That brings the number of players to face criminal charges to 17 since Tressel has been the coach at Ohio State.

The most recent arrest occurred early Saturday when defensive lineman Tim Schafer was arrested on a charge of disorderly conduct following a fight outside of a bar.

The football program is too visible, Smith said in a meeting with The Enquirer Tuesday, to allow such problems to continue.

"Our football program has already branded our institution," Smith said. "That's why it's important that we clean up our behavioral problems so we have that right brand."

Smith was hired March 5 to replace Andy Geiger, who will retire at the end of the academic year. Since then, Smith has had to deal with some of the more unsavory elements of running one of the nation's most successful athletic departments. NCAA investigators recently determined that Ohio State had committed nine violations, primarily in men's basketball but also in football and women's basketball.

The behavior of football players , needed immediate attention.

"We had a meeting (Monday) morning with our football coach, and we talked about strategy to curb this behavior," Smith said. "Then he had a meeting (Tuesday) with his team. They will have a press conference (today) - the team, the coach and share what they are doing - what they are going to do."

The off-field culture within the program must improve, Smith said. If it doesn't, eventually Tressel's job could be in jeopardy.

"In the end, the reality is, no recruit's parents are going to send their sons and daughters to a program like that, so you're going to end up with a bunch of kids doing that type of thing," Smith said. "That type of program attracts a certain type of kids. So, yeah, a coach's job falls on the line, including mine if I continue to allow a program to emerge and operate that way. In the end, it's still not all about wins and losses. The fans will shoot me because they want to win, but that's not why I'm here. We will not tolerate consistent, poor behavior by our student-athletes."

 

[KevinBuck]

Gee.. following your thinking.. cops should put up a big sign that reads "HEY SLOW THE FUCK DOWN I'M CLOCKING YOU ABOUT 1/4 MILE DOWN THE ROAD" on a big road construction sign so that he doesn't need to needlessly pull you over...

If the only ones driving on that road are young people and scholarship athletes, then yeah, that's pretty much what I'm saying... I know I was fortunate to get a few second chances during my own time at OSU.

 

[kippy1040]

Yeah I agree with Lighning Rod on this issue also. Since our N/C episode of 2002 our fine Institution of Ohio State is really taking a huge hit, and naturally all eyes are on us NOW. Especially under the microscope of ESPN, the "Big Brother of all sports fans".

Our campus police of Columbus may be running a tight ship as compared to other campus police and thier own policies. But we never hear what goes on in the campuses of So/Cal, Georgia, LSU, Notre Dame, Michigan, Florida and hundreds more campuses that have these incidents going on in thier policing affairs. I think the Columbus campus police should be commended for thier work but then again they may have one or two bad apples of thier own, who really don't look out for the good of thier community. I have been laying low on alot of these Issues that have surfaced since the beginning of May.

It makes my heart sick with vomit that these incidents keep coming up under "Tressels Watch". Mainly because i believed in the man and what he is capable of doing for this University. I live here in Florida and have to sit here and take all this crap from local sportstalk show host who keep driving the dagger deep about how "Tressel is running a filthy program up in Columbus and how the city of Youngstown is a CessPool " Yes it is obvious that they do not know what in the hell they are talking about, but believe me gentlemen - I have nothing to back up any of all this. How in the hell do you do it.

I wish Jim Tressel would really come out with a statement soon and set a precident of stricter guidelines and rules real quick. For just once, i want to see him really get mad and pissed off at someone. Our society of younger generation is running loose and very rampant. Not only in columbus and Ohio but everywhere. Someone or something has to step up to the plate and deliver or else this country of ours is going to go to hell in a hand basket. Amen.

 

[BuckeyeNation27]

wow.....how much weed have you smoked kevbuck?

 

[osugrad21]

They will have a press conference (today) - the team, the coach and share what they are doing - what they are going to do

Should be interesting...any word on the time?

The off-field culture within the program must improve, Smith said. If it doesn't, eventually Tressel's job could be in jeopardy.

Love the speculation, but please stick to the facts as reported.

 

[stxbuck]

how the city of Youngstown is a CessPool " .

Well, they are right on that.....Canfield and Poland are nice places tho...I was very impressed w/ Seminary's football and band programs when we played them up there...